Chapter 273 How Many Adults Are Pure?
"No, if someone has to get out of the car, it should definitely be me. I'm the outsider, I'll get out." Thalia didn't want to jinx things.
She still vividly remembered the miserable scene from last time when she touched the guy's hand and he scrubbed it with a toilet brush.
Amara was speechless.
She hesitated, glancing at William, but was shot down by the man's deadly look.
Amara laughed awkwardly. "How could Thalia be an outsider? I'll get out."
She should be the one to suffer this hardship, how could she let Thalia go through it?
Thalia was puzzled.
Finn drove shakily and raised the rear partition to prevent the crossfire from reaching him.
"I'm giving you a chance to explain yourself," William said.
Thalia replied, "I didn't do anything. What's there to explain?"
"William, you studied law. Don't tell me you don't understand this basic thing? What's the difference between a crime committed and a crime not yet committed?"
The man suddenly laughed. He knew it - with Thalia's unchangeable nature, giving her a chance was just letting her mess with his head.
The man nodded repeatedly in anger. "Fine, fine, fine!"
So she wouldn't change, huh?
William leaned back in his seat, casually rolling up his sleeves. His slender fingers moved to his shirt buttons. The man's features were intense - his inherent self-discipline and restraint forming a stark contrast with his current unrestrained desire. Deep and reserved.
This kind of man could make Thalia lose her mind anytime.
In William's words, this was exactly her type.
The man removed his watch and tossed it by the door. The band made a crisp sound as it hit the car door.
Having been intimate so many times, Thalia knew exactly what he was planning to do next.
"Wait... wait a second." Thalia interrupted his movement.
"What else do you have to say?" The man's voice was controlled, restrained and husky.
"I came here today for real business."
"Three minutes."
In other words, he was only giving her three minutes to explain. The economic development zone was an hour's drive from Mistwood Hill, and they'd only covered a little over half the journey.
The remaining forty minutes would be just enough to have sex all the way back.
"Tonight's gathering was organized by Kurt's wife Zephyrine. She's brought together many wives of Emerald City's elite. It's advertised as a singles party open to divorced women, but that's not really the case. The wife of that big shot you met last time when I went to the bathhouse to find you - she's in on it too."
William frowned slightly.
Thalia continued, "My mom told me about this. She said Kurt couldn't get what he wanted from you, so he seems to be rallying these wealthy wives to form some new scam."
As Thalia spoke, she shrank her neck and glanced at William. "See, I'm innocent. Can you let me off now?"
"So you came to figure this out?" William didn't believe Thalia's motives could be that pure.
Hearing this, Thalia shrugged indifferently. "How many adults are truly pure?"
William rubbed his temples. His anger had barely surfaced before Thalia pushed it back down. "So what's their goal?"
Thalia spread her hands. "How would I know? Why don't you send me back? If I stay the whole night, I'll definitely figure it all out for you."
The man glanced at her.
Thalia pouted. "Don't underestimate the cash these wealthy wives have on hand. If their husbands don't mess around, they have money. If their husbands do mess around, they have even more money. Her gathering isn't that big - if she brings in twenty people, ten million dollars each is several hundred million. It won't solve the big problem, but it can help with urgent needs."
"Plus, Zephyrine has always had a good reputation in the ladies' circle, never making enemies. Add Kurt's image as Emerald City's top businessman, and getting money from these women would be easy for her."
"You wanted to slowly take over Kurt's company, but didn't expect he'd already found a way out. Doesn't that count as the duck flying away just as you were about to eat it?" Thalia leaned against the car door, casually running her fingers through her hair.
Her posture was relaxed. After talking so much, she was a bit thirsty and wanted some water.
She felt around the door for a while but found nothing.
William casually grabbed a bottle of water, opened it, and handed it to her. "How does your mom know about this?"
"She's in the middle-aged ladies' circle too. Someone must have mentioned it."
Before Hayden died, Grace was the wife of Emerald City's richest man.
Though she hadn't been in the circle lately, her connections remained. Plus, now that she was CEO, plenty of people came to her with things they couldn't decide on. One thing led to another, and she found out.
The car drove into Mistwood Hill. As they were about to get out, William remembered something. "How did you get in? If it's advertised as only open to divorced wealthy women, how did you meet the requirements?"
"I... this... my mom's invitation."
William clearly didn't believe her. "Call Layla. If you want me to let her go, figure out who's inside."
Thalia was speechless.
"What does Layla have to do with this? You're asking an outsider to get involved in elite circle business. If someone finds out, she has no backing - a little money won't save her life. Besides..." Thalia opened the car door and got out, following close behind William, chattering on as she prepared to reason with him. Suddenly, an apple flew through the air and hit her shoulder, bouncing onto the car and triggering the alarm.
Thalia choked, staring blankly at Harper standing under the eaves, not knowing whether to advance or retreat.
She trembled as she moved behind William, clutching his clothes and blinking at Harper.
William was speechless.
"Thalia, is William bullying you?" Harper rushed over to them, glaring angrily at William.
"No... no!" Thalia replied.
"Really not?"
"Really not!" Thalia shook her head firmly.
William took a deep breath, glanced at Harper, then looked at Amara in the distance. His warning gaze practically pierced her soul. "Finn, take them both back," William said.
"Got it!" This dismissal came so decisively that Finn didn't dare delay.
"Wait! Since we're already here, stay the night before leaving. It's getting late anyway," Thalia quickly stopped Finn's movement.
If Amara left and William wanted to deal with her tonight, she wouldn't have any backup.