Chapter 75
Ava glanced at her.
"I'm not interested in your sugar baby situation. Since we ran into each other today, let me give you some advice - tone it down when you get excited at night. The neighbors keep coming to me about it. We all have some dignity to maintain."
Sarah's face turned green for a few seconds.
"How do you know? Did you install surveillance cameras in the house?"
Sarah's first reaction was that this woman had been spying on her, and she couldn't help feeling panicked. She didn't really care what Ava saw, but if William found out, she'd be completely screwed.
"I'm not as bored as you. Just reminding you that walls have ears. Don't let the whole building know you're using someone else's place for your affairs."
Sarah caught on quickly. From what Ava said, she realized there were no cameras in the house - Ava wouldn't dare. With that thought, she immediately changed her tune.
"Can't help it. William wants me so badly, over and over again. He never treated you like that, did he? Have you two even done it? Are you still a virgin?"
"You're really something. We're all adults here - what's the point of lying like that? William never left home yesterday. Whatever man you're hiding in there, does he know about it?
Can't you even afford to rent your own place? Using your boss's house to keep a man?"
Sarah stamped her feet in anger. "Ava, what are you so smug about? William and I have over ten years of history. He'll marry me sooner or later."
"Well, you just wait then. When your baby is born, let's see if he'll accept it."
Ava glanced at Sarah's flat stomach with a meaningful smile. Whatever she was carrying, it sure wasn't showing after all this time.
Sarah knew Ava had seen through her fake pregnancy lie. Shameless as ever, she shot back,
"If you're so great, why don't you have one? You've been married to him for three years and still haven't had a child. What right do you have to mock others?"
"Whether I have kids or not, I'm still Mrs. Ava Morgan."
Ava let out a light laugh and walked straight through a door, leaving Sarah fuming outside. When she returned to the private room, the waiters had already started bringing out dishes.
Michael was waiting for her at the door.
"Ava, William is next door. Should we join tables?"
His words hit her like a bucket of cold water. She'd just run into Sarah in the bathroom - her gut told her this was no coincidence.
He'd clearly told her he had a business dinner. Why was Sarah there?
While she was lost in thought, William had already come out from the next room. He froze when he saw her, then spoke after a few seconds.
"Michael, come over to our side."
Ava stood rooted to the spot, her legs feeling like they were filled with lead, impossibly heavy.
She kept telling herself this was just a coincidence. They just happened to be eating at the same restaurant.
"Ava, let's go over."
Michael's voice pulled her back. Ava felt like her soul had been sucked out as she woodenly followed Michael into the next room.
Sure enough, Sarah was sitting inside. When she saw Ava, she lifted her chin with a smug expression, as if declaring war.
Besides Sarah, Lewis was also in the room.
Ava's heart skipped a beat. She regretted agreeing to come out for dinner with Michael today. This wasn't dinner - it was a battlefield.
Lewis's eyes lit up when he saw her. He immediately invited her to sit next to him and called the waiter to bring new utensils.
A shadow of displeasure crossed William's face. He grabbed Ava's wrist and pulled her to sit beside him, unconsciously using too much force and leaving a red mark on her wrist.
Seeing how protective William was of Ava, Lewis teased without understanding the situation,
"William, you're really stingy!"
Ava's heart jumped to her throat. She glanced sideways at William - his eyes looked ready to kill.
Lewis had just hit on his wife right in front of him, then called him stingy. He was practically trying to provoke him on purpose.
Of course, William wasn't pleased.
"If you want to talk business, let's talk. Otherwise, forget it."
People always came to him for favors - he never had to watch others' faces.
Lewis had no idea why he was angry and looked confused. William was the one who'd asked him out to pick a celebrity with a good image and character from the Jones Media for a brand endorsement. They hadn't even taken a bite of food, and he was already turning hostile? He'd only invited his sister to sit next to him - he hadn't done anything inappropriate, had he?
"Come on, William, is your need for control really that strong? I can't even talk to your sister?"
If she couldn't even talk to men, how would she ever get married?
William frowned and turned to stare at Ava with surprise and accusation in his eyes.
"Your sister!" What a joke! How many men had this woman been flirting with behind his back?
Ava felt her scalp tingle under his stare.
"Mr. Jones, you haven't touched the drink I poured for you earlier. I've already finished mine."
Sarah, afraid the two would have an unpleasant scene, jumped in to ease the tension. She'd come with a mission today - she had to sign the Jones Media's most popular celebrity.
First, to get the hottest spokesperson for her upcoming work so it would sell like crazy, and she could make a name for herself in the design world. Second, to show off in front of William - he hadn't looked at her properly in ages.
If she didn't prove her worth, given William's recent attitude toward her, she couldn't be sure he wouldn't just give her a sum of money and tell her to get out of his sight for good.
Lewis picked up his glass and drained it in one gulp. That topic was temporarily dropped.
"Mr. Jones, could we have Grace endorse our brand?"
Sarah refilled Lewis's wine glass. "The Morgan Group is an international luxury brand. Using Grace as our spokesperson would be a win-win, right?"
Lewis smiled. That made sense in theory, but he didn't really want to deal with this woman. William had asked him out, but was letting this woman do all the talking - it didn't sit right.
His gaze swept past William and finally landed on the girl beside him.
"I want to sign this contract with her!"
He pointed at Ava, thinking he'd test the limits of this Emerald City overlord today. If he was going to be his brother-in-law someday, he couldn't be watching his face all the time, could he?
William immediately threw down his utensils and pulled Ava up to leave. He really didn't care about anyone's feelings, including this old classmate's.
"Something came up at home. You all enjoy your meal."
Ava was hauled out of the restaurant like a chicken and tossed into the passenger seat.
"You have three minutes to explain. I suggest you think carefully before you speak!"
Ava's arm hurt from his grip. Her skin had always been delicate - smooth red marks appeared on her fair, tender arm. She looked down and rubbed her arm, feeling upset herself, especially when she spotted a purple hair tie on the passenger seat - Sarah's favorite style.
She opened the glove compartment to find a horn comb, a small mirror, makeup remover...
"Didn't you say you were going to a business dinner tonight?"
A business dinner with Sarah?
William blocked the passenger door, looking down at her from above.
"I told you to explain, not to question me back. Didn't you say you'd come home for dinner? Why are you with Michael?"
Just thinking about it made him angry. He couldn't count how many times he'd warned her not to get too close to Michael. This woman hadn't taken his words seriously at all, and was still making private dinner plans with him after work.