Chapter 81 Can We Escape Unscathed in the End?
Steven was caught off guard.
Maybe it was because he had dinner with Nancy tonight, but all his doubts and jealousy seemed to disappear.
He sighed, feeling defeated. "Babe, why do you keep bringing this up? It was really just a coincidence."
Yeah, he always used "coincidence" as an excuse to brush her off.
All her questions were stuck in her throat, as she didn't bother to explain.
That kiss from Steven just now, though it was just a light touch, made her feel incredibly uncomfortable, even though she instinctively turned her head away.
She clenched her fist, forcing herself not to wipe her face.
She glanced at him sideways and snapped, "What? You can have coincidences with her, but I can't have them with Benjamin?"
With that, she stormed upstairs.
"That's not what I meant."
Steven hurried after her, explaining, "Babe, you're really misunderstanding me. I was just curious."
Rachel opened the bedroom door, took a couple of steps inside, and blocked the doorway with her body, her gaze indifferent. "Are you still curious now?"
"Not curious anymore."
Rachel nodded and was about to close the door.
Steven quickly stopped her, pleading, "Babe, I know I messed up last time. When can I come back to the master bedroom?"
Rachel frowned.
It had taken her so long to find a suitable excuse to kick him out of the master bedroom.
How could she let him come back?
"Aren't you sleeping just fine in the guest room? Move, I need to take a shower."
As she said this, her gaze flickered and she noticed a lipstick stain on the right back collar of his white shirt.
The stain wasn't big, but that coral pink color stood out sharply against the white shirt.
She usually used more vibrant shades of orange and red.
Moreover, since she "got pregnant," she hadn't touched her makeup.
That coral pink was exactly the shade Nancy always wore.
But how could it be such a coincidence that the lipstick got on a spot only visible to others?
Rachel looked into Steven's tender and loving eyes.
She slowly raised her hand and pointed at his collar. "Is that lipstick?"
Steven was stunned, instinctively pulling the collar over. When he saw the pink lipstick, his eyes froze, and his heart skipped a beat.
He quickly regained his composure and frowned. "It must have accidentally rubbed off in the elevator this afternoon."
"The company's elevator had a malfunction this afternoon. Seven or eight of us were stuck in there for about ten minutes. Fortunately, nothing happened."
Rachel still couldn't detect any guilt or remorse on his face.
But that was fine.
Since Nancy had deliberately left the mark to stir trouble between her and Steven, she wouldn't let Nancy's "kindness" go to waste.
She showed a displeased expression. "You're so tall. Even if a woman accidentally rubbed her lipstick on you, it would be on your chest or back, not your collar. Could someone have done it on purpose to disgust me?"
Steven knew exactly whose lipstick it was.
Last night, after dinner, Nancy had coyly asked him to hold a mirror for her while she reapplied her lipstick, asking if it looked good.
Steven's eyes darkened a bit, and he said in a serious tone, "I'll check the elevator's surveillance footage at the office tomorrow to see if anyone did it on purpose. If they did, the company won't tolerate such deceitful behavior."
Rachel looked at his expression and asked suspiciously, "Are you sure you didn't provoke some woman?"
Steven was taken aback and smiled helplessly. "I'm really being wronged here."
Wronged?
He had no shame saying that!
Rachel sneered inwardly. She had warned him, and now she didn't want to waste any more words on him. She responded coolly, "I'm tired and need to rest."
With that, she closed the door, shutting out Steven's voice.
She went straight to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and squeezed some cleanser onto her face, scrubbing vigorously.
She wished she could scrub off a layer of skin where Steven had touched her.
She didn't stop until her left cheek was red and painful.The next morning.
When Rachel arrived at Stargaze Gallery, she met Carol at the entrance and told her about the car.
There was a meeting about the joint exhibition planning in the morning, so the car could only be picked up in the afternoon.
Carol smiled. "No worries. No one's going to steal it. I'll pick it up when I have time."
As they talked and walked to the elevator, Nancy saw them and greeted with a smile, "Good morning, Rachel, Carol."
Rachel looked up and met her gaze. "Morning."
Carol nodded slightly, her attitude distant.
Nancy didn't mind and walked over to Rachel, affectionately linking arms with her. "How did you sleep after drinking the juice last night?"
Rachel frowned, feeling disgusted and repulsed by her touch, and immediately pulled her arm away.
"Fine. I didn't drink the juice."
Nancy was taken aback but asked, "Why not? Didn't you like it?"
"It was okay."
Nancy's heart tightened with anxiety. "So, what did you do with it?"
"I threw it away."Nancy's heart sank.
The money was one thing, but she had gone to great lengths to get that radioactive substance.
She bit her lip, a flash of malice in her eyes.
Her chest filled with intense resentment and anger, but she had to maintain a gentle smile.
"If you don't like juice, maybe try coffee or tea. I'll get you a cup this afternoon."
Rachel raised an eyebrow subtly, her gaze falling on Nancy's face.
After the juice incident, she avoided anything Nancy offered.
But she needed to give Nancy a chance to slip up so she could get evidence.
Nancy felt uneasy under Rachel's sharp gaze. "What's wrong? Don't you like it?"
Rachel looked away, neither agreeing nor refusing. "It's fine."
Nancy felt Rachel had become unpredictable, utterly shattering her previous impression. She could barely recognize the person she thought she knew.
Even though Rachel still appeared gentle and kind, Nancy couldn't read her emotions, and sometimes a single look from Rachel could terrify her.
Nancy clenched her fists tighter, trying to calm herself, but a sense of discomfort and agitation lingered. It seemed like Rachel had once again outmaneuvered Nancy in this matter.
When the elevator arrived, Nancy stepped in and said, "By the way, Rachel, my boyfriend and I found a great restaurant last night. The food and atmosphere are fantastic. You should try it with Steven sometime, or we could go together."
Her tone was soft and casual, her clear and lively eyes reflecting off Rachel's gentle but somewhat cold face.
Rachel, however, picked up on the boastfulness and pride in her words, especially when she emphasized "boyfriend."
Rachel never thought she would one day find herself in a conflict of interest with Nancy. And that interest was her husband, Steven.
Rachel thought sarcastically to herself.
Since Nancy wanted to show off so much, Rachel decided to help her publicize her boyfriend.
"I saw your feed yesterday. Your boyfriend seems very considerate. After hearing so much about him, I suddenly feel like he and Steven have a lot in common. Even his hands look just like Steven's, like in that photo on your phone wallpaper."
She smiled gracefully. "Let's have dinner together sometime. They must meet. People who are so alike are bound to get along well."
Nancy's smile froze.
She couldn't tell if it was guilt or something else, but she felt like Rachel's words had a hidden meaning, especially the part about the hands.
What did she mean by that?
Was Rachel trying to suggest that people might mistake her boyfriend for Steven?
There were two other people from the display team in the elevator with them.
Nancy couldn't help but feel a twinge of doubt.
After the incident with Sarah, her relationships at Stargaze Gallery had plummeted.
She couldn't stand the scrutinizing looks from others or the fear of being misunderstood and gossiped about.
Thinking of this, her resentment towards Rachel deepened.
Her stiff smile softened, and she said cheerfully, "Sure, let's get together next time. He owes you a meal anyway. We'll make it an expensive one."
Rachel looked at her meaningfully and joked, "I just hope your boyfriend isn't too busy. We've talked about this meal so many times, but he always has an excuse. Is he afraid to meet me? I don't bite."
Nancy's expression turned awkward for a moment. She bit her lip and explained, "Of course not. He's just been busy with a new project at work. Once things settle down, I'll arrange a time for us to have dinner. He definitely needs to make it up to you. You're my best friend, after all. He can't neglect you."
The elevator dinged and stopped at the third floor. The doors slowly opened.
Rachel flashed a mocking smile as she stepped out. "I'll be looking forward to it."
As they parted ways in the office area, Nancy's eyes were filled with hatred as she watched Rachel's back.
She instinctively touched her stomach.
Rachel's baby had to make way for her future child!
When Rachel reached her office door, her phone rang.
[There's a friendly race at Ignition Zone Racetrack today. Asher's Velocity Racing Club will be there. Asher won't be racing, but he'll be present. Hestia got wind of it and is already on her way.]
She was taken aback.
It was already past check-in time at Stargaze Gallery.
She hadn't noticed Hestia's workstation when she passed by the curation team, but Hestia usually greeted her with a smile.
She furrowed her brows and turned to Carol. "Did Hestia come in today?"
Carol was also caught off guard by the question. She quickly pulled out her tablet and checked the clock-in records for the curation team.
Finally, she shook her head. "There's no record of her clocking in this morning."
She handed the tablet to Rachel, showing a leave request submitted by Hestia last night around nine. "She submitted a leave request for today. HR probably hasn't approved it yet."
Rachel's frown deepened.
She nodded and said, "You can go back to your work," then pushed open her office door and went inside.
She was about to message Benjamin to remind Asher when another text popped up.
[Heather bribed Micah Porter, the team leader of Velocity Racing Club, shortly after Asher was released from prison.]
Micah was someone Asher had met while racing. They were about the same age, and Asher had been somewhat of a benefactor to him.
After Velocity Racing Club was founded, Asher brought Micah into the team, and he quickly became the team leader.
He was often by Asher's side, so it was no wonder he knew Asher's whereabouts so well.
This situation was reminiscent of Nancy's betrayal.
Rachel and Asher had treated them with genuine care, yet they not only failed to appreciate it but also plotted against them.
Asher had recently been through a prison ordeal. Although Rachel hadn't noticed anything unusual during their last interaction, Benjamin mentioned that there was a psychologist living in the Holden family house.
That incident must have cast a significant shadow over Asher, a privileged young man.
Rachel's focus, however, wasn't on that. She stared at the text, her brows furrowing.
Heather had bribed Micah shortly after Asher's release, intending for Hestia to take advantage of the situation.
Did this mean she had her sights set on Asher for a while and had some understanding of the men in Dawnlight City's elite circles?
Heather's ruthlessness and cold-bloodedness were apparent from the day Rachel learned about the underground operations of Radiant Beauty Spa.
But she was still shocked by Heather's decisiveness and foresight.
Rachel's breathing became erratic, and her heart pounded uncontrollably.
If it weren't for the tips and guidance from this unknown number, would she really have been a match for Heather, even if she discovered the underground operations?
Would she have come out unscathed in the end?
Or would it have been mutual destruction?
She didn't know.
And she didn't want to dwell on such unrealistic hypotheticals, adding unnecessary worry and anxiety.In this situation, she had the upper hand.
So, she couldn't panic.
Rachel steadied herself, trying to control her shaking hands and calm her racing heart. She opened her chat with Benjamin and told him everything she had just learned.