They were steadily staring at each other; never in their wildest dreams would they have guessed that a man could cause their friendship to be tested. It made Heather recall the time when they were young. Myra once had a fight with me over Matthias. Perhaps this is fated! Matthias must be the man God had arranged to ruin my friendship with Myra. She bit her lip while she looked especially upset.
“The news is not true. Matthias was…” Heather trailed off as she swallowed the rest of her sentence. Maybe this is what Matthias wants. I won’t fall into his trap the second time.
This time, she was extra careful while guessing Matthias’ thoughts and motives. On the other side, Myra listened to Heather and looked on in confusion and concern because Heather’s sentence sounded ambiguous.
Myra tightly hugged Heather. “Did he force himself on you? Let’s demand justice from him.” Heather’s pause had opened her words to interpretation, so it was only natural for Myra to jump to the worst conclusion.
“Cough, cough…” Heather started to cough. What on earth is Myra thinking? She tried to catch her breath. It looks like things are getting worse as I try to explain myself. “No, you are overthinking things. It was just an accident between him and me. The Apple Gazette is just trying to gain traction.” She recalled Myra’s untrusting expression earlier, so she didn’t mention the part of Matthias’ ulterior motive. Why would anyone believe me if I can’t produce any proof?
“No way. You shouldn’t just take the blame. He needs to bear the responsibility even if it is an accident.” Myra was focused on the first part of Heather’s sentence, so she was determined not to let Matthias take advantage of Heather.
The color started to drain from Heather’s face. It seems like the more I explain myself, the worse things are. Somehow, I have a feeling that we are going off topic.
“Myra, nothing happened between Matthias and me. I might have spent the night at his house after getting drunk and that is most probably when the paparazzi snapped my pictures. They were exaggerating the story. I will be suing The Apple Gazette for slander,” she explained the situation patiently to Myra. Currently, this is the best explanation. I am not planning on revisiting this matter, but when the opportunity presents itself in the future, Matthias will repay the humiliation I’ve endured a hundred fold.
Myra suspiciously regarded Heather. Heather is definitely the kind of person to keep quiet while being taken advantage of, but my instincts are telling me that things aren’t as simple as they seem. I am sure that there is something amiss. Her current expression is enough proof that there is something wrong with the situation. Usually, she would not act in such a way. If nothing happened between Matthias and herself, she would not have reacted in a suspicious manner.
“Trust me,” Heather said as she pointed at herself. Myra had no choice, but to nod in response at that moment.
She had nodded because she just couldn’t deny Heather’s sincere gaze. I should calm Heather down for now because it has been a long time since I have last seen her lose control. Well, judging by that, maybe Matthias is truly the special one. It doesn’t matter whether anything happened between Matthias and Heather that night because it seems like she treats him differently compared to other men.
“I trust you. Heather, I’ll drop this matter and I shall stop asking you about it.” Myra tried to calm Heather down since she was always a considerate person.
Heather smiled in relief and she instantly felt relaxed. To be friends with Myra for such a long time, I would say that the most important thing is that she understands me well. Therefore, she will never subject me to more troubles.
“Actually, it is a simple issue, but the newspaper went overboard.” She snatched the newspaper from Myra angrily before tossing it into the trash can.
“Yes, I will not let this slide. I must sue them for harassment.” Myra memorized the name of the newspaper. She was determined not to let the matter slide, especially since they tried to ruin Heather’s reputation.
Myra carefully read every single word on the news and she even traced the report for two consecutive days. Their actions are deplorable. Besides, the language used was horrible, especially the part where they described Heather as a lowly woman. The news made it sound as if she was the one pursuing Matthias. Anybody with a sound mind knows that she is not that kind of person. It is rare for her to agree to somebody’s pursuit, so it is almost impossible for her to pursue someone else.
“In any case, why did you go on a date with Matthias? You even went to his house. Besides, your alcohol consumption…” Myra stopped speaking because she noticed that Heather’s expression soured. There were many doubtful points in Heather’s last statement, which had Myra thinking immediately.
“I do not know where to start.” Myra was feeling conflicted. One should not underestimate a woman’s curiosity and tendency to gossip—and she was no different.
“You do not have to say anything if it’s inconvenient for you. The main issue now is that I was confused about your being a visitor at the board of directors meeting at the Locke Group. Besides, it seems like the topic for discussion among the board that day was associated with the Stark Group. Well, Heather, can you tell me exactly what that was about?” Myra was not in a rush to know details about Heather’s date, but she had the right to know about the board of directors meeting because it was related to Stark Group after all. The strangest thing is this—why did Matthias take Heather along as a visitor in the meeting? I just can’t seem to see the connection.
Heather noticed that there was another newspaper on the table with an eye-catching photo right underneath the headline. It was a picture illustrating Heather and Matthias joking at the Locke Group’s board of directors meeting.
The angle was caught at the right moment because his gaze seemed tender and loving. How did he do that? She gritted her teeth in frustration. My guess is that Matthias deliberately kept trying to come closer to me that day in an attempt to get a shot of this intimate photo.
“The date and the meeting with the board of directors are related,” she sighed. Well, I think I have to be honest at this point.
Myra looked up at Heather and she gazed at the latter unwaveringly, as if urging her to spill the beans.
“I went looking for Matthias because I wanted to discuss issues pertaining to the collaboration between the Langston Group and Locke Group. We discussed a lot of things that day and I did not expect to feel like old friends at our first meeting. In any case, women can’t possibly hold their liquor as well as men. Hence, I drank too much without even realizing it,” Heather explained carefully and she was meticulous about the words she chose.
Myra was anticipating more, so she nodded to acknowledge that she was listening intently. In fact, she gazed at Heather in a serious manner.
“I had too much to drink, so I mentioned the Stark Group by accident.” Heather had a feeling that it would be difficult to fool Myra about her getting drunk. After all, she knows how well I hold my liquor. I hate my alcohol tolerance right now.
“When I woke up the next day, Matthias told me that they had a board of directors meeting that day itself and they would be discussing matters pertaining to the Stark Group. He asked if I might be interested in joining as a visitor. Since it was associated with the Stark Group, I figured I should attend with him. I did not think much of it, but I should have avoided the meeting.” Heather deliberately brought up the Stark Group issue as though it was by chance. I might have helped Myra in this matter, but I can’t possibly tell her directly that I went looking for Matthias for the Stark Group’s sake, can I?!
Myra lowered her head while listening to Heather’s explanation with extreme guilt. It turns out this is related to me. I am sure that Heather must have asked Matthias for help. There has been a drastic change in the Stark Group for the past two days. Dad has suddenly started to panic after losing Matthias’ support. I did not expect Heather to help us in this matter. I might not trust everything she has said so far, but I believe that she must have helped with the Stark Group’s issue.
“You didn’t have to do that,” Myra answered gloomily. “I do not want you to sacrifice yourself for me.” She was blaming herself now. It is all thanks to my incompetence. I can’t allow Heather to sacrifice for me.
“Stop imagining things and do not give me that look. Nothing happened between Matthias and me.” Heather suddenly felt that it would be useless to explain herself when she recalled her semi-naked picture where she was wearing Matthias’ shirt.
“Furthermore, I am not doing that deliberately for you. I was honestly looking for Matthias because of the Langston Family too. The Langston Group’s best working partner might be the Hart Group, but the Langstons and Hart Family are currently… In that case, the Locke Group is the next best working partner after the Hart Group. It was a meeting for the business. When have I ever sacrificed my chastity for money?” Heather had to make the last point clear because she could not endure Myra’s gaze, especially since it was related to Heather’s dignity.
“Yeah, I believe you. However, s*x while being drunk…” Myra glanced at Heather timidly, but she could not complete her sentence.
Just when Heather was about to respond with a comeback, she heard somebody knocking on the door. Hence, she looked at Myra helplessly. “I am perfectly fine. Do not overthink,” she repeated in tearless grief.
Then, she immediately shouted at the door, “Butler, what is it?” Robert would have just barged into the room, so that left the butler as the next possible person since he would be the only one to politely knock on the door.
“It is lunch time now. Old Master Langston has asked me to invite you both down for lunch,” the butler at the door respectfully answered.
Time had unknowingly passed by swiftly; Heather went forward to take the newspaper before tossing it into the trashcan without even glancing at it. After that, she held Myra’s hand to walk out the door. The butler was waiting for them at the door and he greeted them with a kind, friendly face.
The two women walked down the stairs while holding hands, just like when they were young. At that time, they wished they could quickly grow up, but fast forward to the present, they wished they could return to the time when they were innocent and simple.
Heather automatically massaged her temples when she saw the number of people at the dining table. She was not keen to face the cold and heartless relatives. Myra tugged at Heather’s arm lightly. “Lighten up. Something bad might have happened, but I will always be on your side.”
After the incident, Myra was even more grateful toward Heather and she was even more determined to treat Heather sincerely. I had an argument with Heather over Stark Group previously, so I wouldn’t want her to do too much for me. However, since she has done it, I can’t blame her; the only thing I can do right now is to be grateful to her. This is how humans have been interacting all this while. As the saying goes, a small, kind gesture should be repaid with a pool of kindness. I hope that I will have the chance to help Heather because I do not wish to always be a burden to her.
At the dining table, Heather’s eldest brother, Blake, leered at Myra, so Heather viciously glared at him. Among the Langstons, Heather hated him the most because he was a lecher. If he weren’t her older brother, she would have hired someone to beat him to death, just to avenge the women he had toyed with.
In any case, he had prepared a huge present for her out of courtesy too. She had just taken her seat when he smiled brilliantly at her. “Heather, you must not say that I do not dote on you. I brought a friend home today and I am sure that you’d be delighted to see him.”
Heather felt her anger rising at his mention of a friend. Blake always brings home his hooligan friends by claiming that it’s an introduction for me. He just wants me to get married.
The two of them were not fond of each other for as long as they could remember. They always felt unwelcomed whenever they were at home together. Thanks to Blake, she had been forced to go on blind dates many times.
Therefore, she harbored a deep resentment toward him! She wanted nothing more than to pierce his eyes with her fork each time he mentioned about bringing a friend home.
Smack! Heather slammed her utensils on the table and she abruptly pulled Myra up from her seat. “Let’s give up our seats since Blake has brought his friend home!”
