Never Too Far Novel

Chapter 841-850

What an unpredictable world. Yesterday, she was still in pain because her boyfriend had dumped her. Today, she experienced a near-death incident, and now, she was involved in such a terrifying matter.

“You…” Richard wanted to scold her, but he managed to stop himself from doing that.

He had no right to teach her a lesson.

“You can just look for it in my backyard. You should be able to find it there.” Angela wanted to solve this matter as soon as possible as she did not want to be involved in this kind of a mess at all.

“I’ll send someone to search your backyard. But until then, you can only stay here. You’re not allowed to go anywhere.”

“Why?”

“Do you think you’ll be safe after I catch those three criminals? There are still many of them from their organization. They will be looking frantically for you because of the lipstick. You better not be running around out there.”

“Then you should let my parents know too so they could watch out for themselves!” Angela urged.

“We’ll inform them. But for now, I’m going to take my men to search for that lipstick. Wait here for us before we make a decision.” After speaking, Richard got up and left.

Angela took a deep breath before remembering that she had her phone. After grabbing it, she turned it on. Suddenly, a message popped up. She quickly opened it and saw that it was a reply from her boyfriend, Dexter Kavinsky.

‘Angela, I’ve thought about it. Deep down, I still love you. Don’t worry! I’ve canceled my engagement, and I’m coming back to see you soon. Let’s get back together!’

“Dexter…” Angela burst into tears with excitement. She knew that he would not fall in love with another woman so easily.

‘Okay, I’ll wait for your return.’ She replied. Dropping her phone on her chest, her mind was instantly filled with sweet memories of Dexter.

Dexter had accompanied her for four years while she was studying abroad. Dexter was a warm gentleman in her heart. He came into her life like a ray of light, filling her heart with the love that her parents had failed to give her.

At this moment, Richard got into the car and went directly to Meyers Residence to search for the whereabouts of the lipstick.

In the car, his phone rang. He picked it up and glanced at the screen before answering, “Hello, Grandpa.”

“Don’t be late for the engagement party tonight.” Phillip reminded him at the other end of line.

“Something came up today. So, I might not be able to attend,” Richard responded in a low voice.

“No matter how busy you are, you better show up at the engagement banquet at 7 pm tonight. Otherwise, I will make you quit the army.” After that, Phillip hung up the phone angrily.

That was a threat.

In Phillip’s heart, the succession of the family was a top priority.

Richard let out a small sigh and propped his forehead with his fingers. It seemed difficult to go against his grandpa’s order this time. However, he never wanted to engage, not to mention with a woman he had never met.

In Meyers Residence, Richard arrived with his men. The maids were aware that they were here to deal with some security work. So, they did not stop them.

When Richard located Angela’s room from the backyard, he estimated the distance between the balcony of her room and the backyard to find out where the lipstick could have possibly been dropped. Then, he ordered his subordinates to search that specific area. They used an electronic detector to scan that area. However, all they could detect were some other metals but not the lipstick that they were looking for.

“Mr. Richard, they must have used special materials for the packaging that could shield the electronic equipment inside, so I think we can only search for it manually.”

Another subordinate came running over to report. “Mr. Richard, I have bad news. Because of the heavy rainstorm last night, the sewer system in the entire backyard was drained to a ditch over there, which connects to an underground drainage pipe about 300 feet away. If the lipstick was washed away, we might need to broaden our search area.”

Richard then looked up at the sky speechlessly. “Can anyone please explain to me what on earth was that woman thinking?”

This was probably something that all men could not figure out. Why would women simply throw things out?

It was supposed to be such an easy problem to solve, but it was now as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack.

“Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find it. I will inform the Meyers Family about this.” After saying that, Richard added, “Stop the operation of the drainage system. We might have to spend some time here.”

“Got it.”

“Send someone here, and be sure to find it as soon as possible.” Richard ordered.

Just then, his phone rang again, and he reached out to pick it up. “Hello!”

“Mr. Richard, I have bad news. The news of Miss Meyers having the lipstick was posted on an international underground trading website. Miss Meyers is now being targeted by criminals around the world. They all know that she has the lipstick in her hand.”

“What happened?” Richard’s expression turned cold.

“I’m speculating that after we caught those three thieves, their accomplices betrayed them and posted the info on the website. Anyways, Miss Meyers is in greater danger than we expected. All of Miss Meyers’ information has been exposed on the underground trading network.”

“Find a way to take the info down.”

“We are tracking down the source and it will take a little while.”

“Cut off all of Angela’s communication devices to prevent her from being tracked,” Richard commanded.

“Yes, sir!”

In the lounge, Angela was texting Dexter about his flight. Seeing that her boyfriend was about to return to the country and meet her, she felt giddy. It was as if her savior was returning to her!

Just as she was done drafting the message and hit the send button, it showed that the message failed to be sent.

“What’s going on?” Angela blinked in confusion. She was currently using her own Internet and was not connecting to any external network.

She started checking her phone, then got up and walked out of the lounge to the lobby outside to search for a connection, but her phone still didn’t have Internet access.

At this moment, she happened to see Trevor coming out of the lounge, and she hurriedly asked, “Hi, may I know if you have Wi-Fi here?”

Trevor smiled and replied, “I’m sorry, Miss Meyers. You are not allowed to access the Internet for the time being.”

“Why?”

“Because there is a problem with your information. We must cut off your contact with the outside world.”

“How could you do this to me? Where’s your boss? I have to talk to him.”

“Sorry, this is our captain’s order,” Trevor answered her.

Hearing that, Angela was pissed off. Whenever she thought of that cold man, she never felt good.

Now that he cut her off from the Internet, would he possibly lock her up later? She had obeyed his orders by staying here, but she was cut off in the middle of her conversation with Dexter! She did not even know when his return flight would be!

No way. She had to talk to Richard when he returned.

At 7.00PM, the elders of two households arrived at a Celonese restaurant in the city center. Tonight’s main star was the second daughter of the Meyers Family, Annie Meyers.

She was dressed up tonight. Even though she was a beauty herself, she exuded an even more ladylike aura from a scholarly family after a makeover.

When Phillip saw her, he was delighted. He was so satisfied with his soon-to-be daughter-in-law. Whether it was her family background, her knowledge, or her looks, she was perfect.

However, the situation was a little awkward because Joshua Meyers and the entire family of his second son were waiting patiently for the arrival of someone.

Phillip was about to lose his temper and was anxious now. How dare his grandson arrive late to such an important engagement! He was being disrespectful to the Meyers Family.

“Wait a moment, Joshua. I think he will be here soon. He’s on a special mission today, so he’s still caught up with something.”

“It’s fine,” Joshua chuckled. He was honored to be marrying his granddaughter to the Lloyd Family. Waiting was a trivial matter.

“Old Master Lloyd, we understand the nature of Richard’s job. We’re not in a rush anyway.” Mrs. Meyers reassured with a smile. Although they only saw the photos of their soon-to-be son-in-law, they were very satisfied. Whether it was his looks or his family background, he had no flaws.

Annie showed a bashful look at the dinner table. She looked forward to seeing her future husband more than anyone else. Seeing his photos was enough for her to swoon over him, not to mention seeing him in person.

No one could possibly imagine how eager she was to hear his voice! He must sound very charming!

In the parking lot outside the restaurant, an army green SUV drove in at a fast speed and was parked neatly in the allocated space. The man in the car let out a sigh of relief, obviously feeling the burden on

his shoulders.

Despite Richard having accomplished so many missions, none of them ever made him feel nervous or worried. But, the blind date arranged by his grandpa tonight was really stressful for him. He did not even plan to accept the marriage, but he did not know how to refuse because he did not want to be disrespectful of his grandpa.

At this moment, his phone rang. He picked it up to find out that it was his grandfather calling.

He reached out to pick it up. “Hi, Grandpa.”

“Where are you? Everyone is waiting for you!” Phillip tried his best to suppress his dissatisfaction and inquired.

“I’m already at the door of the restaurant. I’ll come in right away,” Richard replied.

The phone was then hung up.

Richard pushed the door open and got out of the car, wearing a camouflage uniform that he did not have time to change. He instantly managed to attract many eyes when he walked into the restaurant. Many waitresses in the restaurant saw him and stared at him blankly.

Goodness! What a fine man!

He had such a perfect body and he was so tall.

When Richard asked one of the waitresses for directions to the private room, she answered him bashfully. At the same time, it attracted the envious gaze of other girls around him.

Richard walked to the door of the room, took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and walked in.

“Sorry for being late,” he apologized.

Everyone at the table, except for the two old men who were sitting still, all stood up to greet him. That was to show respect for his higher identity and status in the military, and also his identity of being the young master of the Lloyd Family.

When Annie heard his baritone male voice, she was about to faint on the spot. Goodness, gracious! As expected, a good-looking man had a very charming voice.

Looking at the man who only wore a camouflage uniform under the light, her face flushed crimson. The real deal was much better in photos!

“You brat! Why did you come here dressed like this? Don’t you have time to change?” Phillip immediately scolded him, for fear that he would be disliked by the Meyers Family when he was dressed like this.

Richard apologized to the Meyers Family. “I’m sorry. I just came over from work, and I didn’t have enough time to get changed.”

“It’s fine! You still look handsome in this fit!” Mrs. Meyers scanned him from top to toe. No matter from which angle, he looked pleasing to the eye. So, she was happy for her daughter.

“Hello, my name is Annie.” Although Annie was shy, she took the initiative to greet him. “Richard.” Richard looked at her and nodded politely.

“Richard, come sit here.” Gabriel stretched out his hand and pulled out the chair beside his daughter for him.

“Thank you, Mr. Meyers.” Richard sat down politely.

“Richard, let me introduce you to my good old friend, Old Master Meyers. He met you back when you were a child.”

“Hello, Old Master Meyers.”

“I didn’t expect you to grow up so soon in just a blink of an eye. You’ve become successful too. That’s really impressive,” Joshua Meyers praised.

“No, no. He has just been training in the army. He’s not that outstanding,” Phillip uttered humbly, but he could not hide the pride in his eyes.

In his heart, he acknowledged that his grandson was outstanding. He never embarrassed the Lloyd Family before.

“Oh! And this is Ann. The two of you look good together,” Phillip introduced while looking at the pair of young people, silently thinking that his great-grandchildren would definitely be good-looking.

At this moment, Annie saw a trace of blood on his clothes with her sharp eyes. She hurriedly brought a wet tissue over and whispered, “Richard, you have blood over here. Let me wipe it off for you!”

Richard looked down and reached out to take the wet tissue from her hands. “I’ll do it myself!”

She gazed at him with distressed and worried eyes, and thought to herself. How dangerous is his job? Even his clothes are stained with blood! It shouldn’t be his, right?

At this moment, a message that Annie sent was returned to her, which left her puzzled. What was going on?

Was Angela’s phone turned off? It shouldn’t be! It should be because she had no connection at the place where she was right now and so, failed to receive the text!

Initially, she intended to broadcast the whole process of her blind date to her cousin!

She wanted to secretly take a picture of her blind date tonight to show Angela, but now that Angela could not receive her messages, it made the situation less fun.

Everyone was hungry when the food was served. They talked about their children’s childhood stories while eating. Besides, they also didn’t want to put any pressure on the two young people, so they avoided the topic of engagement for now.

Halfway through the meal, they still had to address the main topic of discussion. Phillip raised his glass and said, “Let’s have a toast to our families becoming one! May the marriage be held successfully.”

Richard stopped chewing, took a sip of water, and looked at his grandfather. “Grandpa, I have something to say.”

Phillip knew what he was going to say, so his eyes suddenly turned serious. “Richard, let’s talk about it at home.”

Obviously, he did not want his grandson to reject the marriage on the spot, which was disrespectful to the Meyers Family.

In addition to the gaze from the Meyers Family, which was all filled with love and expectation, his grandfather was also shooting him an oppressive look, so he decided to swallow his words.

“Come on, let’s toast to our two children. After this toast, it means that the marriage will be planned. We shall later decide a good day to hold the wedding,” Phillip chuckled, but he meant every word he said.

“If Richard is busy, we can keep everything simple,” Joshua offered understandingly.

“No way. We should hold a grand wedding when Ann marries into our family.” Phillip did not intend to treat his daughter-in-law badly.

Hearing that, Richard could not help but feel depressed. He glanced at the time because he had a meeting at half past eight, so he should rush back now.

“Grandpa, I have an important meeting to hold. I’ll have to take a leave now,” Richard excused himself while standing up.

“Do you have to leave right now?” Phillip did not wish for him to leave.

At the same time, Annie’s eyes were also filled with reluctance. Were they going to separate when they just got to know each other? She intended to know more about him tonight!

“I can’t be late because it is a pertinent meeting.” After Richard finished speaking, he looked at the Meyers Family apologetically. “I’m sorry, Old Master Meyers, Mr. and Mrs. Meyers, and Annie. I have to excuse myself now.”

With that said, Richard rose to his feet.

“I’ll send you off!” Annie hurriedly got up, not wanting to miss the last bit of time to spend with him.

Although he did not want her to send him off, she had already stood up, which left him no choice but to reluctantly nod. With that, the two of them left the room. Without the pressure of the elders, Annie’s eyes began to stare at him curiously.

“Richard, do you like me?” she asked him boldly because she liked him very much. It was not an exaggeration to say that she fell in love at first sight.

Richard stopped and stared at her seriously. “Annie, you are a nice girl, but marrying me will not make you happy. Please think about it carefully.”

Annie smiled and shook her head. “I believe that marrying you will be the beginning of my happiness.”

“My work nature doesn’t allow me to spend much time with you, and it will also bring danger to your life. Are you still willing to marry me?” he asked her calmly.

She smiled shyly and answered without hesitation, “I do.”

Richard could not figure out what was on her mind. Obviously, he was trying to push her away, but she was still adamant about wanting to marry him. How would marrying him benefit her?

For Annie, it was a blessing to be able to marry him. No matter what difficulties she would face in the future, she was mentally prepared to bear it with him.

“I’ll have to leave now.” Seeing that the time was running out, Richard took long strides forward, but Annie hurriedly followed behind him.

When they appeared in the hall together, she received envious glances from all the women around, and at this moment, she knew that she was worthy of him as this man met all her requirements.

Watching him get into the car and get seated in his SUV, Annie felt like she had given her heart to him.

Richard’s car headed straight toward his current base, which was in the direction of the suburban.

In the garden, a lady who was sitting on a chair and counting the stars was getting drowsy. She experienced all kinds of things today, causing her to feel extremely exhausted, but she could not sleep now. She had to wait for someone to return.

She waited for no reason other than to get her Internet connection back.

Angela was fed up today. The swelling on her forehead reminded her of how rude Richard was to her.

No one here could make the decision to return the Internet connection to her. Richard was the only person she could negotiate with, so she must wait for him to come back.

Just as her eyelids were about to shut, she finally heard the sound of a car coming in through the iron gate, and she suddenly regained her spirit.

That must be Richard. She immediately got off the chair and ran toward the parking lot.

When Richard opened the door and got out of the car, he suddenly heard a cold female voice calling him.

“Hey! You’re finally back.”

Richard looked at the woman under the street lamp. Her long hair was draped behind her head, and the camouflage uniform was wrapped around her delicate body. Somehow, she managed to pull off the camouflage uniform in a different way.

“Is something wrong?” Richard frowned slightly.

“Did you order your subordinates to turn off my network?”

“Yes. From now on, you are not allowed to use the Internet.”

“Why?” Angela was annoyed.

“For your safety.” Richard had plenty of reasons to do so.

“No way. I want my Internet connection back. I want it now because I have very important things to do,” Angela urged him in a hurry. Her boyfriend was returning to the country yet she did not even find out his flight information. Therefore, she was anxious.

“Is there something even more important than your life?” Richard questioned as he walked toward the conference building.

Angela trotted to keep up with him. “Yes. It’s more important than my life.”

Richard turned his head and glanced at her.

“I want to talk to my boyfriend on the phone. You don’t know how important this relationship is to me. Losing him is like losing my life,” Angela uttered seriously.

Richard gave her another inexplicable look.

“Do you understand what I’m saying? Do you understand how I feel?” Angela was getting even more anxious now, and then she suddenly took a breath and huffed angrily, “How can a dummy like you understand? You must have never been in a relationship!”

“How do you know that I haven’t?” Richard retorted with his lips pursed.

“Of course, I know! I’m a woman. No woman would fall for someone as rude and blunt as you!” Angela complained angrily.

Instead, Richard sneered at her, “Does that mean a hopeless romantic like you who can’t live without a man is more lovable?”

Angela’s face turned crimson at his statement. How dare he judge her like that?! Biting her lip, she blustered, “I don’t care. I want to be connected to the Internet for an hour. Do it for me right now.”

“Not even a second,” Richard insisted with a cold expression and was about to leave.

Angela immediately clenched her teeth, stepped forward, and blocked his way with her arms extended. “You’re not going anywhere before I get connected.”

Richard did not take her seriously. Immediately, he strode toward her, thinking that she would leave.

Who knew that instead of avoiding him, he slammed into her? All of a sudden, they were almost touching each other under the lights.

He instantly felt a mass on his chest. Angela raised her face that had blushed the shade of a rose, yet she was stubborn. When she realized what he had just done, she quickly took a step back.

“How dare you take advantage of me?!” She gritted her teeth.

“I’m not interested in you,” Richard replied unceremoniously.

“I don’t need you to be interested in me either. Lend me your phone. I want to call my boyfriend.” Angela could still use his phone if she could not use hers.

“No.” Richard looked disgusted. He did not want to lend her his phone so that she could flirt with another guy over the phone!

“Five minutes will do.” Angela softened because she realized that this man was tougher than her.

She’s gonna follow me everywhere if I don’t say yes, and I have a meeting to attend now. He took his phone out. “Two minutes. That’s the best I can do.”

Angela took his phone quietly and called her boyfriend right away. She wanted to talk to him, and the call went through, but Dexter didn’t pick up. “C’mon, pick up. What are you doing, Dexter? You should’ve already gotten off the plane,” she muttered under her breath.

The call ended, and she made another one, but Dexter still didn’t pick up. Richard was starting to get annoyed. “Give me the phone.”

“One minute. Just one more minute, please.” Angela made another call, but nobody picked up. Disappointed, she heaved a long sigh. For some reason, she teared up. She missed Dexter a lot, and she tried her best to contact him, but the fact that he didn’t pick up hurt her.

Richard stared at her, and he frowned. “That’s the guy you’d die for?” He couldn’t believe she was going to cry.

She noticed the mockery, and she bit her lip. “You have no idea what love is like. It’s a waste of time talking to you. You’ll know how I feel when you fall in love with someone.” She turned away, and tears fell down her cheeks. Angela wiped them away awkwardly and went in the opposite direction.

She looked forlorn and lonely, especially under the dim light.

He peered at her, then he made his way to the conference room. Their meeting’s agenda this time was about the lipstick and Angela’s current danger level.

After her details were exposed to the world, Angela became the target of many criminals. She was a billion-dollar-object for them, after all. “We got all the details about the people around her. Anyone who approaches her might be a potential enemy.”

Richard asked, “Including her boyfriend’s?”

“Yes. She has a boyfriend named Dexter. He landed in homeland at about seven. We’ll look into the people around him too.”

Richard was reminded of the fact Dexter didn’t take Angela’s calls. He had enough power to find out where Dexter was, so he decided to help her out. “I want to know where the guy is,” Richard said.

His underlings went to work right away. A moment later, he was presented with security footage and room registration records. “He’s in the Cloudsky Hotel. He landed at about seven.” They saw a man holding a woman on the screen, and the facial recognition system pointed out that the man was Dexter.

Richard froze for a moment. He could hear them talking, and he said, “Turn the volume up.”

His underling turned the volume up, and everyone heard the cheating couple flirting with each other.

“You’re the prettiest lady I’ve ever seen. Ever since I saw you back on the plane, I knew I’d be the happiest man on earth if I could have you,” Dexter flirted.

The woman smirked. She was obviously a veteran in this as well. “Is that so? Well, I’ll be your date for the next few days then, but I need a place to stay.”

“Oh, I can do that. I can do anything you want.” He pinned her against the wall and pressed his lips against hers.

“Oh, we can’t do this here! Let’s get a room.” The woman pretended to push him, but she was holding his arms and looking at him in delight at the same time.

Dexter was dressed expensively, and he was young and handsome, so he was naturally alluring to women. He told the lady to go into the room, while he came back out to take a call. Everyone could hear the conversation. “How many times do I have to tell you, Mom? Look at the big picture. I want everything. I’ll give Angela’s mother the money back. That old hag is a billionaire! I can just marry Angela and take over her parents’ business. I’m not going to back out just like this. Ah, don’t worry. Angela can’t live without me. She does everything I tell her to. I spent all my time making her fall for me. I know how much she loves me. Yeah, I know what I’m doing. Talk to you later, Mom. I have something urgent to handle.”

Someone opened the door, and out came the woman in a bathrobe. She looked a little miffed that Dexter was still on the phone, and she pulled him. “Looks like someone cares about a little call more than me.”

“That’s fake news, love.” Dexter kissed and pushed her into the room.

The men in the conference room felt a little jealous. Why does a f*ckboy like him get girls, while we can’t even get a girlfriend?

Everyone was still immersed in the footage, but someone broke their train of thoughts. “Give me a copy of the video.”

“Wait. Are you giving that to Miss Meyers? I don’t think that’s a good idea. It’ll break her heart.”

“Just give it to me.” Richard stared at the screen. He was reminded of what Angela told him earlier. He wasn’t that close to her, but he thought it was a waste of her time spending all her life on someone like Dexter. This was just a friendly reminder for her to move on. He told his underlings, “And look into everyone whom Dexter has talked to for the past two years. I want them first thing next morning.” He left, and his team members looked at one another.

“Wow. First time the captain cares about someone so much. Does he like her?”

“Well, she is beautiful. I can see why he likes her.”

“So is she gonna be his wife?”

“Maybe.” Text © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.

“We’d better be nice to her then. Maybe the captain won’t kill us if we make any mistakes next time. She can help us out.”

Their conversation was cut short, as the air itself froze. They could feel someone looking at them from the doorstep, so they turned around. Much to their shock, Richard had come back right after he left, and he was looking at them coldly.

“Ahem. I mean the captain won’t fall for Miss Meyers. He doesn’t like getting into any relationships. That’s nonsense.”

“That’s right! The captain’s not getting into any relationship. It’s gonna get in the way of his work. We gotta learn from him. Let’s not waste our time on relationships and spend all of it on work.”

“Miss Meyers isn’t that beautiful. She’s just pretty.”

Richard went to his desk and picked a file up. He said icily, “If I hear you guys talking nonsense again, you’re getting a ten-mile run tomorrow morning.” He left and closed the door.

Everyone heaved a sigh of relief. The captain’s getting really stealthy lately. We gotta keep our mouths shut.

Angela was in her room. She had finished showering and just changed into her pajamas. She was still wondering why Dexter wouldn’t take her call. What on earth is he doing?

Just then, someone knocked on Angela’s door. She looked at it and went to open the door. Richard was standing outside. She crossed her arms and asked coolly, “What do you want?”

Richard looked at her for a few moments with mixed feelings before saying calmly, “I have something for you. Get changed and come to the waiting room.”

Angela cocked her eyebrow. “You can give it to me here.”

“It’s about your boyfriend,” Richard told her.

Angela’s eyes shone, and something seemed to leap with joy in them. She looked at him expectantly. “Really? Did he call you?”

Richard could not share her joy. Instead, he felt sad for her. Does she really love that b*stard? He didn’t want to hurt her. She was the granddaughter of his grandfather’s best friend after all.

“Come in! Come in! Tell me more!” She turned to the side and welcomed him into her room.

Richard frowned. Does she have no concept of safety? “Are you sure your boyfriend really loves you?” Richard asked instead of going in.

Angela smiled and she answered without missing a beat, “Of course.” She sounded confident.

Richard felt a little frustrated. She’s beautiful, born to money, and lives in luxury. So why is she so stupid? That jerk’s playing her like a fiddle, and she has no idea about it.

“Don’t just look at me. Talk! Did my boyfriend call?” Angela wondered why he was staring at her.

“No.” Richard was about to leave.

Angela closed the door and ran forward to block him. She spread her arms wide and told him, “I need your phone, Richard. I need to make a call.”

“No,” Richard refused without hesitation.

“Please, it’s just a call. I’m desperate!” She put her hands in a prayer and begged him. She wanted to know if Dexter had landed safely. He’s gonna be worried if he can’t find me.

Richard crossed his arms and put on a sterner look. “No means no.”

Hey, that’s just heartless. It’s just a phone. It’s not like lending it to me is going to kill you. “Five minutes, please? I’ll pay you. Do you really have to be so stuck up about that?” Angela was almost on her knees. She fluttered her eyelashes and started acting like a kid. “Aww, pwease, Mr. Lloyd? Pwetty pwease?”

Richard squinted. His face was still deadpan, and he refused to budge.

Angela stopped acting and stared at his pockets. Her eyes glinted, and she smiled. “You’re really handsome, actually. You’re my cup of tea.” She kept beguiling him as she slowly approached the man. Angela flicked her hair backward and started flirting with him.

Richard frowned. He thought this was annoyingly amusing. More annoying than amusing though. What is she trying to do?

Angela held his arm and closed in on him. Richard tensed up, but then he felt her arm slithering into his pocket. He immediately held her hand and turned her arm behind her back, stopping her from stealing his phone.

“Ow, ow, ow. Let me go!” Angela was caught red-handed, and a stab of pain came from her hand.

“Don’t pull anything with me.” He snorted and pushed her away.

Angela rubbed her wrist and swung her arm around while shooting him an angry glare. “So heartless.”

He stared at her, feeling frustrated. She couldn’t have even gotten close if I had just been more careful. She almost got her hands on the phone.

Richard reflected on himself and decided he would never let this happen again. “I’ll cut off all your contact with the outside world from this minute on. I’ll get my men to protect your parents. You’re going to stay here.” He was going to leave again.

Angela stared at him. She decided to stop pulling any tricks and pleaded, “I know you want me safe, Richard. Thank you, really, but I can’t lose my boyfriend. Please, let me call him. I promise it won’t take long.”

Richard stopped in his tracks. He took a deep breath, and he turned around slowly, as if he had made a decision. He took his phone out and handed it to her.

Delighted, Angela went and took it from him. “Thank you.” She quickly called her boyfriend, waiting for him to pick up. Unbeknownst to her, Richard was staring at her, wondering if the decision he made was correct.

“Yes?” The call went through, and Dexter picked it up.

Angela heaved a sigh of relief. “Dexter? It’s me.”

“Angela? Where are you? I couldn’t get through to you.” Dexter sounded really worried.

“Don’t worry, I’m alright. I ran into some trouble, but I’ll see you again soon.”

“I’m sorry, Angela. I didn’t want to hurt you. I know you’re out of my league, so I pretended to date another girl so you’d leave me and find someone better, but I realized I still love you the most.”

She sat back down on the sofa and answered sweetly, “It’s alright. I understand. I don’t mind.”

Richard could see that Dexter was trying to sweet talk her even without hearing the conversation. And this dumb woman still believes him. She doesn’t know his true colors.

“I love you, Angela,” Dexter confessed lovingly.

“Okay, okay. I know. I love you too.” She smiled shyly, but then someone took the phone away.

She quickly turned around to face Richard. “Hey—”

Richard clicked into the video his team member sent him, and he tossed the phone to the sofa. He said, “Your boyfriend is a f*ckboy. He hooked up with a woman he just met right after he landed. He dates you for your money, not you. Wake the f*ck up.”

Angela’s eyes widened, then she heard the conversation coming from her phone. It was Dexter’s voice. “You’re the prettiest lady I’ve ever seen. Ever since I saw you back on the plane, I knew I’d be the happiest man on earth if I could have you.”

“Is that so? Well, I’ll be your date for the next few days then, but I need a place to stay.”

“Oh, I can do that. I can do anything you want.” Angela heard the sound of smooching.

“Oh, we can’t do this here! Let’s get a room.”

Angela froze. She picked up the phone with trembling hands, and she stared at the screen. Dexter walked into the elevator with a woman in his arms, and they started making out even before they got into the room. Angie shivered at the sight of that. She wanted to cry and scream, but she couldn’t. All she felt was fury in her heart. Her eyes were filled with tears of rage, and she bit her lip hard. She stared at the screen, but what she saw tortured her soul.

Richard looked at her calmly. I hope she’ll snap out of it after she sees what happens next. Don’t fall for him. He doesn’t deserve her.

Angela then saw Dexter take the woman into a room, while he went outside to take a call.

The room was quiet, and the volume was at maximum. Angela could hear everything Dexter was saying. “How many times do I have to tell you, Mom? Look at the big picture. I want everything. I’ll give Angela’s mother the money back.”

“That old hag is a billionaire! I can just marry Angela and take over her parents’ business. I’m not going to back out just like this. Ah, don’t worry. Angela can’t live without me. She does everything I tell her to. I spent all my time making her fall for me. I know how much she loves me. Yeah, I know what I’m doing. Talk to you later, Mom. I have something urgent to handle.”

Someone opened the door, and out came the woman in a bathrobe. She looked a little miffed that Dexter was still on the phone, and she pulled him. “Looks like someone cares about a little call more than me.”

“That’s fake news, love.” Dexter kissed and pushed her into the room.

Angela put the phone down in fury. She covered her face, and she was trembling. She couldn’t believe the man she deeply loved was only dating her for money. It was hard to believe that he was just pretending to be nice to her.

Richard watched as tears fell through the cracks between her fingers and soaked into the sofa. He frowned. Cheering someone up was not his forte. He never did anything like that before, but still he wanted to say something to her. “It’s good that you saw through him. Open your eyes the next time you look for a boyfriend. Don’t fall for the same tricks,” he said.

It didn’t work too well. Angela was just crying quietly, but now she was wailing. She looked up and let her tears fall, ignoring the fact that there was someone else around.

Richard looked at the tissue on the table. He went and took some for her.

Angela took them from him and dabbed her eyes. She spoke through sobs, “So it was all a lie. Everything he did for me was a lie. I thought he loved me more than Dad and Mom do, but he’s just a liar! A liar!” Angela felt like dying, but she felt fortunate that she saw through Dexter. She just couldn’t accept that two years of her youth amounted to nothing in the end.

Richard pulled a few more tissues and handed it to her. He bent over to take his phone, but then he felt Angela hold him. She buried her head in his chest and bawled like a kid.

Richard froze. He spread his arms, but he couldn’t push her away.

Angela didn’t mean to hug him. The pain was just too overwhelming, and she wanted someone to hug. She was grateful to Richard for showing her Dexter’s true colors. He also went out of the way to tell her that too. “I wanna kill that b*stard!” Angie cursed and thumped Richard’s chest. She was too mad to realize what she just did.

Richard was speechless. Hey, I’m not the guy who hurt you. Don’t take it out on me.

“He refused a study offer and took care of me when I was sick. He even cooked for me every day. I thought he was genuinely nice to me! Darn it!” Angela finally snapped out of it. She was glad that

Dexter agreed to never have sex with her until she was comfortable with it. All she lost was her time and nothing else.

Richard held her shoulders and pushed her down onto the sofa. “This is nothing to cry over.”

She wiped her tears away as she thanked him. “Thanks for showing his true colors to me, Richard.”

Richard stood up. “In that case, work with me and stop causing so much trouble.”

“I need to use your phone again.” She stood up. Her eyes were red, but the look in them was calm.

Richard lent her his phone gladly this time, and she called Dexter again.

“Hello, Angela? What happened? Why did you hang up? I couldn’t get through to you,” he asked hurriedly. Richard’s number was not open to the public, so nobody could call him.