The timing was too perfect. Liam Williams couldn't find any reason to believe Emma Johnson had nothing to do with what happened today.
Captain Reed took the mercenaries back to the station. Liam interrogated them personally. But the mercenaries knew almost nothing. No matter how hard he pushed, he couldn't get a single useful lead.
He didn't go home that night.
Early the next morning, Emma returned to her apartment from Little Italy. She rarely bought two breakfasts, planning to eat with Liam.
After a night's rest, she'd calmed down. Sure, his words had stung yesterday. But thinking it over, he was just worried about her. Wasn't that exactly how the overbearing CEOs acted in those romance novels she'd read in college? Back then, she'd been fascinated by that kind of behavior. Funny how different it felt in real life.
Ah, well. Even if she became a rich man's wife, she'd never get the treatment those fictional women enjoyed. She couldn't help it. Maybe she was just born with bad luck.
But when she got home, Liam wasn't there. He hadn't come back last night. Was he afraid that sleeping in the bedroom would make him think of someone else? Had he gone back to his study again?
Emma pushed open the study door. The desk was covered in scattered documents, but Liam was nowhere to be seen.
He must have gotten up even earlier than her.
Looking at the mess on his desk, Emma thought she should clean it up for him. Sure, they were only married on paper. But Liam did cook for her sometimes. And after that accident two days ago, they'd lost touch for a while. It seemed only right for her to do her part.
While Emma was tidying his desk, Liam came back from the station to change clothes before heading to the office. He spotted the black high heels by the entrance. He knew they were Emma's.
His eyes darkened. He walked silently into the living room and found two breakfast containers on the coffee table.
A flicker of warmth appeared in his eyes. But before it could spread, he heard sounds coming from the study. Liam walked to the half-open door and saw Emma standing in front of his desk.
"Put it down."
His cold voice rang out from the doorway, startling Emma so badly she nearly jumped. She stared at him with wide eyes, wondering if the man made any sound when he walked. He'd scared her half to death.
But in Liam's eyes at that moment, her reaction looked like guilt. Combined with the clues Alexander had given him last night, Liam was certain Emma had come to search for something.
"I said put it down. I won't repeat myself."
Liam's voice was so cold it could freeze the room. Emma hadn't expected that her kindness in cleaning his desk would make him so angry.
What was wrong with him? He'd told her before that he didn't want anyone messing with his papers. But his attitude was way too harsh.
Suddenly, she understood why Mia had been crying so much yesterday.
This sudden change in attitude was really hard to take.
"I'm sorry. I just saw your desk was a mess and wanted to clean it up. I guess I overstepped."
Emma tried to be understanding.
Watching her admit her mistake so meekly, Liam suddenly remembered how close they'd been just a few days ago. The complicated feelings churning inside him were like food burning in a pot—agonizing.
But as a soldier, when national interests were at stake, he would always choose his country.
If one day he found evidence of Emma's crimes, he knew he would still personally put handcuffs on her wrists.
"Get out. And don't come in here again."
Liam's voice was clear and deep, but his words were ice cold.
Emma didn't know if she'd made him angry by touching his things, or if it was what she'd said yesterday.
After thinking it over, she decided not to argue with him anymore. She noticed the faint shadows under his eyes, as if he hadn't slept well. Somehow, she felt it had something to do with her.
She stopped talking. She didn't want to snap back at him like she used to. She just left the room in silence.
As she passed him at the door, she felt a chill radiating from him. It was like winter had come early, and it was hard to bear.
Emma went to New York Fashion Magazine and started her workday.
Everything seemed to be getting back on track. Liam started coming home for dinner again. He didn't go out with that woman named Kennedy anymore.
He was still very attentive to Emma. They still shared the same bed at night, but when Emma wasn't in the mood, Liam didn't push her like he had before. Maybe last time, when Emma had gotten a fever, it had scared him.
But for some reason, Emma felt like something had changed. This change was invisible, intangible—just her sixth sense telling her something was off. She couldn't help thinking that women's intuition wasn't scientifically accurate. Maybe it was just that too many things had happened recently, making her nerves habitually tense, making her suspicious of everything. It would probably be fine after a while.
...
"Miss, the president is in a meeting in the conference room."
On the top floor of the Pinnacle Corporation building, one of the female secretaries in the Executive Secretariat, wearing glasses, watched Amelia White step out of the elevator. Before Amelia could even say hello and push open the president's office door, the secretary quickly stood up and stopped her.
"I know. That's why I came to the office to wait for him."
Amelia glared at the clueless secretary. Who had her brother hired? They said all the secretaries here had master's degrees from famous universities, but this one didn't know how the world worked. Everyone knew she was the first lady of the Williams family. How dare this woman stop her?
The secretary was in a tough spot. The president had ordered that no one was allowed into his office. That naturally included the first lady. But the president wasn't here right now. If she tried to stop Miss Amelia, she was afraid the young lady would barge in anyway.
The real problem was that if she annoyed Miss Amelia, the young lady would probably complain to the president as soon as he got back. And then she'd be packing her boxes and leaving.
While the secretary was stuck in this dilemma, Liam came back from his meeting.
"Brother, you're back. I was being kept out of your office by someone with no eyes."
Seeing Liam, Amelia ran up to him with a sweet smile and linked her arm through his. She didn't expect the secretary to report what had happened.
"It was my order. No one is allowed into my office without my permission. Don't make things hard for her."