The Carter Group was going down!
The news recently went viral in Gabbs.
It had been a topic of conversation at every business cocktail party lately, including the one Mike was attending today.
He smoked at the banquet. He loathed such gatherings, yet no matter how much he disliked them, he had to put up with them.
"I have something to do. I'll take my leave now," Mike said and was about to leave. He opened the door of the room and wanted to go out.
Before he walked out, he stopped, because he saw a familiar figure in the corridor.
He couldn't be sure and called out tentatively, "Mrs. Hammond?"
The person didn't respond.
The men at the table in the room all stopped what they were doing. Instead, they all turned around and looked in one direction.
They thought, 'No way! It can't be Patrick's mate, right?'
Mike ignored the group of half-drunk men behind him. He looked at the woman's back. She was limping slightly toward the elevator. He went anxious and shouted hurriedly, "Gloria?"
The woman stopped at once, and Mike became more and more sure.
Gloria slowly turned around.
A smile appeared on Mike's face. He said sincerely, "It is you. When did you come back?"
Being called by him, Gloria hesitated for a few seconds before saying, "Mr. Wyatt?"
Mike quickly walked out of the room, while Gloria was standing next to the elevator. Mike walked over and sized her up, and his eyes were filled with joy. "You disappeared for three years."
Gloria nodded. She lowered her eyes, and a trace of mockery flashed across them.
She thought, 'Yeah. Three years. But still, I failed to get out. I managed to escape with great difficulty, and now I have brought myself back into the abyss.'
"You seem to have changed." Mike did not know how to describe it. He figured that there was something about her that wasn't the same anymore, yet after he took a closer look, he somehow felt that she was still the same cautious Gloria from three years ago.
"Mr. Wyatt, I know what you want to ask," Gloria smiled with joy. "You will understand someday."
Her glance made Mike feel strange.
Mike hesitated and still said, "Do you remember Lucas?"
Gloria's expression changed, but she lowered her head to conceal it.
Mike's eyes went deeper. He said, "Lucas Veloci. You guys met in Fittro Club."
If he had a choice, he wouldn't want to bring up Fittro Club either. He glanced at Gloria, who was facing him. "He has always regretted it. He wanted to apologize to you, but then you disappeared, and no one could find you. For three years, he has always been uneasy and remorseful. He told me to say sorry for him if I ever saw you again."
For a long time, it was all quiet.
Mike thought that Gloria would cry or tell him that it was all over.
"Who is Lucas?" As she asked, Mike was shocked.
Mike wanted to say something.
Gloria interrupted him, "Mr. Wyatt, I'm not interested in talking about personal matters with you. If you want to discuss business, well, the Carter Group is willing to cooperate with you."
Mike's eyes flickered. He grasped the key point. "You get to represent the Carter Group now?"
Gloria reached out and pulled a strand of long hair behind her ear. "I call the shots for the Carter Group."
She reached out her hand. Her wrist was so bony that it even made people feel bad for her. Yet she calmly said, "Mr. Wyatt, I hope we can cooperate closely from now on."
Mike was extremely shocked.
He silently stretched out his hand and replied, "Miss Carter."
Tonight, the entire upper class in Gabbs knew that Gloria, from the Carter family, was back.
When Gloria opened the door the next day, Patrick was standing in front of her door, smartly dressed.
The next day, when she opened the door, she was shocked by the person standing at the door.
An arm was wrapped around her waist. Patrick held her tight.
"Let go of me, Patrick," Gloria said calmly. Her tone was so calm that it made him feel that he was nothing but a stranger she met on the road, and he did nothing but accidentally touched her.
There was bitterness in Patrick's eyes.
Even so, he still couldn't resist the urge to look at her.
He hugged her even more tightly and thought, 'This is great. She is right in front of me.'
"Stay still, OK?" At some point, Patrick's voice had become hoarse. He held Gloria in his arms and put his hands on her head. He said softly, "Just let me lean on you for a while, OK?"
She wanted to push his hands away, yet she hesitated. She thought, 'Is it my illusion?
How come I have the feeling that Patrick is begging me?'
Just as she was in a trance, Patrick hugged her tightly, as if he wanted them to become one.
He rested his chin on her soft head and closed his eyes in satisfaction.
Patrick was glued to Gloria all day.
After returning to the room, Gloria looked up and said, "It's late. You should go back to your room to sleep."
She tried to get rid of him subtly.
"You are my mate." He stared at her without blinking.
Gloria immediately became alert. "You said you wouldn't force me."
Unfortunately, Patrick wouldn't be Patrick if he just walked away.
"Gloria, I haven't done it for three years," Patrick stuttered.
"What did you say? I can't hear you." Gloria looked at him in confusion.
"It has been three years." Patrick stared at her.
"Patrick, what are you trying to say?" Gloria was a little tired. After all, she had a long trip returning from Waikiki Beach to Gabbs, and she confronted Alger. So, she was exhausted.
She was exhausted. Her eyelids were so heavy, even though she felt the danger before her.
She did not realize that she was so drowsy. She sat back on the bed, too sleepy to lift her head.
The next second, the bedside next to her sank. She was startled and was no longer sleepy for the time being. She turned to look at Patrick, who was beside her, as her lips gradually turned pale. She trembled and said, "You promised me."
She was pulled, and in the next moment, she was in the quilt, while Patrick, who was next to her, put his arms around her shoulders tightly.
He said in a low and hoarse voice, "I haven't vented my desire for three years."
Gloria was shocked, and she reached out to push him away.
"You agreed!" she said angrily.
"I promised you that I wouldn't touch you, but I didn't say that I wouldn't do anything else. If you be good and let me hold you still, I promise that I won't do anything besides hold you to sleep," said Patrick, a little rascally.
Patrick was a bully indeed. He said, "Gloria, don't move. I haven't had sex for three years. I can't promise what I'll do if you move."
Gloria's face turned even paler. Patrick's hot breath reached her ears, and his voice was so hoarse that it made her tremble in fear. He whispered in her ear, "If you don't believe me, feel it."
She thought, 'He is so shameless!'
Gloria was so angry that her face turned red.
Gloria's body stiffened. At least for now, she still found it hard to accept this kind of thing.
She tried to ignore the feeling of being touched, but his hand constantly stroked her waist. She told herself to endure for just another second.
Yet the next second, she was shocked.
Her eyes widened.
"Patrick! Are you crazy?" Her voice was piercingly sharp.
"Don't touch there!" She shouted at him as loud as she could.
She struggled violently, but Patrick's palms were like a pair of iron tongs, holding her tightly, refusing to let go.
Tears emerged in Gloria's eyes. She begged in a hoarse voice, "Patrick, please. Don't touch it there."
Patrick held her waist tightly, and he could feel her struggle and fear.
It was her wound, but his pain.