Chapter 45 Marry Me
Sitting in his office alone, William took out his phone and dialed a number.
"Hello? Boss?" Jane was at the hospital when her phone rang. She then answered the phone with
slight surprise.
Mary closed her eyes and remained motionless.
"Mary... Is she awake?" When William spoke, his unnatural voice was heard from the other end of
the line.
The ward was so quiet that the voice of William on the phone was crystal clear.
"She woke up. Do you want Mary to answer the phone?" Jane asked.
"No, thanks. Let her have a good rest." William said with a concerned tone.
Before Jane could even say anything, he had already hung up the phone.
Jane was a little confused. When she was about to speak, Mary spoke, "I heard everything."
After hanging up, William leaned heavily against the back of his seat.
ng! ng! ng! "Come in." William straightened up as the door opened.
"I heard that you wanted to see me?" Victor said with an unruly smile stered on his face.
"Have a seat."
Victor snorted and unceremoniously sat down on the leather sofa next to him. "Tell me, what''s the
matter?"
"There will be a press conferenceter this afternoon. Here is your speech draft," said William as he
threw a folder to Victor across the room.
Victor caught it at once and said jokingly, "Boss asked me toe here just to give me this?"
"Of course there is one more thing," William answered. He stood up and gazed at the window with
his back to Victor. "I want you to stay away from Mary."
"Haha." Victorughed sardonically. "Why?" he asked as he stood up.
"Why?" William said coldly as he turned around. "Have you seen the news recently? Do you want to
destroy her?" The tension between them grew stronger by the minute.
The two looked at each other with ring eyes. The smile at the corners of Victor''s mouth
disappeared, reced with anger. "It''s you who destroyed her!" Victor''s voice echoed across the
room.
William''s eyes narrowed with dangerous re. "What do you mean?" His eyes were scary enough
to make a normal person flinch.
However, Victor did not budge. Instead, he stared back at William''s eyes. "You destroyed her the
moment she married you! She doesn''t know the rtionship between you and Frank, right?" Victor
said threateningly.
"Victor, I underestimated you." A smile yed at the corners of William''s mouth. "So you knew."
"Aren''t you afraid that I''m going to tell her the truth?" Victor asked menacingly.
"Well," said William with a smile. "I advise you to think it over. If she knows the truth, can she bear
it?"
"It''s better than being cheated on all the time."
"Victor, don''t be too rash to confess your love. Do you think you still deserve her even though your
body is so dirty now?"
"You are not any better than I am!" Victor turned around with a cold face.
"You''re right. I''m in no way any better than you are," said William with a smile. "However, I don''t
have such a wonderful video like you do. If that video is leaked, your life will be ruined and you will
be miserable until you die." Victor paused for a moment, contemting the weight of William''s
threat. "Goodbye!" he said coldly as he reached for the door.
"Don''t make any mistake this afternoon. Not even a single one."
"Don''t worry, I will protect her well." Victor closed the door behind him without looking back. The
door almost cracked because of how strong he mmed it.
Bang!
William stared at the direction where Victor left and punched the table out of anger.
After having the transfusion, Mary left the hospital and walked home. She was no longer with Jane
as she made her go back to thepany.
Mary felt unreal. Her eyes were ssy and her feet were so soft it felt as though she was stepping
on cotton.
What happened yesterday? Did she really have sex with William? Did she lose her virginity after
more than twenty years? How could William have sex with her? Could she sue him?
Sue him? Sue William with his own money?
Finally, Mary arrived at her house then opened the door mechanically. The moment she got inside,
she dragged her heavy body onto the sofa while the TV buzzed. Everything she was seeing right
now was given to her by William. Because of him, she now had a spacious house and a
comfortable life. How could she sue him? Besides, their contract had not expired yet. How could
she afford the liquidated damages?
"Let''s now wee Mr. Lan, the CEO of the AJ Group..."
The voice from the TV attracted the attention of Mary. She raised her eyes and watched
expressionlessly as William walked towards the stage, every step captured live on the TV. It was a
live broadcast of his press conference.
He had always been outstanding. As long as he appeared, he would instantly be the center of
attraction. For example, he was dressed meticulously today. He had an angr face and his thin
lips were closed tightly.
He seemed like a perfect gentleman outside and nobody would have thought that he was a beast
deep inside.
"First of all," said William to the public. "On behalf of ourpany, I would like to apologize to the
family who got involved in the ident. Because of ourpany''s mistake and negligence, their
lives were put to danger. The AJ group will be held liable and fully responsible for their
hospitalization."
William stood up and made a deep bow.
"However, we still need to carry out the construction project." Sitting down, William continued, "This
incident was just an ident. All contracts for the construction project of AJ group are legal. The
families have been paid as well. I assure you that this project will not be dyed due to this
incident."
Upon hearing William''s announcement, a sudden uproar was heard in the crowd. They all stared at
William and they felt that he was being inhumane.
"Also, I''d like to address the circting rumors," William continued on, ignoring the reporters and
audiences'' uproar. "A few days ago, there was an emergency that led me to go abroad. However, a
rumor circted that said I was irresponsible and it was an apparent escape. It did not only cause a
bad impact on my personal reputation, but also on thepany''s. We, the AJ Group, will reserve
the right to sue anyone who taints the name of ourpany.
Also, there is a gossip that says that my wife, Mary, is having an affair with the star of ourpany,
Victor. I would like to clear her name as it is untrue. Everyone, let''s listen to Victor as he makes a
statement."
William nced at Victor, indicating that he could start at any moment now.
Victor nced back at him. The emotions in his eyes were only known by himself.
"I feel very sorry for what happened. I am deeply saddened by the rumor. I am a good friend of the
CEO''s wife in private and my boss knows that," said Victor slowly.
William narrowed his eyes but said nothing.
"With the help of the CEO''s wife, our TV opera, the Past of Republic of China was sessfully
aired on TV. Unfortunately, someone took it as an evidence of our love affair. The rumor was false
and it''s absolutely impossible for it to happen,"
said Victor in a sonorous voice.
"Now is the time for reporters to ask questions. Feel free to ask anything."
"Mr. Lan, where is Mrs. Lan now? Why didn''t she show up this time?"
William answered the reporter, "Good question. My wife is still in the hospital. I have watched the
video about what happened at the gates of the hospital. It was wonderful. As a CEO, I cannot do
anything about the reporters; but as a husband, I have the right to speak for my wife."
Standing in front of the TV, Mary could not help butugh at the sight of William''s stern expression.
''Husband? What husband?''
Mary could not stand what she was hearing anymore. She went to the bathroom to sober up. She
turned on the tap, cupped the water in her hands, and sshed it on her face. She looked up and
stared at her reflection on the mirror. What she saw was a bitter smile on the corner of her mouth.
Her eyes were bloodshot, but there were no tears.
Last time, when she and William took wedding photos, he suddenly kissed her for no reason. She
was in a daze but he did not exin anything to her. ''Is he so cold-blooded that he doesn''t care
about my feelings? What exactly do I mean to you?'' Mary thought while clutching the corner of the
sink.
It never urred to William that he would see Mary sooner than he had anticipated.
After the press conference had ended yesterday, he returned to his vi in a fret. This morning,
when he arrived at thepany, he did not expect that he would see Mary sitting behind his desk.
Stunned, he stood in front of Mary and said, "Come to my office with me."
Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g!
Mary looked up at him and nodded.
Seeing that she had no desire for anything, William felt even more remorseful and guilty. He would
rather have Mary pped him in the face.
William walked to the office and sat on the office chair. He then pointed to a seat across him and
said to Mary, "Take a seat." "No, thanks," Mary said expressionlessly.
Frowning, William hurriedly opened the drawer at his right, took out a check and signed his name
on it.
He then stood up, walked to her side, and handed Mary the check. "Fill in any amount that you
want."
Mary nced at the check with mixed feelings but remained unmoved. "No, thanks.
There''s no need for that." William grabbed his hair frustratingly and asked, "What do you want? I
know I''m a jerk. Just take it as apensation."
Mary shook her head and said slowly, "The money that you have given me is enough to pay the sex
for many times. And we only had sex once. I don''t want more money from you."
"You," said William angrily as he clutched the check in his hand tightly until it became a ball. "Why
do you say something like that to piss me off? What do you want? I''ll do everything you want as
long as I can."
"What do I want?" Mary asked when all of a sudden, she burst intoughter.
"Yeah." William nodded solemnly.
"I want you to marry me!" Mary raised her head and looked at William sincerely. "No contract. Be
your real wife. Be Mrs. Lan for real." William was stunned. It took him a few seconds to
register what Mary had said.
"No way!" William looked away and said without any hesitations, "I can''t marry you."
Hearing his answer, Mary felt suffocated.
Although she had prepared for his answer, she still felt heartbroken when she heard his
straightforward refusal. It hurt her and it felt as
though she was going to die.
"Well, I got it. I want nothing but this," Mary continued while pretending to be calm.
"Mary!" Gritting his teeth, William said slowly, "Don''t push me."
"It''s okay. I''ll go out now if you have nothing else to say." With a pale face, Mary slowly walked out
of William''s office.
Every step she took was excruciatingly painful. She was heartbroken and her sight had be
more blurry with tears with every step. She strode to the restroom while clutching her chest.
She didn''t shed tears when William raped her, but now, she really felt like crying.
As Mary squatted inside the restroom, her tears fell down one after another. At first she cried
silently, then she cried bitterly, and then the moment came she burst into tears. She felt as though
she would shed all her tears in her life.
Meanwhile, William stormed out of his office. He was trying to figure out Mary''s whereabouts when
he heard someone cry from the direction of the restroom.
''Was all her disguise fake?''
With a big stride, William rushed to the restroom. There he saw Mary''s petite body curled up beside
the wash basin while crying.
"Mary!" Without hesitation, William pulled Mary up.
p!