Chapter 215 Work Extremely Hard
The mirror in the bathroom was obscured by a layer of vapor. The man lifted his hand to wipe it. The reflection revealed his thin and cold side profile. There was no sound outside the room.
His eyes sank. The image of Jean and Ben together kept swirling around in his mind. Wearing his bathrobe, he laughed gently at himself.
If he had known earlier what it was that he wanted, he wouldn’t be so tortured at the moment. The door of the bathroom opened. Vapor drifted out and as expected, Jean was nowhere to be seen in the room.
He couldn’t explain the feeling in his heart.
His eyes darkened. As he was taking off his bathrobe, the door was pushed open.
Jean was startled. She turned around in a rush. “Wear… wear your clothes!”
She didn’t think that he would come out so quickly.
She had witnessed such a scene.
Edgar hurriedly put on a sweater. His Adam’s apple rumbled. “I’m done.”
Jean placed coffee and tea on his desk. She hung her head and said in a light voice, “Mm. Can we change the conditions?”
Her fingertips that were holding onto the tray tightened.
“Even if it’s being a servant in Royden Residence or cleaning the toilets in Royden Group, I’m willing to do everything except…”
Other than the way of begging that he mentioned, she was willing to put down her dignity and pride.
Saying that, she shut her eyes in pain.
Edgar’s gaze fell on her. It was filled with anxiety, conflict, and hesitation.
Jean kept looking down. Her brow wrinkled deeper when she didn’t hear a response from him.
If he didn’t agree, she didn’t have any other way.
“Can you at least give me a few more days? I’ll find a way to free Eyer Group from that predicament. One week at most. If I can’t do it, Eyer Group can be found in breach of contract. When the time comes, I will shoulder all responsibility.”
The air was still for a long time.
“How are you going to assume all responsibility?” He suddenly said.
His voice was near her. It was almost at the top of her head. “With Ben?”
Jean frowned. “Can you stop bringing him up?”
It was a matter between them. Why did he have to bring other people into it!
When she raised her head, she bumped into his shoulder.
When she looked up, she saw his extremely overcast black eyes. He slowly said, “Then stay by my side and work extremely hard until the partnership ends.”
Jean did not hear the first part of what he said. She only heard him agreeing to her negotiation, so she nodded immediately. “Alright.”
“I’ll get Miles to pass you the contract later,” Edgar said before picking up the cup of tea on the desk and finishing it in one mouthful.
Jean breathed a sigh of relief. The sound of the footsteps was further away but her heart was still pounding non-stop.
One hour later, Miles came by.
“Wasn’t it a proposal for a partnership? What is this?”
Jean frowned as she looked at the papers in front of her.
It was clear that the contract had just been drafted. The content had nothing to do with the partnership between Eyer Group and Royden Group. In fact, it was unfair clauses Edgar was using to restrict her freedom.
“This is the contract between you and Mr. Royden. If you break the contract, the partnership between Eyer Group and Royden group will be nullified immediately. Royden Group will also look into the responsibility of Eyer Group.”
Jean clenched her teeth.
She flipped to the last page and signed her name.
“Ms. Eyer, aren’t you going to read it carefully?”
“There’s no need.”
As soon as she said that, Susan came over. “Ms. Eyer, Mr. Royden gave instructions just now that he wants to have a roast for dinner.”
Jean was dumbstruck for a moment. “I have to prepare it?”
Susan nodded cautiously. “Yes.”
Jean took a deep breath in and forced out a smile. “Alright, I’m coming.”
After all, it wasn’t like she had never been ordered around by Edgar.
As Jean was busy in the kitchen, she didn’t notice the figure that walked past the living room and the kitchen after Miles left.
“Mr. Royden, I better help Ms. Eyer.” Hearing sounds coming from the kitchen, Susan worriedly stretched her body forward to look in that direction.
“No.”
Edgar sipped a mouthful of coffee. He frowned and placed the cup on the surface of the table. “Jean, come pour coffee.”
Jean was busy cutting vegetables. When she heard a sound, she walked out with a knife in her hands. “What?”
There were some herbs and spices stuck on her face.
The man’s gaze fell on her. He tapped the table unhappily. “Coffee.”
“Alright, coming.”
Jean adjusted her attitude as she poured water and brewed coffee at one go.
She turned and went into the kitchen after that.
What came next was a series of sounds.
The man picked up the cup of coffee and gently took a sip. A trace of a smile couldn’t help but appear on his lips.
Susan, who was at the side, was wiping down furniture in the living room. She shook her head, frustrated, and mumbled in a soft voice. “You obviously want her to stay by your side and see her every day, yet you don’t want to tell her.”
Edgar heard it clearly. His smile vanished in an instant.
Susan realized that she had been too meddlesome. She hung her head as she focused on what she had to do.
But she suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. Her wrist trembled and a vase in the living room toppled over.
Smash.
Hearing the sound, Jean rushed out.
Seeing that Susan’s hand was cut by the fragments, Edgar’s face was cold as usual. He stood at one side without moving.
“Mr. Royden, I’m fine.” Susan apologized as she cleaned up.
“Don’t move, Susan. I’ll clean up. Deal with your wound.” Jean rushed over to pull her up. Looking at Edgar, who was startled at one side, she wrinkled her brow. “Mr. Royden, please move out of the way if you’re not going to help!”
He was really cold-blooded!
Jean dragged Susan to bind her wound. Fragments had pierced her flesh. Jean looked down as she picked it out. “It might hurt a little, Susan. You have to endure it for a while.”
Susan smiled and said, “It’s fine. There’s no feeling in this hand of mine.”
Jean’s hand stopped abruptly.
Susan sighed indifferently. “It’s thanks to the mercy of Mr. Royden that I can survive until this day. My only hope now is that I can do something meaningful with whatever time I have left.”
Jean had never seen Susan look so sorrowful.
In that moment, she didn’t know what to do.
“Ms. Eyer, do you really think that Mr. Royden is cold?” Susan suddenly asked. “Actually, he used to be a cheerful and lively kid. But his days were too painful and there were thistles and thorns everywhere, which made him colder.”
Susan gazed out the window as she vaguely recalled what had happened a long time ago.
Jean looked down to deal with the last fragment before she disinfected the wound and put ointment on it.
Susan wasn’t in pain at all. In fact, she told Jean a lot about what happened when Edgar was young.
“Back then, Mr. Royden loved reading fairytales…”
Jean listened expressionlessly.
Susan turned her head sideways. Unknowingly, the whole of her wrist had been bound up.
She smiled bitterly. “You don’t have to go all out. I can’t work.”
“I’ll do it.”
Jean put the first-aid kit back in its place. “Susan, no matter what he’s like in front of you, he’s not like that to me.”
Jean didn’t want to understand the past of a person she once loved deeply, but now hated.
Who didn’t have a past full of thorns? With how she was at the point, she didn’t have the time to empathize with others.
“But…”
“At least he can do as he pleases and own everything he wants, right?”
Jean opened the door and went downstairs into the kitchen.
At the corner of the door, Edgar’s dark and deep eyes kept following her figure until he could see nothing.
