Chapter 261

Amy watched as Old Mrs. Felicia left, then turned and made her way to the living room. "Come in," she said softly. Peter quietly closed the door behind him. He saw Amy standing alone by the window in the living room, staring distractedly at the milky-white window screen. Peter sat down on the sofa without a word, viewing Amy's back but not starting a conversation. Amy's shoulders were shaking slightly. She smoothed her hair and subtly wiped away the tears that had slipped down her cheeks. "What are you doing here?" As Amy slowly turned to face him, she appeared frail, but her eyes shone with resolve. To Peter, he seemed to be a guilty man in her eyes. "I... This morning Melissa called and asked if you had arrived home. I said I didn't bring you home, but that you went on your own. Did she call you too?" Peter said, his voice desolate and low. Many of the things he truly wanted to say remained unsaid. He was here to apologize, but what good would that do now? Amy's eyes moistened again. She turned her head to hide her tears and replied with a calm, composed voice. "Don't worry, I didn't take Melissa's call. Even if I had taken it, I wouldn't have told her anything, and I won't in the future." Peter wanted to say something more, but he simply nodded. Amy felt her heart growing cold. So his purpose in coming here was to prevent Melissa from finding out. Therefore, Amy was the sacrifice in their relationship. If she could have seen the future, she might not have wanted to meet Peter at all. "Can you leave now? There are other things I have to do today." Amy gently urged him to go. She had given Peter a peace of mind, and so his purpose here was fulfilled. Given Amy's firm stance, Peter knew he had better not overstay his welcome in a girl's home, as that could lead to misunderstandings. He had already made one mistake, he could not afford to negatively impact Amy again. "Alright, thank you." Peter slowly rose to his feet. The apologies he wanted to voice never had a chance to be said. "I'm hiding this secret not for your sake, but because Melissa has been a friend of mine for many years. I don't want to break her heart." Amy stated flatly. She brushed aside any feelings she might have had for Peter, refusing to admit that she had ever been fond of him. "I don't think she would be heartbroken." Peter blurted out, a comment that made Amy's heart ache all the more. Peter caught a glimpse of the sorrow in Amy's eyes. She seemed to be in a terrible state. But it wouldn't be right to disturb her any further, so Peter left the house with a heavy heart. ........... In the warm afternoon, Melissa came bounding into Joseph's study, humming a light tune like a young girl. She went straight to Joseph's desk and, without ceremony, took his laptop. "Mr. Clarkson, I need to borrow this—just for an hour, okay?" Melissa's unusual cheerfulness made Joseph suspicious, suspecting that Melissa couldn't be up to anything good with his laptop. "Wait!" Joseph spoke in a voice imbued with a profound force that made Melissa halt. "What's up?" Melissa clutched her laptop, glancing back at him as she asked "Surely, boss Clarkson is not so begrudging?" "Oh no, it's nothing. I just remembered to ask, where did you go this morning?" If Joseph hadn't brought it up, Melissa might have thought he'd forgotten. "I went to..." Cleverly blinking her eyes, just as Melissa was about to cook up a story, Joseph pre-empted her "Heard you took some extra physics lessons and dropped by the bank to pay some tuition fees, didn't you?" Melissa had to admit to Joseph's cunning. He'd known all along, what a poker face! The assistant was unreliable, promising her that nothing would be revealed to Joseph, yet every little detail was exposed. Melissa finally understood the order of relationships at this level. "So what if did? I love studying." Melissa was blatantly lying through her teeth, holding a small grudge against the assistant in her heart. He made such lovely promises yet still reported the situation to Joseph. The world was indeed a deep pool. Joseph gestured to Melissa to have her sit next to him: "Whatever you want to learn, I will accompany you." Melissa rolled her eyes at Joseph, helplessly walked over and put the laptop on his desk: "No loan, no loan, such a miser." With these words, Melissa slipped back into her room. Joseph was too clever, which might sidetrack her grand plan for vengeance if she had to spend day and night with him. Ah, what a headache! After returning to her room, Melissa transferred the video recording on her phone to her own online album. She would need to find time to edit and post it online. On Monday morning, Melissa was woken up early by the knocking on her door by Joseph. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she got up from the bed in a daze. Goodness, Melissa seemed to have dreamt last night, of being scolded by Joseph at her new company, the Clarkson Corporation. This forced her to hide in the hallway against the heater venting, cursing Joseph all night. Joseph handed Melissa her new work uniform that had been delivered yesterday, informing her they had to leave in half an hour, to drop the kid off at the playground before heading to the Clarkson Corporation for work. Melissa ate breakfast on the way. She found every Monday to be extremely rushed, while Joseph was relaxed and well organized. Upon her arrival under the towering Clarkson Empire building, Melissa was left deeply shaken. "Wow, Joseph, this is my first time looking up at this building so carefully, it truly is a landmark of this city. I can't help but think that the people working here must feel so proud and fortunate every day." Melissa exclaimed in awe as she exited the car, standing under the towering Clarkson Empire building. "There's pressure, I mean, the people working at the Clarkson Corporation must feel very pressured." Joseph responded calmly, his expression immediately turning colder upon setting foot in the company, a reflexive habit of his. Melissa took in a deep breath, moving towards the revolving door in her high heels alongside Joseph. His words made her feel an invisible pressure coming from all directions. "Melissa, just follow my lead." Having said that, Joseph went through the revolving door. Melissa followed him by a step or two into the grand lobby of the Clarkson Empire. "Morning, Boss Clarkson!" The moment Joseph stepped into the office building, he received respectful greetings from numerous employees. Melissa silently followed behind Joseph, noticing many curious gazes directed at her.