Lillian’s eyes flashed with mischief. She raised her voice and called out, “Conrad, stop! Why’d you lock me up in here?”
She pitched her voice, adding a sultry edge that sent chills down anyone listening.
Evelyn froze. “That’s…Lillian’s voice.” Her face went pale. “Didn’t Conrad say he was busy? Is it her again?”
Janet’s face twisted with anger. “Stay calm. I’ll go check it out.”
She leaned over the balcony, listening.
“Oh, Conrad~ you’re so annoying! Aren’t you supposed to be into Evelyn? So why lock me up here? Come on, let me go-I’ve got a date waiting for me. What? You think she’s boring and just want to sleep with me?”
Evelyn clenched her jaw so tightly her lip started to bleed.
Janet looked at her, panicked. “That witch. I’ll go talk to Assistant Alice. She’ll know what to do.”
Evelyn sank down onto the bed, her face ashen as tears welled up in her eyes.
Janet didn’t dare barge into Lillian’s room, afraid she’d interrupt whatever was going on between her and Conrad. Instead, she went looking for Alice.
Lillian waited patiently on the bed, and sure enough, the door soon opened.
When Alice walked in and saw her, she was instantly annoyed.
Lillian put on an “oops, you caught me” look. “Wait…you?!”
At that, Alice realized Conrad wasn’t there. Recently, he’d only been taking Ford with him, leaving her waiting outside with the driver. If it weren’t for Janet’s call, she wouldn’t have even known that Lillian was here.
With Conrad not around, Janet puffed up her chest and strutted in, fanning the flames. “Alice, see what I mean? This tramp is totally up to something! How convenient that wherever Conrad goes, she’s right there. She’s clearly timing it to seduce him with these sleazy tricks. Typical for someone who’s out selling herself.”
Lillian suddenly let out a soft laugh.
Janet shot her a glare. “What’s so funny? Did I hit the nail on the head?”
“You seem to know an awful lot about this line of work. Been in it a long time?” Lillian’s calm, mocking tone cut deeper than Janet’s loud insults.
“You!” Janet lunged at her, but Alice stepped in and stopped her.
No one knew better than Alice how “unique” Lillian was. For three years, Conrad hadn’t grown tired of her. If Janet left a scratch on her now, Conrad would be furious, and Evelyn’s whole “innocent” image would crumble.
“Assistant Alice!”
“Go keep Miss Evelyn company. I’ve got this.”
Janet threw a furious look at Lillian, snapping, “Conrad belongs to Evelyn! You’re just the sidepiece-get it straight!”
Janet stormed off in a huff, and Lillian could only roll her eyes.
Alice stepped closer and whispered, “What game are you playing? Weren’t you the one who wanted to leave Mr. Conrad? Typical ‘hard-to-get’ tactics-careful, or it’ll blow up in your face!”
Lillian couldn’t be bothered to deny it and deliberately baited her. “Did Conrad send you here? If he doesn’t want to see me, fine. But who do you think you are to come and lecture me?”
Alice sneered. “And what makes you think Conrad will fall for your tricks? Let me be clear: Evelyn will be moving into Taylor Mansion soon. Everything you once had will be hers, so it’s time for you to leave. Don’t humiliate yourself any further.”
Lillian deliberately put on a shocked face. “What did you just say? How does she get to move in there?”
“Enough. You’ve chained yourself up here, but has Mr. Conrad shown up? I don’t know what you tried to pull last time in the dressing room, but let me make it crystal clear: you’re not getting another chance. Leave now, or I’ll have security drag you out.”
Lillian bit her lip, pretending to look humiliated. “Can’t you see I’m cuffed here? How am I supposed to leave without the key?”
“You cuffed yourself here, and now you don’t know where the key is?”
Lillian feigned guilt. “I was afraid Conrad would realize I did it on purpose, so I tossed the key somewhere. Now I don’t know where it is. Help me look?”
Alice frowned, suspicious.
Lillian added, “If you don’t help, I’ll just wait here for Conrad. I’m not leaving until he shows up.”
Lillian was certain Alice would help, whether she saw through her or not, because they both wanted the same thing: for Lillian to leave.
Sure enough, Alice started searching, but after a while, she came up empty-handed.
“Where did you put the key?”
Lillian cursed under her breath, guessing that Conrad had taken it with him. That bastard!
“Fine, I’ll just wait here for Conrad to come save me, then,” Lillian said, playing along.
Of course, Alice wasn’t about to let her stay, so she immediately called for hotel staff to come up with tools to unlock the cuffs. The staff brought pliers, clipped them off, and, accustomed to serving the rich, knew better than to ask questions.
Once she was free, Lillian kept up the act, saying, “You got me this time. Next time, you won’t be so lucky. I’ll make sure you’re out of Conrad’s life for good.”
Alice just gave her a cold laugh as Lillian quickly pulled on her pants under the blanket, grabbed her stuff, and bolted.
Lillian avoided the elevator, opting to run down the stairs and straight toward the back parking lot. Spotting a car about to leave, she didn’t hesitate and jumped right in front of it.
The sound of screeching brakes pierced the air.
Gordon took off his sunglasses, looked out, and frowned. “Lillian, really? Trying to get hit now?”
Lillian wasn’t about to argue. She yanked the car door open and jumped in. “Drive!”
Gordon tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. “And why should I? Since when did I sign up to be your chauffeur?”
“Look, Gordon, I’ve got an emergency here. You were leaving anyway, right? Just drop me off at any corner, and I’ll catch a bus.”
He laughed at her, and then suddenly his face changed. “Nope, get out.”
Lillian took a deep breath and leaned in closer. “If you don’t drive me out of here, I’ll just tell Conrad the real reason I broke things off with him is because I fell for you. Yep, you’re my secret lover. I’m dying to run away with you and have your kids. Every second with Conrad was torture because all I could think about was you, Gordon!”
Gordon was stunned, then burst out laughing in disbelief. “You’re nuts! Really? Lillian, have some shame. The last time he kicked you out, who was the one who drove you?”
Lillian blinked innocently at him. “Come on, Mr. Gordon, help a girl out. Just dump me at the next corner, and I swear I’ll pay you back someday.”
“You’re gonna be the death of me.” Gordon started the car, snapping, “Buckle up!”
“And let me make one thing clear,” he warned as they sped off. “Leave me out of your drama with Conrad! If this backfires, don’t blame me for throwing you under the bus.”
Lillian smirked. Yeah, like she’d count on him to back her up-she knew that he and Conrad were best friends.
The sleek red sports car zipped smoothly out of the club, and as they finally left the premises,
Lillian exhaled in relief.
Gordon glanced over, sneering. “What, you had to stir up trouble on a perfectly fine day? Playing cat and mouse with Conrad now?”
Lillian turned to look out the window. “Which eye of yours thinks I actually want to play with him?”
She’d love nothing more than to get as far away from Conrad as possible.
Gordon kept his mouth shut, just focused on driving.
******
After finishing his meeting and sending off his friends, Conrad finally strolled back to the room.
He had no idea what kind of trouble his little wildcat had gotten herself into this time, but he planned to show her who was in charge. He’d let her get away with too much over the past few years.
But when he opened the door, the person lying on the bed was Alice.