Beast!
Lily felt like her body was falling apart as she sat in the office, furious enough to curse under her breath.
Where was the cold, domineering CEO they had promised?!
Why did he turn into a beast in bed?!
Alexander Harrison was nothing like the cold-blooded, bloodthirsty persona the outside world described. He was clearly a well-dressed beast… impeccably dressed when clothed, yet a monster when the clothes came off!
“Lily, use a bit more force! You’re going to break the pen…”
Amy had been in the design studio for five minutes, only to find Lily lost in a battle with a drawing pen.
“Huh?” Lily suddenly snapped back to reality, her brain short-circuiting for a few seconds. After gathering herself, she asked, “What’s up?”
Amy handed her a folder, saying, “This just came in from the business department—customer orders. Do you want to see if there’s any inspiration for your designs?”
Lily took it, opened it, and after flipping a few pages, she suddenly saw a name and exclaimed, “Emma Taylor?” She looked up at Amy.
“Yep, that Emma Taylor—the big star!” Amy nodded enthusiastically. “And the apartment is in that newly built Harrison property in New York!”
“Wow,” Amy shook her head in disbelief, “Harrison really goes all out. I heard those apartments are priced thirty percent above market value. You can’t even buy one if you have money!”
She leaned on the table with a look of gossiping excitement, “Lily, do you think that apartment is for Harrison’s secret affair?!”
Lily chuckled but remained noncommittal.
“Lily, why not design for her?” Amy’s eyes lit up suddenly. “If it works out, you might even get to connect with Alexander Harrison!”
Lily rolled her eyes inwardly. Even though she had jumped on the trend of marrying into wealth, she was the real Mrs. Alexander Harrison!
Did she need anyone else to bridge that connection?!
“When Harrison sees your design for his apartment, his eyes will light up!” Amy was oblivious to the gloom in Lily’s eyes and kept getting more excited, as if she was imagining a scripted scene, “Wow, this design is amazing!”
Imitating Alexander Harrisons demeanor, Amy pretended to make an announcement, “From the clubhouse to the eighteenth floor, this entire project was contracted to our Lily!” She couldn’t help but laugh at herself.
“Girl… did you forget to take your meds before you left home?” Lily couldn’t take it anymore, rolling her eyes. She then returned to reviewing the customer order.
Amy pouted, shrugging her shoulders, “Lily, I’m serious…” She pouted, “If the clubhouse project goes through, you could get recommended to Columbia University. That would be quite an achievement!”
“Emma Taylor will choose us largely because our company is known for its confidentiality…” Lily continued without looking up, “If she finds out I’m designing for Harrison, do you think we won’t end up with a tarnished reputation?”
As she spoke, Lily glanced at Amy, noticing her deflated demeanor, and let out a sigh.
“Let’s not even talk about whether it damages our company’s reputation…” Lily said, “Do you think Emma Taylor would be foolish enough to introduce a woman to Harrison?”
Amy looked even more dispirited, “No way…” She gazed at Lily, “Especially not with someone as stunning as you, Lily!”
“…” Lily felt they were on different wavelengths and shook her head helplessly, returning to her paperwork.
Amy leaned on the glass table, looking a bit awkward, “I can’t help but want to know what Mrs. Harrison thinks about Harrison having a mistress… Is it ‘whatever’ or ‘whatever’?”
Listening to her, Lily’s thoughts drifted away…
She was after Alexander Harrisons money, not his heart. Now that she had money to spend and could meet her physical needs, what more could she want?!
“Men can also be a source of trouble…” Lily scoffed, a fleeting sense of agitation coursing through her, but it was too quick for her to even notice.
After flipping through the order again, she pulled out a design for a duplex apartment. “I’ll take this order…”
Before she could finish, her phone rang. Seeing it was a call from Donald’s office, she answered quickly, “Director?”
“Come to my office for a moment…”
“Okay!” Lily responded, hanging up before instructing Amy, “I’ll take this order. You can coordinate the viewing and design proposal with the client.”
“Sure…” Amy checked the number and replied, “I’ll contact them right away.”
*Knock, knock!*
“Come in…”
Donald was signing some documents when he looked up and gestured for Lily to take a seat. “Sit down.”
Lily sat across from him and waited until he finished signing and handed the documents to his secretary before asking, “Director, what’s up?”
“What’s your plan regarding Harrison’s project?” Donald asked.
Lily hesitated, feeling a bit guilty, and replied, “I don’t have a direction yet…”
Donald pulled out a business card from his drawer. “This is a card from Harrison’s personal assistant. You might want to reach out.”
Lily furrowed her brows inwardly, feeling a wave of frustration rise within her. The issue wasn’t about contacting Harrison’s people; the real problem was that Alexander Harrison wouldn’t agree to let her go.
If even her brother-in-law didn’t show any mercy, what was she as a contractual wife?!
“Lily, I believe in you…” Donald looked at her earnestly, filled with high expectations. “With the competition so fierce in the industry, I’d love to see Harrison succeed.”
A flood of exasperation swept through her thoughts, but she still graciously accepted the business card, forcing a smile as she said, “Director, I will do my best.”
Leaving Donald’s office with her thoughts in turmoil, Lily felt utterly defeated, especially when she saw Benjamin’s card, making her want to laugh and cry at the same time.
---
In the top conference room of Harrison Group.
Alexander Harrison tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table, the light sound becoming eerily sharp in the hushed atmosphere.
“Does anyone have a solution?” His voice, soft yet commanding, echoed in the silence of the room, causing everyone to tense up.
The executives were all silent as if paralyzed; whoever spoke first would surely face the consequences. Better to stay silent than risk being the next target.
The meeting room fell silent again, the atmosphere suffocating as if they were running out of oxygen.
“President,” the general manager finally gathered the courage to speak, “About this situation…”
Just then, a phone buzzed, causing everyone to stiffen, instinctively thinking it was their own phone.
But they quickly remembered their phones were on silent or off.
Everyone’s eyes shifted to Alexander Harrison, who picked up his phone, frowning slightly. It was a text from Lily.
**Lily:** Working hard, wifey… As your husband, shouldn’t you support my work?
Alexander’s gaze deepened as he typed back: **Sure, quit your job, and I’ll support you.**
Lily felt a twitch at the corner of her mouth, quickly replying: **Stop suggesting I quit!** She added a playful emoji.
Alexander’s lips curved slightly: **Tell me, what’s on your mind?**
**Lily:** I heard there’s a clubhouse that needs design work. As your wife, I think I’m qualified as an architect!
Alexander could almost picture the gleam in Lily’s eyes as she sent that message, sparkling with a fox-like cunning: If you want me to agree to let you go, how will you repay me?
Seeing her reply, Lily was fuming, but she still tried to sweet-talk him back: **How about I repay you with… intimate favors?