Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Timothy glanced at Ronald. “I don’t eat cake.”

Although he was happy that Samantha showed concern for him, she ought to know that he did not like sweet food. Why would she bring cakes for him, then?

Was she that…inattentive?

Ronald quickly understood that Timothy hated that kind of food, although…Ronald did have a sweet tooth. He just so happened to feel peckish after such a long meeting.

Ronald gulped and mustered the courage to say, “Don’t worry about it, Mr. Barker. Leave the cake that Mrs. Barker brought to me. I’ll eat them all and make sure not to waste a single crumb!”

After he finished speaking, he waited eagerly for Timothy to reward him with the cake.

Timothy’s lips twitched and asked instead, “You want to have some cake?”

Ronald nodded repeatedly while looking at the cake on the coffee table, but the next second, he heard his boss’s merciless words. “Buy some yourself.”

Ronald was speechless and felt uncared for. If Timothy did not let him eat the cake despite having a distaste for sweet food, then Ronald could only chalk it up to Timothy’s terrifying possessiveness toward Samantha.

There was one time he even had to endure an intense glare from Timothy after looking at Samantha a little bit too long.

Timothy was someone that should ever be messed with!

“Mr. Barker, I’ll head out then if there’s nothing else.”

“Mm.”

Ronald walked out of the office and closed the door gently behind him.

…

Timothy walked to the sofa and sat down. He took out the cake from the bag. He looked at it for a moment and frowned, but he still picked up the small fork and cut out a small piece to eat.

The sweetness assaulted his taste buds and the disgust in his expression became even stronger.

He went to get himself a glass of water and drank from it before coming back. Alternating between cake and water, he finished the cake slowly but surely.

Once he had eaten the whole slice, he picked up his phone, typed out a text on WeTalk, and sent it.

…

At the villa, Samantha came out of the bath just in time to hear her phone ring.

She walked to the bed, picked up the phone, and immediately clicked on the WeTalk message Timothy sent.

[The cake was too sweet.]

He had eaten it.

Samantha knew that Timothy did not like sweet stuff, and she only bought the cake because her emotions had been a bit of a mess that day. She never actually expected him to eat it.

She could not tell him why she bought the cake in the first place, so she merely replied: [Grandma taught me how to make her signature sauerkraut fish. I’ll make it for you sometime.]

She even sent him the photos she took during her first attempt at making the dish.

A few seconds later, he replied: [Sure. Looking forward to it.]

Samantha could not help but smile.

Timothy was so forthcoming that she almost felt embarrassed to have made such wild guesses before. 

It was time for her to gather her thoughts and focus wholly on her competition.

She and Timothy were both working hard at their own endeavors!

Samantha sent one last message: [No matter how busy you are, you must remember to rest. I’ll do my best and win the competition.]

…

Timothy smiled after reading her message. He was obviously very tired, but his sleepiness had all but disappeared when he was done chatting with her.

After putting down the phone, he walked over to the desk, sat down, and started flipping through the documents.

There was a knock on the office door sometime later.

Timothy looked up and had a puzzled look.

Ronald had informed him via WeTalk that he was going out for a meal, while the rest of the company’s employees had already left work at that point. Who could possibly be knocking at such a time?

His long slender fingers tapped the tabletop and Samantha’s figure appeared suddenly in his mind.

Could she have decided to send over some sauerkraut fish because she did not get a chance to see him earlier that afternoon?

Timothy’s lips curled up slyly. He stood up, walked to the door, and opened it.

A woman stood outside the door with packed dinner in her hands.

Unfortunately, it was not Samantha’s big round eyes that greeted the man when he looked up. It was a pair of pure yet impassioned eyes that were all the rage among men in recent times.

Harmony smiled slightly and greeted softly, “Tim.”

…

Once the promotional photos were released, there was a bit of a stir on the internet.

Samantha, being Mrs. Barker, was famous in her own right, but rather than sit at home and live up to her status as a rich wife, she decided to participate in the competition. Did she really have what it takes or did she merely rely on being backed by the Barker Group? Netizens expressed their opinions in droves and many had differing takes on the situation.

The number of people who were optimistic about her chances paled in comparison to those who were not.

That was the first thing Samantha saw when she woke up the next day. She glanced through the myriad of comments from netizens but did not feel affected by any of it at all.

All that gossip would be the death of her if she was offended by each and every single one of them. The best way to refute all that was to give them a slap in the face by proving her abilities.

The only thing that mattered to her was that her loved ones were supporting her! That was more than enough!

The first round officially started that day.

At ten o’clock in the morning, Samantha—along with the other contestants—were led by Walter into Lychee TV’s newsroom. Everyone started getting nervous as soon as they stepped in.

There were three judges for that round, all of whom were news anchors who had been with Lychee TV for more than ten years. After introducing them one by one and giving them some encouragement, Walter announced the rules of the first round of the competition.

“For this round, we’re going to select the new anchors that have the most potential to be nurtured. As a result, the rules for this round are the most demanding. We’ll first test your ability as an anchor to present breaking news. A piece of breaking news will be broadcast for everyone to watch, and you’ll all have five minutes to figure out how you wish to present the news. Lots will be drawn to decide when it’s your turn to present, and the three judges will then give you your final score. Only seven out of fifteen of you will go through.”

Everyone gasped as soon as Walter finished speaking.

Half the number of contestants will be eliminated in the first round, and the first test was a very difficult one indeed.

Although everyone knew that Lychee TV’s tests have always been difficult, they did not expect it to be even harder than they imagined.

For the record, newcomers who joined the television station would have to practice for a long time before getting a chance to try their hand at presenting breaking news.

Walter was not surprised by everyone’s reaction. After scanning the contestants, his gaze lingered on two of them and he said, “Raise your hand and ask if you have any questions. If not, we’ll draw lots now!”

One of the contestants raised it quickly, “Mr. Schuck, I have a question!”

“Yes!”

“We’re all going to watch the breaking news together, but because our turn is decided through lots, wouldn’t the person who drew number one have less preparation time than those after her? The person who goes first only has five minutes to prepare. Isn’t that unfair?”

Walter smiled. “Since you’re the ones drawing lots, luck is also a part of your strength. There is nothing unfair about it!”

When he said that, the rest of the contestants could only obey him and leave it in God’s hands to decide. The last thing they wanted was to get one of the early numbers!

A cardboard box was placed on the table and the 15 contestants stepped forward to take a lot.

Samantha took one and went back to her place.. Harmony, who was behind her, similarly went back to her own spot and asked with a smile, “How’s your luck, Sammy? What number do you think you’ll get?”