Once Bitten, Twice Shy

After ending the call, Harmony could not hold herself back from cackling out loud.

Although she guessed that there must be something going on between Samantha and Alan, she never imagined that the two of them had reached such a stage!

During the past three years, Samantha had been together with Alan and even gave birth to his child.

The two of them probably did not get married because Samantha had not divorced Timothy yet. Even so, the child had already been born and was even recorded under Alan's name.

What a swell guy!

Harmony truly admired Samantha for the latter's fickleness and shamelessness!

Samantha had given birth to another man's child and yet she came back to get entangled with Timothy.

Harmony believed that neither Timothy nor the old hag knew that Samantha did such a shameful thing outside. It was more so for the old hag because she would not have supported Samantha so unconditionally and given her all the shares.

That was the reason Samantha had the opportunity to get close to Timothy again, and the reason why Timothy could not divorce her for the time being and sever their ties.

Harmony's heart burned with an intense flame when she thought of that.

At the same time, she felt a little uneasy too.

Samantha's reappearance had since destroyed all of Harmony's good deeds and had, to some extent, affected Timothy somewhat too.

Many things have settled in place during the past few years, but Samantha just had to be a bringer of bad luck.

Things always went wrong whenever she showed up!

Harmony needed to use that bombshell of news to destroy Samantha. Doing so would discredit her and provide a boost for Harmony to clear her name. Most importantly, Timothy could also use this as a reason to speed up the divorce!

How perfect of her to kill three birds with one stone!

Harmony had calmed down a lot in those three years. Being cautious was of utmost importance if she wanted to ensure a resounding victory!

As for whether Samantha had really given birth to a child, it was important for her to verify the information personally!

Ian had informed her that Samantha's child was delivered by C-section, which meant that there should be an incision scar on Samantha's stomach.

Harmony needed an opportunity to get a look.

She thought for a moment and picked up the phone again to make a call.

As soon as the call was connected, she said bluntly, "Mr. Snell, I'd have to trouble you these few days to help me keep an eye on Samantha. Please report her itinerary to me."

Ian answered, "No problem!"

…

Although Samantha had decided to reawaken Timothy's main personality, she could not think of a good solution for the moment.

The main issue was how difficult it was to get close to Timothy.

They never spoke even though they saw each other in the company every day, and Timothy generally ignored her without so much as glancing at her from the corner of his eyes.

Inside the office, Samantha sat on the chair and rested her chin in her hand. She was feeling a little worried.

She thought about many things but the reality was never as it seemed.

There was a sudden knock on the door.

Samantha sat up straight and said, "Come in."

Ronald pushed the door open and walked in with a smile on his face. He said respectfully, "Hello, Ms. Larsson."

Samantha cocked her eyebrows slightly.

Although she had a good personal relationship with Ronald and he had always thrown his support behind her, he was still Timothy's assistant and would usually avoid raising eyebrows within the company.

The fact that he came to her office so openly to see her meant that it probably had something to do with work.

Samantha smiled and asked, "Is something the matter?"

Ronald nodded and said, "Well, the company's annual dinner will be held next week, and this year's performance is a cause for celebration, so it'll be a very grand dinner. We'll also invite Mr. Holt from the EIA Group, as well as their important board members as well."

Annual dinner...

Samantha subconsciously glanced at the calendar on the table. The year had come to an end without her even realizing it.

She was too busy worrying about all sorts of stuff during recent periods that she even forgot the new year was upon them.

After so much time had passed, she still did not know where Matt was...

Seeing her silence, Ronald could not help but whisper again, "Ms. Larsson, are you alright?"

Samantha snapped back to her senses and hurriedly refrained from letting her emotions show. She answered softly, "Alright, I understand. I'll attend."

After all, she was the deputy CEO of the company. Even if she was not involved in any work, she still had to attend as a courtesy.

Ronald looked as though he wanted to say something but was hesitant to do so.

Upon seeing that, Samantha asked, "Is there anything else, Ronald? You can always tell me, you know."

Ronald scratched his head. Even though he had a rather awkward expression, he still said, "Well, Mr. Holt attaches great importance to his reputation, so...umm... Mr. Barker needs you to be his companion to entertain Mr. Holt together with him..."

Samantha let out a drawn-out, "Oh."

No wonder Ronald had such a tight frown. That was a lot to ask of Samantha.

Samantha was still the legitimate Mrs. Barker, and Timothy could not attend such an important occasion with an illegitimate mistress like Harmony.

After all, a man with a stable marriage and a good image was more reliable in the business world than men who appear in media gossip every once in a while.

Moreover, Michael had always attached great importance to a person's reputation, for he would not have forced Timothy to get a divorce with her when she was implicated in a scandal before.

The opportunity she had been trying so hard to get was being handed over on a silver platter.

It was a chance to get close to Timothy!

Samantha scoffed and leaned her body against the back of the chair. She folded her arms and said, "Where's his sincerity? He wants me to play along with him in this charade, yet he doesn't invite me in person and asks you to inform me about it instead, as if this is some kind of official business."

"I have to watch him walk around in front of me with a mistress every day now, and he's calling me as and he when he pleases so he can use me as his tool in his business world? Please. It won't be that easy!"

Ronald had already expected that kind of a result and his face wrinkled up almost instantly.

He knew that even a domineering woman like Samantha would be petty when it came to emotional matters.

"Ms. Larsson, I...I..." Ronald did not know what to say at that moment and all those eloquent words he spoke in the past were no longer useful.

Samantha knew that Ronald was just a messenger and so she had no intention to make life difficult for him. She said again, "If Timothy needs me to be his plus one, then he should ask me personally. But he has to do it as soon as possible because I'm in very high demand. Who knows, I might agree to be someone else's plus one."

Ronald was almost in tears. "Ms. Larsson—"

Samantha interrupted him mercilessly. "Alright now, I need to work. If you'll excuse yourself."

…

At the CEO's office, Ronald tried his best to restrain his trembling voice and said to his expressionless boss sitting at the far end of the office. "Mr.. Barker, Ms. Larsson said that…you…you need to…personally ask her if you…want her to be your plus one!"