There were two voice messages.
I tapped on the first one, and my heart stirred at a familiar voice – it was Marcus’. “Scar, is Ashton with you? If he… “
The message was cut off abruptly as if someone had interrupted it.
Without hesitating, I quickly tapped on the second one. I felt wrath boiling within me when I heard Holden’s provocative tone. “Well, aren’t I a courteous businessman? I showed you the proof even before we discuss business. But it depends on your sincerity whether you can listen to the rest. However, there is no need for you to worry. Even if the Taylor family masters all the communication base station’s locations, they will be smart enough not to compete with you. You have my words that White Corporation won’t be at any risk. So please make your decision well.”
If he were in front of me at that moment, I would surely have punched him. This man has no bottom line. He even uses others’ life as a bargaining chip.
Nonetheless, I admitted that Holden had made a brilliant move. Since Marcus had vanished for such a long time, the first thing he said was to ask for Ashton. This made me uncontrollably curious about it.
It took me a while to think, and I finally decided to respond with a voice message too. “So does the Taylor family always deal in such petty manner? You want to talk business, yet you only provide an incomplete voice message. Is this what you mean by courtesy?”
Holden’s reply came in no time. “Wow, I must admit your negotiating skill has clearly improved. You must have learned a lot from Ashton, I guess. Alright then, let me throw you another bone.”
Right after that came another message. This time it was the complete version of Marcus’ previous message.
“Scar, is Ashton with you? If he wants White Corporation, just give it to him! Remember that your safety is the first priority! Do not take any risk! And do not try to find me!”
Marcus spoke at such a hurried pace that I needed to listen to it twice. Only then was I sure he was actually asking me to be on guard against Ashton.
Still holding the phone in my hands, I shifted my gaze down towards the direction of Ashton. Looking at him socializing professionally among those men, I could not shake off the insecure emotions within me.
All the evidence told me that Ashton was building a huge web, while all of us were like fish trapped within it. I was no exception to this.
I turned and entered the bedroom. Then, I sat on the couch and let myself sank into deep thoughts. I came back to my sense only after Ashton opened the door and came in. Apparently, all the guests had left.
“Why are you still up?” Ashton asked with a drunken tone while he threw his suits on the couch. He approached me and gave me a gentle kiss on my forehead. “Sleep early.”
I could see that he was in an extremely joyous mood. Upon speaking, he wandered towards the bathroom, getting ready to freshen up.
But before he entered the washroom, I called out to him.
“Ashton, you invited all these people over. Was it to celebrate our soon-to-be-born baby? Or was it an opportunity to build your business network in advance?”
Ashton halted his steps. There was a long silence inside the room as the atmosphere turned suffocatingly tense.
Sometimes, one does not need words to say something; silence is enough to convey the message.
However, I would rather prefer Ashton to cover it up with a joke or something. At this moment, his complete silence was killing me.
It took a long moment before he turned towards me and held my shoulders with both his hands. He looked at me earnestly and said, “Your only priority now is to give birth. Let me handle everything in the company. There won’t be any problem. Trust me.”
Ultimately, he admitted it.
I furrowed my brows slightly as I recalled Marcus’ intimidated tone talking about Marcus. I bit my lips as I asked, “How about Marcus? Are you really trying to help him, or is he just a part of your plan?”
Ashton’s expression darkened when he heard Marcus’ name, and his arms defensively wrapped around his chest. “As I have said, we should know when to draw a line between personal affairs and work. My acquisition of White Corporation is fully legal and logical, and I have given them the best terms possible. You took part in the attack against the Moore family, so you should know better that there is no partiality in the business world. If I have not acted on them, White Corporation would have been left on the chopping block of others.”
