Chapter 2

Tiffany woke up from her nap, feeling her mouth parched dry. She groggily crawling out from the tent, a pair of men's sneakers suddenly appeared before her. As her eyes trailed upward from the sneakers, she saw a pair of long and slender legs. As the sunlight pierced through the mist, Tiffany saw Vincent's face. She almost fainted on the spot. "M-Mr. Lewis?" Wasn't he supposed to go hiking? Vincent squatted before her and looked at her cheeks, flushed from the fever. His expression was grave. "I have a question for you." Tiffany's heart pounded. Licking her dry lips, she nodded shakily. "Y-Yes... Go ahead." "Did you see anyone enter my tent last night?" Vincent's gaze bored into her eyes. His overwhelming presence made it feel like an invisible hand was squeezing her chest, almost crushing her heart. Tiffany avoided his stare, her eyelashes fluttering. "N-No, I didn't see anyone." "Why are you trembling?" Vincent noticed her unusual behavior. It wasn't just her voice, even her whole body was shaking uncontrollably. She was so slim that Vincent feared she would break from how much she was shaking. He had dozens of assistants in his office, and each of them were responsible for different fields. Tiffany was a new intern, but he vaguely remembered her because of how timid she was. During her first interview, Tiffany had been utterly nervous when he had asked her questions. She had kept her head down the entire time, too afraid to meet his gaze. "I-I'm cold." Tiffany shivered harder. "Cold?" Vincent frowned. "But aren't you running a fever? How can you be cold?" Reaching out, his icy fingers touched her forehead. The next second, he frowned deeply. "What's going on? You're burning up!" "Mr. Lewis, I'm fine." Tiffany shivered violently, feeling utterly miserable. She tried to get up, but she had no strength left. She could only curl up helplessly on the grass as she felt her consciousness fading... "Tiffany?" Vincent sensed that something was wrong and tried to wake her up. At first, Tiffany mumbled a faint response but then lost consciousness completely. Without hesitation, Vincent bent down and scooped her up in his arms. She looked so thin, and she barely weighed a thing. As Vincent looked at her, he noticed a hickey on her neck. His eyes narrowed. "Mr. Lewis!" A voice pierced through the silence of the forest. Kelly had run back all the way. Her hair was disheveled, and she was panting heavily. Vincent asked, "Why did you come back?" Kelly looked at the unconscious Tiffany cradled in his arms. Catching her breath, she said, "I... I was worried about Tiffany, so I came back to check on her. What happened?" "She passed out from a high fever," Vincent said as he placed Tiffany in the car's backseat. "I need to take her to the hospital now." As he was about to get into the car, Kelly anxiously reached out and grabbed the door handle. "Mr. Lewis, can I come too?" Vincent eyed her with scrutiny. "Tiffany and I are colleagues," Kelly explained. "And we're both women, so I may be able to help." Her reasoning made sense, so Vincent agreed. … At the hospital, the doctors admitted Tiffany and started her on an IV drip. Kelly went to get some water. When she returned, she saw Vincent standing at the foot of Tiffany's bed. He was deep in thought as he stared at the unconscious Tiffany. "Mr. Lewis." Kelly poured him a cup of water. "Have some water." "Thanks." Vincent took the cup but set it aside. "What's your name?" Kelly was momentarily taken aback. Then, she realized that, even though he had many assistants, only Alex was the only one by his side around the clock. Kelly wasn't exactly an outstanding employee or good at her work, so she had rarely had the chance to interact with Vincent before. It was normal that she didn't know her name. "Kelly Harrison, sir. I'm your—" "Ms. Harrison, I need you to help me confirm something." Vincent interjected. A hint of disappointment flickered in Kelly's eyes, but she maintained her smile. "Sure, what is it?" After Vincent gave her some instructions, he left the room. Kelly bit her lip, taking slow steps toward the bed. She had mixed emotions as she looked at the unconscious Tiffany. Recalling Vincent's request, she pursed her lips and began unbuttoning Tiffany's shirt. As all the buttons came undone, Kelly saw the marks on Tiffany's body. She immediately covered her mouth in shock. … "Mr. Lewis, where did you go?" Alex called after returning to the campsite with the group and realizing that Vincent was nowhere to be found. Vincent replied, "Tiffany fainted, so I took her to the hospital." "Tiffany, the intern?" Alex expressed mild surprise. It wasn't because Vincent had personally taken Tiffany to the hospital, but rather because Vincent had remembered an intern's name. Considering the fact that Vincent had dozens of assistants, he hardly remembered anyone apart from Alex. Yet, he had remembered Tiffany's name, which was quite remarkable. "Yes." Vincent glanced at his wristwatch and said, "You guys have fun. I'll distribute the prize money after we get back." After giving some brief instructions, he hung up. At that moment, Kelly emerged from Tiffany's room. Vincent looked at her and asked, "So?" Kelly met his gaze calmly. "I've checked. There's nothing unusual on Tiffany's body. The hickey on her neck that you mentioned… It's probably from her boyfriend." "Boyfriend?" Vincent frowned slightly but didn't pry further. Kelly asked, "Would you like to see her? She'll probably wake up soon." "No." Vincent's expression returned to normal. "I have other matters to attend to. When she wakes up, make sure to contact her family." "Sure, Mr. Lewis. Don't worry." Kelly saw Vincent out before returning to Tiffany's room. Tiffany was already awake, but she still looked very weak. Kelly sat by the bed. "Tiffany, you're awake. How are you feeling? Any better?" Tiffany nodded. "Am I in the hospital?" "Yes." Kelly poured her a glass of water, smiling. "Mr. Lewis brought you here, and he even carried you." Tiffany choked on the water. "Mr. Lewis?" "That's right," Kelly teased. "Tiffany, do you think Mr. Lewis has taken a liking to you? I've been at the company for over a year, and I've never seen him carry a woman before." Tiffany's face blushed. "No way." "Why not? You're pretty, young, and have a nice figure. Many bosses prefer innocent-looking women. If you don't have a boyfriend, maybe you should consider Mr. Lewis seriously. He's quite a catch—" Tiffany cut her off, saying, "I have a boyfriend." Only then did Kelly stop. "Really?" Tiffany bit her lip. "Yes."