Chapter 8

As Tiffany's shirt slipped off, her flawless back came into Vincent's view. A flicker of disappointment crossed his eyes, and he averted his gaze. His voice was low as he apologized. "I'm sorry." Tiffany covered herself with the blanket. The aggrieved look in her tearful eyes was evident. "Mr. Lewis, have I proven myself?" Vincent opened his mouth but found that any words would ring hollow now. He left the dorm and glanced up at the faint light from the second-floor window. He couldn't help but think about Tiffany's fragile figure. What if she was crying right now? Vincent got his phone and called Alex. "Prepare a gift for me. Something exquisite meant for a woman." … After Vincent left, Tiffany locked the door. Then, she took a fresh set of pajamas and went into the bathroom. As she took off her clothes, she saw that the marks on her chest had faded slightly. But they were still hard to look at. There hadn't been many on her back to begin with, and they had healed quickly after she had applied some ointment, so Vincent hadn't noticed anything earlier. Still, Tiffany had broked out in a cold sweat from the scare. She wasn't sure what would happen if Vincent learned the truth. She knew Lewis Group strictly prohibited relationships between superiors and subordinates. She had worked so hard to get this job; it would all be in vain the truth got out. She had to guard this secret, no matter what. After a quick shower, she burrowed under the covers to sleep. The next morning, Tiffany took two sets of breakfast with her to the hospital. One was for Anna. As the nurse finished setting up the IV drip for Tiffany, the door opened. Thinking it was Vincent, Tiffany pretended to be engrossed in her phone. "Grandma." A familiar voice sounded nearby. Tiffany looked up in surprise to see William. It suddenly crossed her mind that both Vincent and William had the same surname—Lewis. Could they be related? As if sensing her gaze, William looked her way. Tiffany didn't have time to avert her eyes and ended up meeting his gaze head-on. Anna smiled as she introduced them. "This is Tiffany. Tiff, this is my other grandson, William." Anna kept the introductions brief. Tiffany breathed an inward sigh of relief when Anna didn't mentioned that she worked at Lewis Group. After all, Anna had a habit of telling Vincent everything. "Hello, Tiffany." William looked at her with a hint of warmth. Tiffany only nodded politely before turning her attention back to her phone. William's eyes flickered strangely at her reaction, but he said nothing. After a while, a nurse came to take Anna for a check-up. William stayed behind; he sat in a corner of the room, texting someone. Tiffany grew tired of her phone and turned the screen off to rest. Looking up, she met William's gaze. She had a feeling that he had been watching her intently for some time. Just as she was about to look away, William spoke up. "Weren't you supposed to be on a business trip? What are you doing in the hospital?" Tiffany pursed her lips and picked up her phone again. But she wasn't able to do anything with it before it was snatched from her grasp. She looked up at William standing by her bed. "What is it?" William looked at her. "Why didn't you answer my question?" Tiffany bit her lip and retorted, "Why should I answer you? What are you to me?" William was silent for a few seconds. "Are you mad at me?" "You think too much. We've already broken up," Tiffany said softly. "We did break up, but I have a right to explain, don't I?" Tiffany said nothing. "What happened with Brianna was an accident," William continued. Tiffany remained silent. "I know you think I'm making excuses," William said, looking at the top of her head. "But believe me, it only happened once. Never again after that. "I regret it, but it doesn't change the fact that it happened. All I could do was break up with you and take responsibility for Brianna. Do you understand?" As Tiffany listened to him, she felt like a knife had been plunged into her heart. Even though she said that it was in the past and she didn't care anymore, it didn't mean the betrayal didn't hurt. She had truly liked William once. In fact, she had dated him with the intention of getting married in the future. She had planned to initiate a discussion about marriage after getting her career going. But then the cheating incident had happened. Tiffany's nose stung as tears streamed down her face and fell onto her blanket. "Tiffany, I'm sorry..." William reached out to touch her head. Just then, the door opened, and Vincent appeared. "Vince." William withdrew his hand and stepped back, creating some distance between himself and Tiffany. Vincent glanced at Tiffany, then at William. "What are you doing here?" "I heard Grandma was sick, and Mom told me to check on her," William explained. "Have you seen her?" Vincent's tone was cold, showing little warmth toward his brother. "Yeah." Vincent walked in and set his things down. When he noticed that William was still there, he became impatient. "Aren't you leaving?" William frowned. "Dad's been out of Chilburg lately. Mom said if you can't manage looking after Grandma on your own, you can send her back home. Mom can look after—" "No need." Vincent interrupted him. "Outsiders don't need to worry about Grandma." The tension in the air was suffocatingly thick. Finally, William withdrew his gaze. "Alright, I'll be off then." … After William left, Tiffany looked at Vincent. He seemed in a bad mood; he was frowning and looked even colder than he usually did at the office. Vincent turned to her, asking flatly, "Do you know him?" Tiffany instinctively wanted to deny it. But she sensed that Vincent had already seen through everything, so she nodded. He didn't ask any further. Instead, he came over to set a bag before her. "This is for you." After a pause, he added, "It's compensation." Compensation for last night. Tiffany's face flushed red, and she shook her head. "There's no need for this." He had only seen a glimpse of her back; it was nothing compared to wearing a bikini at the beach. But she had been so nervous and guilty that she had overreacted the night before. "Take it." Vincent tried to sound gentle, not wanting to scare her again. "If you don't accept it, I won't feel at ease." Tiffany wanted to say something, but the nurse brought Anna back just then. … Tiffany stayed in the hospital for three days. On the fourth day, she was discharged. The doctor prescribed some medication for her to take home and gave her a few instructions before sending her off. When she went over to say goodbye to Anna, the latter held on to her hand, reluctant to let go. It made Tiffany's eyes redden. Seeing this, Vincent said, "She works at my company. If you want to see her, you can go over to the office." "Really?" "Really." With Vincent's assurance, Anna finally let go of Tiffany. It was already afternoon when Tiffany left the hospital, so Vincent gave her the rest of the day off. He told her to get some rest and return to work the next day Once Tiffany returned to the dorm, she saw Brianna as soon as she opened the door.