Ste choked on the water she had just swallowed. "Cough! Ahem!"


    Beside her, Mr. Franco chuckled. "So, Ms. Cameron, what do you think? Quite the specimens, aren''t they? I heard you were a renowned violinist, so I made sure to select a few who have a background in music."


    His smile wasyered with meaning. "If you see one you like, feel free to take him home. At your level, Ms. Cameron, taking all of them wouldn''t be a problem either..."


    Crack.


    Before Mr. Franco could finish, a sharp sound cut through the air. The house lights came up at that moment. Joshua was holding what was left of a shattered ss in his hand. Blood was trickling from his palm, dripping through the shards. It was a gruesome sight.


    Ste''s eyes widened in rm. "Joshua, what happened to your hand?"


    With a detached expression, Joshua tossed the broken ss into a nearby trash bin. He then calmly pulled out a few napkins and began to wipe at the blood. "It''s nothing. Let''s keep watching the show."


    Seeing him injured, Ste couldn''t care less about the performance. She stared at his bleeding hand and stood up abruptly. "No, we need to go to the hospital. Now."


    She turned to Mr. Franco. "Mr. Franco, I''m so sorry, but my bodyguard has been injured. I''m afraid we have to leave. Thank you for your hospitality tonight. I''ll be sure to treat you to a meal another time."


    Mr. Franco saw the genuine worry and urgency on Ste''s face and sighed with resignation. "All right, if you need to go, then go."


    Ste took Joshua by the wrist and quickly led him away.


    One of Mr. Franco''s partners remarked with disappointment, "Looks like all your arrangements were for nothing, Mr. Franco."


    Watching Ste''s retreating figure, Mr. Franco smiled. "It''s always like this at the beginning. Once she gets a real taste of the different pleasures the world has to offer, she won''t be so fixated. Besides, the younger generation is more open-minded than we are. Ste might have gone through a failed marriage, but she''s rich, beautiful, and single. She''ll never be short on men."


    He continued thoughtfully, "When a woman has money, power, and status, men v will flock to her. The


    pool of powerful women is sm


    and one who looks like her is a rare find. Even a one-night stand would be a win for most of them. And that''s not even counting the ones trying to climb the socialdder or get a piece of her fortune. Do you think there will be a shortage of those?"


    ...


    After Joshua''s hand was treated and bandaged, the two left the hospital. Since he couldn''t drive, Ste got behind the wheel. The entire way back, doshua was silent and he seemed to be in a foul moodThe atmosphere in the car grew heavy with his silence.


    Ste chose her words carefully. "Joshua, are you upset about something?"


    He turned to look at her, but his question waspletely off-topic.


    "Were those models good-looking?"