Chapter 768 Mutual Benefit
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Tessa thought. <i>Ugh</i><i>… </i><i>back </i>in <i>Rivermount</i>, <i>whenever </i>I <i>saw </i><i>the </i><i>rivalries between </i><i>those </i><i>powerful </i><b><i>families</i></b>, <i>I </i><i>always </i><i>thought </i>it was <i>such </i><i>a </i><i>headache</i>. <i>Why </i><i>fight</i>? <i>Why </i><ipete? </i>Yet <i>here </i><i>I </i><i>was </i><i>now</i><b>, </b><i>caught </i><i>in </i><i>the </i><b><i>same </i></b><i>struggle</i>, <i>the </i><i>same </i><i>battle </i><i>for </i><i>power</i><i>. </i><i>I </i>hadn’t <i>taken </i><i>part </i><i>directly</i>, <i>but </i><i>the </i><i>chaos </i><i>Ashen </i><i>Pact </i><i>had </i><i>fallen </i><b><i>into</i></b>, wasn’t it all because <i>of </i><i>me</i><i>? </i>
“Then you’ll help Marie too, won’t you?” Tessa asked cautiously, ncing at Victor.
His hand rested on her slender waist.
The moment he heard her question, his palm tightened instinctively.
He lowered his head, locking eyes with her pitiful gaze. “You want me to help her?”
“She’s helping both you and me this time, isn’t she?”
At the start, it had only been because of Tessa.
But once Victor revealed his true intentions toward Ashen Pact, it was clear–Marie was helping him too.
And Marie herself had just called, asking how she could support him.
Victor let out a low chuckle. “If you say I should help, then I’ll help.”
Tessa blinked. <i>What</i><i>? </i>
<b><i>Wait </i></b>a <i>second</i><i>… </i><i>did </i><i>he </i><i>even </i><i>hear </i><i>me</i><i>? </i><i>Marie </i><i>wasn’t </i><i>just </i><i>stirring </i><i>things </i><i>up </i><i>with </i><i>Ashen </i><i>Pact </i><i>because </i><i>of </i><i>me— </i>she was <i>doing </i><i>it </i><i>for </i><i>Victor </i><i>too</i>. At <i>least </i><i>from </i><i>here </i><i>on</i><i>, </i><i>whatever </i><i>Marie </i><i>did </i><i>would </i><i>be </i><i>to </i><i>help </i>him.
When Tessa fell silent, his smile deepened. “Do you want me to help her?”
“Of course!”
What kind of question was that?
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Marie had turned Ashen Pact upside down these past few days for her sake,
If Marie ended up shing with the Tom family, they would have no choice but to stand on her
side.
“Since you <b>say </b>so, then it will be so,” Victor said,
“That’s more like it.”
<b>17:18 Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>25 </b>
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“But if you want me to step in,” he added, “my price is steep. What do you n to offer as payment?”
Tessa froze<i>. </i>Huh?
“Wait, what are you…”
Tessa thought. <i>He </i><i>wanted </i><ipensation</i><i>? </i><i>We </i><i>were </i><i>talking </i><i>about </i><i>helping </i><i>Marie</i><i>! </i>
The rough pad of his finger traced along her delicate chin. “Right now, you’re the one asking me to help her.”
The word <i>asking </i>carried weight when he said it.
Tessa’s eyes <i>sense </i><i>at </i><i>all</i><i>. </i>
widened. <i>What </i><i>kind </i><i>of </i><i>logic </i><i>is </i><i>that</i>? <i>Even </i><i>if </i><i>I’m </i><i>not </i><i>the </i><i>best </i><i>at </i><i>arguing</i>… <i>that </i><i>makes </i><i>no </i>
Again, she said nothing.
His smile widened. “What’s wrong?”
“If you want to help, then help; if not, forget it!” Tessa huffed, wriggling in his arms.
But his grip on her waist was unyielding; she couldn’t break free.
“Let me go,” she snapped.
“Then I won’t help?” Victor countered.
Her eyes narrowed. <i>Wait</i>… <i>is </i><i>he </i><i>serious</i><i>? </i>
She red at him. “She’s helping you right now!”
“That’s mutual benefit,” he said smoothly.
Tessa was speechless. <i>Mutual </i><i>benefit</i>. <i>Fine</i><i>. </i><i>In </i><i>their </i><i>world</i>, <i>maybe </i>that was exactly <i>how </i>it <i>worked</i>.
But if Marie shed with the Tom family and Victor refused to help, then fine–he could keep
out of it.
As for her, she would definitely stand with Maric.
But her own strength was limited…
“So help her, won’t you?”
She sniffled and looked
up at him.
<b>17:18 </b><b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>Sep </b><b>25 </b>
Chapter 768 Mutual Benefit
“Payment?” Victor asked again.
Her lips twitched. <i>Payment</i>!
They’d already gone over this before; the few scraps she had, he’d never take seriously.
“Then whatever you want from Ashen Pact, just take it!” she blurted.
And just like that, Tessa had sold out the entire Ashen Pact without hesitation.
Victorughed–trulyughed this time.
His grip on her waist tightened, pulling her closer still.
So close their breaths mingled, tangled together.
“How many days left?” he asked.
“Hm?” She blinked.
“What’s left–how many days until it’s gone?”
Her face flushed crimson in an instant.
<i>Seriously</i>? <i>We </i><i>were </i><i>just </i><i>having </i><i>a </i><i>serious </i><i>conversation</i><i>, </i><i>and </i><i>he- </i>
???
+8 Pearl
This man, who had once seemed so cold and restrained, as though incapable of emotion–how could he be so shamelessly persistent when it came to <i>that</i><i>? </i>
“Why the blush? It’s not your first time.”
Seeing her shy like that, his face softened with rare tenderness. He pinched her pouty cheek.
“I’m not talking to you anymore.”
The more he spoke, the more outrageous he became!
<i>Didn’t </i><i>he </i><i>realize </i>how <i>blunt</i><i>–</i><i>how </i>brazen–his <i>words </i><i>sounded</i><i>? </i>Before she could argue further, he tilted her head back and kissed her again…
And then, his hand wandered, probing boldly.
Her whole body went rigid. “You-”
But before she could finish, his lips imed hers once more, cutting her off.
She was too small, too fragile; against Victor, she had nowhere to run.
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Victor’s call with Marie sealed the fate of Ashen Pact–the chaos would only deepen.
Every member of Ashen Pact was fuming…
Especially Dan.
Though the three Morris men had been at odds for years, on one point they quickly agreed, Tessa was not with Ashen Pact.
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The Returned Heiress Who Never Fit In