"Ahem..." ." Sean coughed to cover augh. "Sir, with all due respect, you''ve done the same thing before. Don''t you remember all the times you helped the Scotts discredit Ms. Sanders?"


    "Sean," Sebastian ground out. At the time, he had believed what he''d seen with his own eyes and had genuinely thought Natalie was being maniptive.


    Sean immediately shut his mouth. Toote to realize the truth now, he thought. Then, he couldn''t help but add cheerfully, "You have to admit, sir, she and Mr. Monroe do look good together."


    The moment the words left his mouth, the room fell silent.


    Julian shot Sean a look. The man had a death wish. Even though they were good friends, Julian found Sebastian''s behavior despicable. If you don''t love someone, let them go. He''d conveniently forget that yearster, he himself would be an even bigger scoundrel than Sebastian.


    The other men in the room, all close friends of Sebastian, knew about his first love, Joanna, and his neglected wife, Natalie.


    Sean, btedly realizing what he''d just said, felt a chill run down his spine. He was a dead man walking, with the guillotine already hovering over his neck. He shot to his feet. "Sir, I think I''ll go and, uh, investigate this matter more thoroughly. To give you a proper report."


    He was almost at the door when Sebastian''s voice stopped him. "Where are you going? Drive me home."


    Sean let out a breath he didn''t realize he was holding. He wasn''t fired. Thank God. His legs felt like jelly. For a second there, he really thought he''d be packing his desk. He swallowed hard, trying to appear calm as Sebastian walked out. He had to lean against the doorframe for a moment to steady himself.


    Behind him, Julian let out a low chuckle, barely keeping a straight face.


    "Sean''s actually scared of him?" the man beside Julian asked.


    "When Sebastian gets angry," Julian said in hiszy drawl, "not many people can handle it." The others in the room nodded in agreement. They were all terrified of Sebastian''s temper.


    ...


    At the Scott family home, Jared was lounging on the sofa, a pretty young woman nestled in his arms. He was smiling tenderly.


    Across from them, Joanna scrolled through the trending news, a


    satisfied smirk on her face. One


    thing after another, Natalie, she


    thought. Let''s see how much you can handle. as a shame


    Sebastian wasn''t here to witness this; she could have added more fuel to the fire.


    "Happy, Joanna? Everyone''s tearing Natalie apart online," Jared said. He and Jerome were fraternal twins who looked nothing alike, but of the brothers, Jared bore the strongest resemnce to Natalie. He was handsome, but his heart was rotten.


    Joanna feigned concern. "What happened to Jerome was partly Natalie''s fault, but she''s slippery and got away with it. Now that Jerome is recovering abroad, I don''t want to cause more trouble and upset him. But he''s in such a pitiful state, confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life."


    Jared sneered. "She''s slippery, but so am I. I won''t let her get away with it. If the


    Joanna''s smile widened.


    Just then, Wendy walked in, catching the end of their conversation. She entered the room without a word, but the look she gave Joanna was pure murder.


    The woman in Jared''s arms, Monica, quickly scrambled off hisp, blushing. "Mom, you''re back,” Jared said happily, helping his mother to a seat.


    Wendy had been busy and looked exhausted. She ignored Jared and fixed her gaze on Monica. “Do your parents know about you and my son?” she asked coolly.