Damian Fairchild’s words made Seraphina Quinn feel a profound sense of shame, as if she’d been stripped bare.
This shame was more agonizing than being cast into the deepest pit of Hell.
“Damian, please don’t be like this.
I’m the one who brought her here.”
Audrey Winslow’s voice was gentle and calm.
“My car hit Miss Quinn at the corner of Celestia Road and Providence Road.”
“She hurt her knee.
There’s gravel stuck in it that needs to be removed by a doctor with the proper tools.”
Hearing this, Damian Fairchild finally glanced at Seraphina Quinn’s bleeding knee.
The wound wasn’t particularly large, but blood was trickling from it.
The area around the bleeding was dark, and it did look like there was gravel embedded inside.
But he didn’t want to see Seraphina Quinn again, nor did he want to have anything more to do with her.
“You’re being far too charitable.
Are you trying to let a wolf in the door?”
“It’s just a minor scrape, isn’t it?
Just give her some money and send her away.
It’s not like we’re short on cash.”
His words were so nasty that even Audrey Winslow couldn’t bear to listen.
But Damian Fairchild had no intention of stopping.
He turned on Seraphina Quinn.
“I imagine Miss Quinn is desperately short on cash.
One hundred thousand should be enough for medical expenses and emotional damages, right?”
Seraphina Quinn’s fingers curled.
After a deep breath, she lifted her gaze to Damian Fairchild.
“WeChat or Alipay?”
A dark look crossed Damian Fairchild’s face.
But Seraphina Quinn had already pulled up the payment QR code on her phone and held it out to him.
The corners of Damian Fairchild’s mouth turned down.
“Miss Quinn,” he said in a low voice, “I have every reason to believe you’re running a scam.”
Seraphina had nothing left to lose.
“That’s right.
I am.
Are you going to pay up?” She paused.
“If you don’t, I’m not leaving.”
Damian Fairchild sneered.
“Seraphina Quinn, you have no shame.”
With that, he grabbed Audrey Winslow’s wrist and started toward the villa.
He threw his words over his shoulder to Seth Thorne, who was waiting nearby.
“Give her the money and tell her to get lost!”
Seth Thorne acknowledged the order and walked over to Seraphina Quinn.
“Miss Quinn…”
Before he could even finish, Seraphina Quinn turned and walked away.
She hadn’t felt the pain before, but now a sharp sting shot through her knee with every step.
Fortunately, her client lived nearby.
It took Seraphina Quinn ten minutes to reach her client’s house.
Her client was a divorcée who ran her own 3D medical printing company and factory.
Through her own cunning and social grace, she’d carved out a niche for herself in the industry and was considered a successful entrepreneur.
Her biggest headache, however, was her daughter, who, before even turning eighteen, had already been in a relationship and had an abortion.
Six months ago, she’d finally managed to put an end to the relationship, but her daughter’s grades had plummeted, and the girl had become hostile toward her mother.
Seraphina Quinn happened to be handing out tutoring flyers and gave one to the woman around that time.
When she saw on Seraphina’s résumé that she was a top student in a combined Master’s-Ph.D.
In any case, Seraphina had used her own methods to win the trust of both the mother and daughter, and she had been tutoring here part-time for nearly six months.
The client’s name was Rhona Langley.
Rhona Langley was in a terrible mood because a project bid wasn’t going well.
And now Seraphina, after recently taking time off, had shown up late, so Rhona’s attitude toward her was poor.
“Miss Quinn, do you not want this job anymore?
Or have you found something better?
Do you have any respect for me as your employer at all?”
Seraphina Quinn bowed slightly.
“I’m sorry, Ms.
Langley.
I’ve had some issues recently.
I was hospitalized for a week, and I just ran into some trouble on my way here…
But it’s all been sorted out now.
I’ll use the coming week to help Minnie catch up on all her missed schoolwork.”
Rhona Langley was a career-driven woman.
She respected other women and understood their struggles.
Seraphina Quinn was an absolute knockout, and Rhona knew that a woman who looked like that would never be short on cash if she were willing to submit to a man.
Yet here she was, a brilliant student, working as a tutor.
To Rhona, this meant that Seraphina was, at her core, a woman of principle.
With this in mind, Rhona Langley stopped giving Seraphina a hard time.
“Minnie is in the study upstairs.
You can go on up.”
Seraphina nodded and headed upstairs.
Not long after she left, Rhona Langley’s partner, James Langley, came to discuss the project bid with her.
“Rhona, I’ve done some digging.
The person behind this project bid is the Crown Prince of The Fairchild Group.
We have excellent technology, solid product quality, and our own factory.
Our only weaknesses are insufficient production capacity and a lack of brand recognition.
If we can just get our foot in the door and get Mr.
Fairchild to see our proposal, I’m sure we’ll have a shot.”
Rhona’s head throbbed.
“Easier said than done.
With our credentials, we can’t even get past the front desk at the Fairchild Group Tower.
How am I supposed to pull any strings?”
James Langley said, “I have a way in.
There’s a dinner tonight for a senior executive from The Fairchild Group.
He’s the one primarily in charge of this project bid.
If we can win over Warren, we have a chance.”
Rhona’s interest was piqued.
“Which Warren?
You mean that pot-bellied lecher, Gregory Warren?”
James Langley nodded.
“That’s the one.”
Rhona immediately shook her head.
“No.
I’ve heard stories about young women nearly dying at his hands.
If someone gets killed, we’d be in serious trouble…”
James Langley argued, “Rhona, the greater the risk, the greater the reward.
Think about it.
If we can get on board with The Fairchild Group, won’t our troubles be over?
At the very least, you could pay off the mortgage on this villa, right?”
In the end, Rhona couldn’t resist the temptation of such a prize.
She was swayed.
However, she’d had dealings with Gregory Warren before.
An ordinary-looking woman wouldn’t even catch his eye.
Thinking of this, Rhona said to James,
“That Gregory Warren plows through nightclub women.
He wouldn’t give an average-looking woman a second glance.
He likes them hot-bodied but with an innocent face—the kind of woman you can barely find even in the entertainment industry…”
Just as they were speaking, Seraphina Quinn came downstairs.
“Ms.
Langley, there’s no water upstairs.
Minnie said she’s thirsty, so I came down to get her a glass.”
James Langley had only heard that Rhona had hired a tutor for her daughter; he had never seen Seraphina before.
At a single glance, James Langley’s heart began to pound, his blood running hot.
He caught Rhona’s eye.
“Rhona, isn’t this perfect?”
Rhona frowned, hesitating.
“She’s Minnie’s tutor.
That’s not appropriate…”
James Langley scoffed, “What’s not appropriate about it?
These days, money makes the world go ’round.”
Rhona considered it and realized he had a point.
She beckoned to Seraphina.
“Quinn, come over here a moment.
I have something I’d like to ask you to help with.”
Five minutes later, Seraphina understood the gist of it.
In short, Rhona wanted her to entertain a client over drinks.
She promised Seraphina one hundred thousand in payment and guaranteed her personal safety.
Seraphina needed the money, so she agreed.
At eight o’clock that evening, Seraphina Quinn arrived at Elysium.
Because it was a business dinner, Rhona had hired a stylist to give Seraphina a complete makeover.
She wore a modified cheongsam in a deep crimson.
It looked conservative at first glance, but was actually incredibly alluring.
She had the face of a classic Eastern beauty and a perfectly proportioned figure.
A slim waist, long legs, and a firm, rounded bottom.
But what was most lethal was her full, high bust, which was enough to make even Rhona’s mouth go dry.
As Seraphina followed Rhona into a private room, Damian Fairchild appeared, walking toward them from the far end of the hall.
When he caught sight of Seraphina, his sharp eyes narrowed into a cold slit.
‘Dressed like that in the middle of the night…
Who is she selling herself to?’