Chapter 39
“Mr. Hart, what do you mean by those words?” Sasha couldn’t keep the smile on her face anymore. No matter how skilled she was at hiding her emotions, she could still sense the contempt in Tony’s words.
“It’s nothing. I’m just like you—I’ve never taken the bus either,” Tony replied coldly, his eyes giving off a distant, impassive look.
Sasha clenched her fists, her mind racing with frustration. She had planned for tonight, intending to make Tony her man, believing she had it in the bag. But instead, her efforts had backfired, leaving her humiliated.
She looked at him, trying to salvage the situation. “Mr. Hart…” Her long lashes lowered, casting an innocent shadow over her face. “It seems like you’ve misunderstood me. I haven’t done anything with other men—”
“That’s none of my business,” Tony cut her off, glancing at his watch. “I called room service five minutes ago; it should be here soon. Miss Hay, if you insist on staying, feel free.” His voice was cool and indifferent.
Sasha’s face flushed, and in the end, all she could do was stomp her foot and leave with the tray in hand.
Once she was gone, Tony didn’t rush to return to his room. He lingered outside, lighting a cigarette. Within moments, the hallway fell into silence again.
Meanwhile, Myra stood behind her door, a small smile tugging at her lips. As expected, Sasha had been trying to seduce Tony. Myra had feared that if Sasha succeeded, it could harm the Stark Group. But instead, Tony had not only rejected her, but he’d also crushed all her hopes of marrying him. Now, the two companies could compete fairly.
Looking out the door, she saw Tony finishing his cigarette. The way he casually smoked, with his throat moving in rhythm with the inhale, only made him look even more handsome and dashing.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she found herself holding her breath. When her clothes brushed against the shoe rack, one of her sandals fell with a loud thud. Panic surged through her as she realized Tony had heard it. Quickly, she closed the door and leaned against it, her breath heavy. She glared at the sandal on the floor, frustration building inside her.
I can only hope he doesn’t realize I’ve been eavesdropping.
The next morning, Myra woke up early, quickly packed, and headed downstairs for breakfast. As she opened her door, she froze.
The first thing she saw outside her door was a pair of handmade suede shoes belonging to a man. She looked up and found Tony leaning against the wall next to her room, cigarette between his fingers. His posture was elegant, yet there was an unmistakable air of carelessness to him now.
She frowned as he blew a puff of smoke toward her face, causing her to cough. Her face darkened. “Mr. Hart, what are you doing here?”
“Someone misses you,” Tony replied smoothly, straightening up to tower over her. His expression remained casual, but there was a hint of mischief in his eyes.
Myra felt a twinge of discomfort, unsure of his intentions. “Is that so?”
Before she could retreat, Tony squinted as if displeased with something. “You don’t believe me?”
Myra was caught off guard and flushed with embarrassment, unsure of how to respond. Before she could form a proper answer, Tony playfully called out, “Meow…”
Suddenly, the sound of a large dog running toward them filled the air. A big white dog appeared and bounded up to Tony, wagging its tail with excitement.
Tony patted the dog’s head and pointed to Myra. “Don’t you miss her? Go to her.”
The dog immediately dashed toward Myra, knocking her off balance. She managed to grab the door frame just in time to prevent herself from falling, and she awkwardly hugged the dog. Meanwhile, Tony had already turned and walked away, leaving Myra with a bewildered look on her face.
Could it be that the one who misses me is the dog?
Later that day, as they were preparing to return, Myra opened the car door and found the same white dog sitting inside, looking at her expectantly. When it saw her, it whined and eagerly trotted over, wagging its tail.
Myra sighed and resigned herself to the situation. The driver, who had seen her reaction, tried to speak, but she preemptively held up her hand to stop him. “I know—Mr. Hart doesn’t know how to take care of his dog, so he wants me to help out along the way.”
The driver gave her an awkward smile. “That’s what Mr. Hart told me.”
She smiled faintly, though her earlier enthusiasm for the dog had waned. As the car ride continued, she found herself looking out the window, her thoughts tangled with mixed emotions.
When she suddenly asked the driver for his phone to make a call, he seemed hesitant. “My phone’s out of power, and I just need to make a quick call,” she explained as she took the phone from him.
The driver seemed a little puzzled, but before he could respond, Myra interrupted. “Oh, it seems you’re on the phone with Mr. Hart.”
The driver froze for a moment before she spoke into the phone, feigning surprise. “Mr. Hart, is there anything else you’d like to tell the driver?”
On the other end of the line, Tony immediately recognized something was off. His body tensed briefly before he hung up abruptly. For the rest of the journey, Leo noticed his boss was in a peculiar mood, smiling and frowning alternately. Leo, growing wary, kept a careful eye on the road.
After the call ended, Myra was left with a strange mix of emotions. When the driver glanced at her through the rearview mirror, he hesitated before asking, “Miss Stark, do you still need to make that call?”
Myra tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, her face calm. “No, it’s fine.”
The driver, clearly relieved, quickly pocketed the phone, though his back was slick with sweat.
As the car pulled up to the Hart Group, Leo saw that Tony was in an unusually good mood. He rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, “Looks like it’s because of Miss Stark.”
Once everyone had gotten out of the car, Leo turned to address them. “Thank you all for your hard work over the past few days. This afternoon, the Hart Group would like to host a lunch for the three ladies from the Hay and Chase Groups at the Ritz Carlton.”