Apologize to him.”
Bethan lifted her head to gaze at him. Her entire face was pale. He wanted her to apologize?
Bethan knew Brettley could see through everything that happened. In the car, he noticed that Bethan was unnerved by Gavin’s presence and switched seats with her. This meant that he was aware of how uncomfortable Gavin made her.
All of a sudden, he wanted her to apologize to that creep, all because of what Alice had said?
Bethan glared at Brettley. “Does Mr. Morrison agree that my not apologizing will affect the business relations between Morrison Group and Walter Group?”
Even though the Walter Group did send Gavin over, he was just an ordinary employee! If the Walter Group was willing to give up on this collaboration because of him, this opportunity was not worth the time and effort at all!
Perhaps Alice did not understand that, but Brettley certainly did. However, he still stared at her and waited for her next move. It was blatant he wanted her to apologize.
“I’m here for an on-site investigation, not to stir up trouble.”
Brettley glanced at Bethan, then at Alice. “
Apologize to him now.”
Alice was overcome with glee at his words. She linked arms with Brettley and stared at Bethan smugly. “
Come on now, Ms. Bethan. Brettley has asked you twice. Aren’t you going to do as he says? I know you two are close, but he’s still your boss and the CEO of Morrison Group! Why are you still hesitating? You’re not as good an employee as you think you are–“
“Alice, “
Brettley interjected before she could finish her sentence. He frowned and removed her arm from his. “I wanted you to apologize to Bethan and Gavin.”
Alice froze and gaped at Brettley, unable to believe what she heard. “Me? Apologize?”
Brettley shot her a glance. “Yes. You bumped into Bethan and caused this whole misunderstanding. Gavin wasn’t wrong for trying to help her, but neither is Bethan. She’s a woman and thought he was being handsy, so she stood up for herself. She’s not wrong either.”
Alice’s face lost its color , and she could only hear a faint buzzing in her head. She stared blankly at Brettley and muttered, “Does that mean…it’s my fault?”
Brettley cast her another glance but did not reply.
Alice was not the only one stunned by the sudden turn of events. Bethan and Gavin were both shell- shocked as well. Who would have thought Brettley would ask his wife to apologize instead? However, upon second thought, they guessed it was reasonable since Alice was the reason this misunderstanding even occurred in the first place.
“Time is ticking, “
Brettley murmured as he peeked at his watch. “Alice, I didn’t want you to come along on today’s field trip since non-essential workers joining in would only delay the progress. If you’ re planning on wasting our time even more, then I ‘ll ask Lucas to send you back to the hotel instead.”
Alice gritted her teeth at Brettley’s tone. Then, after a moment, she let out a sigh and strode over to Bethan and Gavin. “I’m sorry. It was all my fault! “
Alice clenched her teeth and turned around, wiping a tear from her face. She then marched off in the direction of the factories. “I didn’t even do it on purpose. Why did I have to apologize?”
Bethan let out a snicker. That was not what Alice said when she insisted that Bethan apologize.
“Alice.”
Brettley noticed her wavering voice and immediately frowned. He paused for a moment before he ran after her and put his arm around Alice’s shoulder. He whispered something in her ear as if consoling her.
Watching Brettley and Alice’s intimate actions, Bethan could not help but feel a painful prick in her heart– as if someone stabbed her.
“Come on, Ms. Bethan. Let’s go in now.”
Gavin chuckled and started walking in their direction. He deliberately raised his voice as he continued, “Even though Mrs. Morrison made a mistake, Mr. Morrison is still willing to forgive and forget. I guess he still loves her more than anything.”
Bethan knew Gavin said that to irk her. Although she was aware of his intentions, she could not help but still feel somewhat dejected at it.
He was right. Even though Brettley had forced Alice to apologize, that did not change anything. She was still the most important person to him.
Bethan’s chest tightened at the thought, but she merely let out a deep sigh and tried to push it out of her head.
Clutching the documents in her hands, Bethan strode past Gavin and made her way toward the factory. She could hear Gavin let out a snort before he caught up to her quickly. “Ms. Bethan, I hear you’re still single. Don’t you feel a little envious when you see Mr. and Mrs. Morrison being so intimate with each other? Don’t worry, though. As long as you keep your eyes peeled, I’m sure you’ll find love soon enough. Maybe you’ve already found it without even realizing! “
Bethan did not even give him a second glance. She picked up her speed and hoped Gavin would give up chasing after her, but he followed closely behind. He chattered on and on, oblivious to the fact that Bethan actively tried to avoid him.
Bethan grew annoyed at that, but she did not want to make another scene. She knew that Gavin did it on purpose. Even if she snapped at him, Brettley would not help her for a second time. Therefore, Bethan decided that the best course of action was to ignore Gavin as if he did not exist.
By the time they caught up to Brettley and Alice, they were already inside the workshop, observing the manufacturing process. Bethan immediately got to work. She engaged the supervisor in conversation as she took notes of the materials and supplies the factory could offer them.
Whenever Bethan was focused on work, she would become so immersed that nothing could get through to her. As usual, she was busy listening to the supervisor’s explanations, so much so that she did not notice the look of admiration on Brettley’s face, as well as the seething resentment in Alice’s eyes.
She also did not notice the piece of jade ore that zipped toward her nor the cries of warning from the workers.
“Heads up! “
Just as the jade ore was about to hit her, Brettley– who kept watch from afar–lunged forward and shoved her out of harm’s way.
The ore struck Brettley’s elbow with a loud thud.
“Brettley! “
Alice immediately rushed forward and grabbed Brettley’s arm. “Are you okay?”
Brettley frowned and glared at Bethan. “Are you dumb? Didn’t you hear them shouting? “
He was scolding her, but there was a hint of concern in his voice.
As she got abruptly shoved, Bethan lifted her head and took in the sight before her, slightly stunned. She caught sight of the jade ore on the ground, then glanced at Brettley, who was clutching his arm. She froze momentarily as she tried to piece together what had happened.
One of the workers sprinted over and picked the ore up from the ground. He apologized profusely, “I’m so sorry! This piece of rock fell out when we were unloading the entire pile just now. Again, I’m so sorry, Sir!”
Alice clenched her teeth. “What use is your apology? My husband is injured! “
She glowered at Bethan, then shifted her gaze onto the worker. “If the rock hit someone else, it wouldn’t even matter so much, but this is my husband we’re talking about! His arm is worth more than anyone else’s! How should we settle this?”
The worker frowned at her with the ore still in his hands. He glanced at Bethan and replied, “Well, the rock was originally headed toward this lady, but your husband got in the way… Although it’s partly our fault, you shouldn’t blame us entirely…”
Alice’s face turned pale.
Alice gritted her teeth and scowled at the worker, “
Are you trying to shift the blame? Do you know I can fire you…”
Before she could finish, however, Alice recalled that she was no longer Hailey Walter. She was in no place to fire anyone because the factory and all its employees belonged to the Walters.
She shot the supervisor a murderous glare and snarled, “You’d better take care of this! “
That startled the supervisor. For a moment, this woman sounded almost identical to Hailey Walter. “
Yes, will do! “
As she secured the supervisor’s guarantee, Alice turned around and glanced at Bethan. “What are you waiting for? Brettley saved you. Why aren’t you helping him?”
Bethan paused, then realized she was right. She immediately walked over and grabbed hold of Brettley’s other arm.
Although the injury did not break any of Brettley’s bones, the wound still looked quite serious. Brettley was clutching his right arm as he grunted in pain, and Bethan could not help but feel distraught at the sight. She could not understand why Brettley saved her, and she did not know why she felt so worried.
“Come with me.”
The supervisor led them out of the factory frantically. When they reached the clinic, the doctor took off Brettley’s jacket for him. It was only after his jacket was removed that they discovered Brettley’s entire sleeve was drenched in blood.
The doctor frowned and pulled up Brettley’s sleeve, exposing the bloody wound. As soon as she saw the laceration, Alice let out a shriek, “Oh my God! “
She glanced at the injury before she turned and glared at Bethan. “It’s all your fault! “
She was so furious that she raised her hand and headed toward Bethan.
Before Alice could give Bethan the slap she had intended to, Brettley stopped her. He raised his uninjured left hand to block her path and said, “It’s just an accident. It’s not Bethan’s fault.”
Alice bit down on her lip. “Brettley, if she paid attention and got out of the way in time, none of this would’ve happened! “
Brettley curled his lips into a smile. “She’s too slow. She won’t be able to get out of the way in time.”
Although he was criticizing Bethan, there was a hint of endearment in his tone.
Alice clenched her teeth and scowled at Bethan. “If anything happens to Brettley’s arm, I’ll make you pay! “
Bethan remained motionless and said nothing in return.
“Well, thank goodness no bones were broken,” sighed the doctor. After performing a brief physical examination, he injected local anesthesia into Brettley’s arm and started suturing his wound.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.