Overbearing CEO's Contract Love
Chapter 443: The Decision

Chapter 443: The Decision

"Haha, of course not." Emma Hart rolled her eyes at Max, hinting for him to figure it out on his own. With his slacker demeanor, he thought he could pursue the heiress of the Turner Group? He was certainly overestimating himself.

"Alright, alright, get back to work. When you pay off what you owe Mr. Sterling, I’ll introduce you to someone." Emma Hart pushed Max out of the office.

Max clicked his tongue in annoyance and walked towards the elevator without a backward glance.

Emma Hart watched him leave, sighing at his lack of gratitude. This kid was truly ungrateful.

In the management trainee training base of Sterling Group, it was their break time. Everyone was exhausted, collapsed on their desks in deep sleep, except for Lucy Allen. After a cup of iced coffee, she had regained her energy, preparing for the trainees’ assessments next week. Additionally, she had to review and refine the works of the new designers from the design department, which was giving her a headache.

Suddenly, a warm Japanese bento appeared before Lucy Allen. "Director Chen, please eat something. Drinking coffee on an empty stomach is bad for you," Riley Turner said kindly, standing by.

"Did you prepare this for me?" Lucy Allen asked, pointing to the bento box.

"Yes, I’ve seen how busy you’ve been all day, and since you returned from Peach Blossom Town, you haven’t eaten anything. Honestly, I’m worried about you! I heard from other colleagues that you like Japanese food, so I ordered this for you," Riley Turner’s eyes sparkled, almost capturing Lucy Allen’s soul.

"Thank you. Care to join me?" Lucy Allen picked up a piece of tempura with her utensils and offered it to Riley Turner.

The tempura looked delicious, and Riley Turner couldn’t resist trying it. "Then I won’t be polite. Thank you, Director Allen." He said as he carefully tasted the tempura.

Lucy Allen was delighted.

After eating the tempura, Riley Turner went to the restroom to wash his hands and unexpectedly encountered Nicole, another trainee, engrossed with her phone.

"Hey! Is there gold in your phone? You’re about to burn a hole in it," Riley Turner teased.

Noticing Riley Turner, Nicole suddenly looked up and said, "Haha, there really is gold!" She pulled Riley Turner to a corner of the restroom. "Let me show you the latest gossip!"

Nicole held her phone up to Riley Turner. The screen showed a dark scene with a couple kissing passionately under the light in a wooden house. Though the image was blurry, the couple looked familiar.

"Who is that?" Riley Turner was intrigued by the photo.

"Want to know? You’ll need to trade for it," Nicole smirked, rubbing her thumb and forefinger together.

"Are you going to tell me or not? If not, I’m leaving!" Riley Turner was annoyed, hating people who left things hanging. She turned to leave.

Nicole quickly pulled her back. "Okay, okay, I’ll tell you. Just wait a moment." She checked each restroom stall to ensure they were alone, then whispered in Riley Turner’s ear.

"What? That’s impossible!" Riley Turner’s face went pale as she recognized the people in the photo, crying out in shock.

"Shh! Keep quiet! I’m only telling you because you’re my best friend!" Nicole scolded Riley Turner.

Riley Turner quickly covered her mouth, still in shock.

"What should I do?" Nicole asked, putting her phone away. She was thrilled. Mrs. Sterling had some nerve, openly flirting with another man on Damien Sterling’s turf. If she found out about these photos, Nicole might make some good money.

Nicole’s joy led her to inadvertently reveal her plan to Riley Turner.

Riley Turner’s eyes darted around before she spoke. "Wait, don’t get excited just yet. Who is the man in the photo? If you blackmail Mrs. Sterling, she will definitely turn to Mr. Taylor for help. You’ll end up in big trouble."

Riley Turner tapped Nicole’s shoulder in frustration.

Nicole thought hard. "You might have a point. But according to you, I won’t make any money. Was this photo taken for nothing?" Nicole was unhappy.

That night, after a breakup, she wanted to clear her mind and accidentally caught Emma Hart and Matthew Taylor being overly affectionate. She thought it was a great way to make money. But now, Riley’s words made her worry that it could backfire.

"No, I should delete the photo!" Nicole said, pulling out her phone.

"Wait," Riley Turner stopped her. "How about this? Since the photo hasn’t been shown to anyone yet, I’ll buy it from you. I’ll handle the rest."

"Really?" Nicole was thrilled.

Riley Turner smiled silently, transferring $1,000 to Nicole’s phone.

Seeing the amount, Nicole looked at Riley Turner in surprise. "Didn’t know you were rich!"

"Enough, don’t push your luck." Riley Turner nudged Nicole with her elbow. "Send me the photo. The rights are mine now, and if you don’t want trouble, delete it."

Nicole obediently followed Riley Turner’s instructions.

Afterwards, they left the bathroom together. Nicole stretched, feeling relieved, while Riley Turner stared at her phone, worried.

"Good day, Director Allen!" Nicole greeted Lucy Allen, who was walking towards them.

"Director Allen," Riley Turner echoed a moment later.

"What are you doing here? Class is about to start. Get ready." Lucy Allen said, walking past them and glancing at Riley Turner’s phone.

The afternoon training session left Riley Turner distracted, thinking about who she should tell about the photos.

Elsewhere, Emma Hart received a message: "Dinner tonight?"

After a moment’s thought, Emma Hart replied: "Okay."

Damien Sterling’s meeting was still ongoing. Emma Hart texted him, informing him that she and Riley Turner were having dinner at a nearby restaurant. She grabbed her new handbag and headed towards the restaurant.

It was a Japanese restaurant, tucked away behind the Ryan Garcia Café, in an unassuming location.

"Good evening, ma’am. Do you have a reservation?" The receptionist politely asked Emma Hart.

"Yes, the Matsutake private room, under Lin." Emma Hart replied.

"Alright, please wait a moment." The receptionist checked the reservation list and, after confirming, respectfully led Emma Hart to the private room.

The room was a traditional Japanese setting, requiring guests to remove their shoes.

"Emma, over here!" Riley Turner waved from a seat near the door.

Emma Hart smiled and sat down. After ordering a few dishes, the waiter left the room.

Riley Turner looked at Emma Hart with a serious expression, hesitant to speak.

"What’s wrong? Just say it." Emma Hart noticed Riley Turner’s unusual demeanor.

"Emma, I don’t mean to offend you, but I need to confirm something." Riley Turner said, picking up her phone from the table and showing Emma a photo. "Is this you?"

Emma’s heart skipped a beat as she took Riley Turner’s phone. Shocked, she saw a photo of herself and Matthew Taylor, looking intimate, standing outside a cabin in Peach Blossom Town.

"Where did you get this?" Emma Hart’s tone was mixed with accusation. Did Riley Turner secretly take this? How could she do that?

"Emma, that’s not the point. The point is, are the people in the photo really you and Mr. Taylor?" Riley Turner asked excitedly.

Suddenly, the door to the room was knocked on.

"Sorry to interrupt." Two waiters entered, placing various dishes on the table.

"Enjoy your meal." One waiter said before respectfully closing the door behind them.

Emma Hart’s expression grew serious, her gaze fixed on the salmon sashimi. She didn’t respond to Riley Turner’s question.

"Your silence means you’re admitting it?" Riley Turner raised an eyebrow, surprised that Emma Hart could be so unfaithful. If that were the case, she wouldn’t need to respect Emma Hart anymore.

"No, it’s us in the photo, but it wasn’t voluntary!" Emma Hart hastily refuted.

Riley Turner found it hard to believe. Emma Hart wasn’t extraordinarily beautiful, so why would Matthew Taylor pursue her? Especially since she was already married.

"Emma, this photo was taken by someone else. I bought it. Don’t worry, it won’t be leaked." Riley Turner said, taking her phone back and preparing to leave. "If you don’t want to wrong Mr. Sterling, you should end your relationship with Mr. Taylor. I have to go now. Enjoy your meal."

Riley Turner didn’t know if Emma Hart was telling the truth but decided to give her a chance. If Emma Hart betrayed Damien Sterling again, Riley Turner would ensure she won Damien over.

With a final, bitter smile, Riley Turner left the room.

The door slammed shut with a loud "bang" as Riley Turner left, the harsh sound echoing in Emma Hart’s mind.

"This has to be resolved," Emma muttered to herself, pulling out her phone. She opened Matthew Taylor’s social media profile. His latest post was still a photo of him with Damien Sterling at Peach Blossom Town. Emma’s hand trembled as she moved her finger to the "Unfriend" button. A slight touch, and the unease in her heart turned into a sense of relief.

She and Matthew Taylor had to be parallel lines, never intersecting.

Emma glanced at the untouched dishes on the table. With no appetite and not wanting to waste the food, she decided to have it all packed up and took it back to the office.

She texted Damien Sterling, who responded that he was still in a meeting.

In the meeting room, everyone looked tired, especially Damien Sterling, who had only had one cup of coffee since returning that afternoon.

Emma Hart, carrying the untouched food and some new meal sets she ordered, headed towards the meeting room. It had been a long time; everyone must be starving.

A while later, she stood outside the meeting room with the food.

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Sterling. You’re wonderful!" The young secretary who came out to take the food thanked Emma. She carried the two large bags into the meeting room.

At the sight of the food, everyone inside brightened up. Their stomachs had been growling for hours.

Emma felt a surge of pride as she watched the scene through the glass walls of the meeting room.

At that moment, Damien Sterling stepped out with a smile.

"Thank you, Emma. That was very thoughtful of you." Damien rarely praised her, making Emma very happy.

"It’s my pleasure to be appreciated by Mr. Sterling!" Emma replied cheerfully.

Damien glanced back at his employees devouring the food and then smiled at Emma. "Let’s call it a day for the meeting. Let’s go home." He put his arm around Emma and led her towards the elevator.

"Aren’t you going to eat something?" Emma asked. She had bought the food especially for him.

"No, I’ll eat at home," Damien replied.

"Good thing there weren’t many of you in the meeting tonight, or I would have gone broke," Emma joked.

Elsewhere, Matthew Taylor had just finished his workday. Sitting in his office chair, he checked his social media only to find that Emma Hart was no longer in his friend list.

He jumped up, ready to call Emma to ask why but hesitated at the last second.

"Damn it!" Matthew angrily threw his phone to the ground.

At the Sterling family villa, Emma and Damien had returned home, both collapsing onto the sofa. After a while, Emma got up to heat some food for Damien in the kitchen.

The house was quiet except for the sound of the spatula in the kitchen.

"What did you and Riley Turner do today?" Damien asked while sipping soup.

Emma, carrying a dish, slightly tensed up and then said, "Just had dinner, why?"

"Just dinner?" Damien raised an eyebrow, thinking that going to such a fancy restaurant just for a meal seemed unlikely.

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