Chapter 282
Lena swallowed the water in her mouth a
I pulled Audrey to her feet. “Audrey, let’s go get some food.” She dragged Audrey over to the seafood section before whispering, “Yann doesn’t know about this, right?”
“Why don’t you check that forum again?” Audrey felt too embarrassed to explain. One time when she was bored at home, she’d been scrolling around online and stumbled across a forum that actually had step–by–step tutorials teaching users how to access blocked content.
The instructions were incredibly detailed–something about viewing backwards first, then sideways, copying the website, and deleting certain parts.
Audrey had followed each step carefully and actually managed to see quite a bit of interesting content.
The women on that forum were excellent writers with engaging storylines. The content wasn’t explicit or crude, but they captured that romantic, sultry atmosphere perfectly.
Audrey had been completely absorbed in reading when Yann came home and caught her off guard, confiscating her phone.
The consequences were predictable. To punish her for filling her head with such “nonsense,” Yann decided to fill it with some different kind of thing.
Lena linked arms with Audrey and pulled out her phone to check. “The forum’s gone?”
There were still some screenshots floating around online from other users, but when she clicked on them, the screen went completely black. Someone had clearly cracked down on it.
Lena shook her head regretfully. ‘I haven’t checked the forum for a month or so, and now everything is gone,‘ she thought.
Lena glanced toward the booth where Everett and Miles sat across from Yann, flipping meat on the grill. Yann was peeling shrimp with his hands, but his eyes never left Audrey. “What, am I going to kidnap her or something? Stop staring.”
Lena linked arms with Audrey as they went to grab some oysters. When they returned, Yann heated up the peeled shrimp on the grill and placed them on Audrey’s plate.
His hands never stopped feeding her, yet he managed to keep chatting with Everett and Miles at the same time.
After dinner, Lena insisted on riding in the same car as Audrey. “I’m going home with Audrey tonight. We still have so much to talk about.”
Miles picked her up like a kitten and stuffed her into his own car. “Audrey doesn’t have time to deal with you.”
“If she’s not dealing with me, who is she dealing with?”
“Didn’t you see her serve Yann a whole plate of oysters?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Lena didn’t understand, and neither did Audrey. She just noticed that Yann seemed particularly affectionate tonight, even wanting to stick close to her while she was brushing her teeth. “What did they say to you?” she asked.
“Nothing much.” Yann wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his chin in the crook of her neck and nuzzling around like a puppy.
Audrey scrunched up her shoulders, giggling. “Hah, if you have something to say, just say it. Stop that, it tickles.”
“I’m ready,” Yann whispered.
Before Audrey could even wipe the water off her face, she found herself hoisted up and tossed onto the soft bed. She bounced up and tried to escape sideways, but he tackled her and pulled her into his arms. “Wait, today isn’t the third, sixth, or ninth,” she protested.
“But you fed me six oysters. Oysters are basically an aphrodisiac.”
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Chapter 282
‘Oh gosh, how could you blame me for that?‘ Audrey thought.
Lena had brought those oysters back and gave two to each of the three men. It wasn’t her fault Yann ate them all.
The next morning, Audrey woke up with an aching back and sore muscles. She opened her eyes to find a woman crouched by her bedside. “Ah!” she screamed.
“Audrey!” Lena looked up with a fawning smile. “I came to hang out with you.”
So you just lurked by my bed first thing in the morning? I almost scared to death!‘ Audrey thought. “Where’s Yann?” She ran her fingers through her messy hair and sat up.
When the blanket slipped down, Lena caught sight of the marks on her body and her face lit up with gossip–hungry curiosity.
Audrey immediately yanked the blanket over Lena’s head, slipped on her slippers, and bolted for the bathroom,
Lena pulled off the blanket, her previously smooth hair now a tangled mess across her face, and followed with a grin. “Yann went to work. It’s already past nine.”
“Really? It’s nine already?” came Audrey’s muffled voice from the bathroom as she brushed her teeth.
“Audrey, what do you want to wear? I can put together an outfit for you,” Lena called from outside the bathroom door.
After rinsing her mouth, Audrey replied, “You pick something out for me. I’m going to court today.”
“Got it!”
Hearing footsteps fade away, Audrey shook her head with a helpless smile. By the time she finished her shower and came out, Lena had already laid out
a coordinated outfit on her bed.
“Ta–da!” Lena struck a dramatic presentation pose.
Audrey rubbed her forehead in exasperation.
Lena had picked out a red sleeveless dress with a black long–sleeved cardigan, pearl earrings, and a pearl hair clip. She rarely wore such bold colors.
Lena praised her, saying she had a very refined look and that the outfit gave her a “Legally Blonde” vibe.
‘I’m the plaintiff, not the lawyer,’ Audrey thought.
Under Lena’s expectant gaze, Audrey went to change clothes. When she came out of the dressing room, Lena pulled out her phone and started taking photos like crazy. “Audrey, you could totally be a model,” she said.
Audrey didn’t notice that Lena had sent the photos to Yann. She took Lena downstairs for a quick bite to eat before they headed to the courthouse. If everything went according to plan, they would have a clear advantage in today’s hearing.
Since they’d avoided rush hour traffic, they made it to the courthouse without any delays.
Emilia was already there waiting for them. She had helped Audrey process the property deed for Winifred Manor, and it had finally come through. The certificate bore only Audrey’s name.
“Congratulations,” Emilia said.
“Thank you for all your hard work,” Audrey replied.
Lena looked curious about what kind of property deed it was, but since there were other people around, she didn’t feel comfortable asking.
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09:58 Sun, 15 Jun
Chapter 282
The certificate was too large to fit in Audrey’s bag, so Emilia offered to put it in the car for her. When Emilia returned, Malcolm had arrived with his assistant, but the assistant looked troubled.
“Is there some kind of emergency?” Audrey asked.
“We just got a call. Randy was in a car accident on his way here,” the assistant said anxiously.
They already had written evidence proving that StellarCore had stolen FlexiTech Group’s proprietary data, but Randy was the lead developer of the anti- intrusion software. Having him there to describe the entire process in person would make their case much more compelling.
From the other side of the courthouse steps, Talia’s legal team was making their way up.
Talia leaned over to whisper something to Lindsay beside her, wearing a smug smile that turned openly provocative when she spotted Audrey.
Audrey’s smile didn’t reach her eyes as she sneered.
With the trial about to begin, neither side exchanged words as they filed into the courtroom.
Once the proceedings started, both legal teams launched into their strategic battle. Audrey maintained a calm exterior, but her palms were already sweating.
Randy’s car accident was clearly no coincidence. It had Talia’s fingerprints all over it. There was no way Talia would willingly walk into prison.
Even if Talia had to face consequences, she’d fight tooth and nail for the lightest sentence possible.
Halfway through the session, Talia caught Audrey’s eye. The challenge in her gaze was practically tangible as she mouthed silently. “You lost.”
Audrey’s heart clenched painfully. Talia hadn’t just prevented Randy from testifying to dodge the corporate espionage charges.
Audrey’s FlexiTech Group had already joined the government’s flagship smart technology project, and Randy was supposed to play a crucial role as one of FlexiTech’s key players in the development process.
If Randy’s injuries were severe, Audrey might have cracked the top five, but she’d never be able to deliver outstanding results on the project. So while it looked like Audrey had won the competitive presentation, she’d actually lost everything that mattered.
“We request that our witness take the stand,” Malcolm announced, rising to his feet.
Lindsay whispered something to Talia, and both women wore expressions of absolute confidence in their victory.“]
As soon as those words were spoken, staff members pushed open the courtroom doors.
Talia turned around with a smile, but as the doors slowly opened, her expression froze completely.
tness is approved to testify.”
AD
