Jonah obviously wasnât pleased, âHuh, youâre just a secretary, yet youâre so full of yourself, interesting!
When your boss comes back, Iâll ask him to hand you over to me. Youâll be my secretary tomorrow, and Iâll teach you a thing or two! Do you think Balfour will agree?â
Ellinor was speechless.
Well, that was hard to say.
The main reason Balfour kept her was because she successfully negotiated a major collaboration between the Howard Group and Arab clients. Now that the contract had been signed, they could easily replace her for the followâup work.
Furthermore, Balfour had clearly expressed his dissatisfaction with her. He could really give her away as a gift to a friend.
Absolutely not! She had to stay with the Howard Group to conveniently investigate the real reason her mother was kicked out of the Howard family years ago.
Jonahâs provocation did put some pressure on Ellinor.
After some thought, Ellinor asked, âMr. Wyton, what do you want to bet?â
Jonahâs wicked face broke into a triumphant smile. He said very sarcastically, âI know itâs not easy to land a new job. You might be tight on cash. Letâs bet on a striptease then! Whoever loses will do a little dance here. Sound good?â
Upon hearing the bet was a striptease, Bartlett gallantly spoke up for Ellinor, âJonah, thatâs a bit over the top! Ellinorâs a lady, donât bully her.â
Jonah didnât care, âBartlett, do you think she canât play cards? Maybe Iâll be the one losing! Then youâll be in for a treat when I put on a dance!â
Kemp indignantly said, âNo one wants to see you strip.â
Jonah confidently replied, âThen itâll have to be Ms. Mendozaâs show!â
Ignoring Jonah, Bartlett turned to Ellinor and said. âEllinor, donât push yourself. Itâs okay to say no.â
Ellinor thought for a moment, then sighed helplessly, âAlright, Iâll take the bet, Mr. Wyton! But if I win, please dance in the ballroom, Mr. Wyton. Any objections?â
Both Kemp and Bartlett looked at Ellinor with admiration. Was she really this brave?!
Jonah laughed carelessly, âSure! I love a good crowd. Iâm just worried you wonât so lucky!â
Ellinor didnât say anything else and just asked, âIs it sudden death?â
âYes!â
âWell, then, letâs shuffle the cards!â
The moment she agreed to bet with Jonah, she felt a cold gaze from another direction tighten around her neck like a steel wire.
She didnât know if it was an illusion, but it made her feel a strange pressure.
Jonah started shuffling and dealing.
Looking at her cards, things didnât look promising. Her cards were much worse than the last round.
Jonah was skillful and unconventional.
Ellinor frowned. She was good at cards, but her hand was mediocre. Winning seemed difficult.
Several rounds went by without her gaining any advantage.
The outcome was clear. Jonah, grinning broadly, taunted, âMs. Mendoza, why arenât you playing? Have you run out of options?â
Ellinor glanced at him while maintaining her cool.
She was just thinking about which card to play and trying to predict what the opponent would play next.
She wanted to seize every possible chance to turn the game around.
Her hand was dwindling. If she made the wrong move now, she would lose everything. She needed to be extra cautious.
Just then, the sofa beside her sank a little. Someone sat down next to her, bringing a faint smell of tobacco.
Ellinor jumped. Without looking, she knew it was Theo.
The sudden presence of the man next to her jumbled up her thoughts. Goosebumps erupted on her arm.