Chapter 86 Forget About It!
Once the others had left, Athena let out a deep sigh of relief. Her back, which had been tense all day, finally relaxed.
Then, she felt a large hand gently rest on her back and stroke it softly.
“Miss Newton, you’ve saved us a lot of money,” Byron said, his voice low.
“Can I get a bonus for that?” Athena asked with a hint of humor.
Byron smiled. “Of course.”
“Well, thank you, Mr. Crawford,” Athena replied. She tried to stand up, but before she could, Byron effortlessly lifted her and placed her on his lap.
Athena froze, startled. “Byron, we’re at the branch office with surveillance cameras!” she whispered urgently, trying to get up, but Byron held onto her waist, keeping her in place.
“I didn’t know you were this capable, Thea,” Byron murmured, rubbing her waist.
“Mr. Crawford!” Athena exclaimed, holding his hand in protest. “We can’t be physically intimate in public places. That’s your rule.”
Byron frowned, looking at her with a mix of amusement and slight frustration. “Forget about it,” he said, letting go of her waist.
“Byron, I just showed them my abilities. What do you think they’ll say if they see us like this?” Athena said, her voice low but firm. “They’ll never recognize my skills. They’ll just say I’m relying on you!”
Byron fell silent, absorbing her words. He finally let go of her, and Athena quickly adjusted her clothes. She shot him an annoyed glance before standing by the door, waiting for him to leave. She made no effort to hide her disdain.
Byron, though initially angry, felt a sense of grievance instead. “I couldn’t even hug her?” he thought.
He pulled out his phone and sent a message to Liam on WhatsApp, instructing him to delete the surveillance footage from the meeting room earlier. Once that was done, he got up and walked toward the door. Athena opened it for him, following closely behind.
The office buzzed with rumors about how Athena had handled Jack and his colleagues. The men looked at her with subtle glances, while some of the women either looked down on her or admired her with enthusiasm.
After meetings at the branch office, Byron typically left without Athena, who stayed behind to handle some leftover tasks. Today was no different. Athena stood by the elevator, watching as Byron got in. He didn’t look at her, his attention consumed by his phone.
The events from the airport the previous day played in Athena’s mind—Byron had forced her to remove him from her blacklist.
As the elevator doors began to close, Byron glanced up and caught Athena’s gaze. He quickly put his phone away, his focus now entirely on her.
Athena’s phone buzzed twice in her hand, drawing her attention.
Byron: [Get it done quickly.] Byron: [I’ll wait for you for dinner.]
Reading his messages, Athena felt a sudden sense of déjà vu, as if they were a couple exchanging messages before heading home for the evening. It felt like an ordinary, intimate exchange between two people secretly in love.
She startled herself with the thought, quickly pinching her palm to snap out of it.
The rest of her time at the branch office was uneventful. Athena walked around with the general manager, ensuring everything was in order. It was nearly time to leave when a sarcastic voice broke her thoughts.
“Hey, isn’t this Miss Newton?”
Athena turned around and saw a woman in her mid-twenties, dressed stylishly, walking toward her with a confident sway in her step.
“Hello, Ms. Patton!” the general manager said quickly, greeting the woman.
It was Lisha Patton—her mother was Lola’s sister.