CHAPTER 18: CHAPTER 18: STAY AWAY FROM ME

"President Hawthorne, please don’t put Mrs. Hawthorne in a difficult position. I’m really fine, even if she hurt me, it was unintentional." Cindy Lynn kindly tried to smooth things over, "You have a meeting later, I’ll go prepare the conference room."

"I’ll go with you." Vincent Hawthorne looked at Tanya Sinclair with deep, intense eyes, "Tanya, I’m very disappointed in you for today’s incident. Think about it carefully, we’ll talk more when we get back."

After speaking, he turned around and instructed Jonah Rivers, "Send Mrs. Hawthorne home later."

"Yes."

Tanya Sinclair stood there, watching Vincent Hawthorne and Cindy Lynn walk away side by side, their backs seeming quite matched together. As they walked, her skirt hem brushed subtly against his suit pants.

During this time, Cindy Lynn twisted her ankle slightly, and Vincent Hawthorne quickly helped her, like it was second nature.

Although Jonah Rivers knew Tanya Sinclair couldn’t see, he still couldn’t help but block Tanya’s view.

"Mrs., shall I take you home?"

"Special Assistant Rivers, could you make me a cup of coffee? I’d like to stay in my old office a bit longer if that’s alright."

"Of course, I’ll wait for you by the door."

Jonah Rivers thoughtfully closed the door for Tanya Sinclair.

The floor-to-ceiling windows in the office were fitted with one-way glass, unseen from the outside. Tanya took off her sunglasses, walked straight to the corner, and removed the painting on the wall. Behind the frame was her personal safe.

The surface of the lock was already covered with dust, apparently untouched for the past five years.

The password was her deceased mother’s birthday, a detail she’d only ever told Vincent Hawthorne, but clearly, he never remembered it.

The data inside was intact. Tanya quickly took some photos before shutting the safe again and hung the painting back in place.

Moments later, Jonah Rivers entered with a cup of coffee—it was an Americano.

Tanya took a sip, the bitterness spread over her tongue, and she frowned slightly.

"Mrs., should I make a fresh cup?" Jonah scratched his head, "You always used to drink unsweetened Americano, so I took the liberty of making one."

"No need." Tanya took a couple more sips, gradually adapting to the bitter taste.

She didn’t like the bitterness of Americanos. She preferred the rich, aromatic taste of lattes, but because Vincent only drank Americanos, she changed her preference to match his.

Tanya thought to herself: This is the last time.

From now on, she would never compromise herself for Vincent again.

"Special Assistant Rivers, could you take me back home?"

"Alright."

Jonah led Tanya all the way to the nearest elevator, only to find it temporarily malfunctioning with a maintenance sign on it.

"Mrs., let’s go to the other side. This elevator is temporarily out of service."

"Okay."

Tanya followed Jonah to the other side where two elevators were running parallel.

At that moment, a man stood before the elevator doors, holding a phone while on a call, his slight turn revealing his face to Tanya, causing her to pause slightly.

This face was not unfamiliar; it was Rhys Lucas.

Rhys was one of Vincent’s good buddies. They shared a close relationship. Ever since she started pursuing Vincent, throughout their years together, she had seen Rhys many times, yet never received a warm gesture from him.

Rhys didn’t like her, this Tanya had known since their first meeting.

Once, she had tried to win over Vincent’s friends, wanting them to embrace her, but after much effort, it was all in vain.

She recalled Rhys’s birthday one year when she noticed his issue with weak blood circulation. She thoughtfully crafted a potion to enhance vitality and blood circulation, spending a week creating convenient tablets, packaging them individually.

On Rhys’s birthday banquet day, she personally handed them to him.

At the time, Rhys’s expression was nuanced, accepting them and saying with a half-smile, ’You have a kind heart.’

Upon leaving, Tanya saw those tablets discarded in the trash bin at the entrance.

Her immediate reactions were grievance and sadness, even contemplating whether her gift was inappropriate.

Now, Tanya thought she had been utterly foolish back then!

If she could transform back those times, the sole thing she’d do would be to slam the trash bin onto Rhys’s head!

Tanya adjusted her sunglasses over her nose, her face expressionless.

Now she didn’t even want Vincent, much less his circle of fair-weather friends—four words summed up her attitude: stay far away!

Jonah, on the other hand, greeted him, "President Lucas."

Rhys Lucas nodded at Jonah, acknowledging him, with disdainful eyes resting on Tanya approaching with her blind cane.

This woman was truly absurd; in this state, she persistently pursued Vincent at the company!

She probably would put on another of those sheepish smiles later, initiating a conversation to engage awkwardly.

Rhys had already devised a plan to ignore Tanya, letting her have an awkward time.

Unexpectedly, Tanya treated him like air, let alone proactively greeting him or even turning her head in his direction.

Rhys was initially thrown off.

He rationalized that perhaps Jonah’s greeting had been too vague, causing Tanya to consider him a stranger.

Rhys proactively asked, "Special Assistant Rivers, what are you busy with?"

He intentionally ensured Tanya heard his voice.

Despite Jonah being a bit perplexed, he courteously replied, "President Hawthorne asked me to accompany the Mrs. for a stroll in the company."

Rhys Lucas nodded, then awaited Tanya to approach for conversation.

After all, she was blind, not deaf; it’s unlikely she wouldn’t recognize his voice.

But to Rhys’s surprise, Tanya remained indifferent, as soon as the elevator arrived, she entered, waving her blind cane.

Rhys Lucas: "..."

Seeing Rhys standing outside, Jonah held the elevator door, "President Lucas, aren’t you coming?"

Rhys stared at Tanya in the elevator, his molars clenching slightly, squeezing out words between his teeth, "No, I just remembered I left something at President Hawthorne’s office."

The elevator doors closed before his eyes, entirely blocking Tanya’s cold face.

Rhys felt suffocated, frustration stalled in his chest, neither advancing nor retreating. He frowningly retrieved his phone to send Vincent a message.

Rhys Lucas: [After five years as a vegetable, besides her eyes, has anything else happened to Tanya Sinclair? Like, has her brain broken?]