Chapter 768
Pepper had no intention of letting Adrian leave.
She caught his hand again and spoke exactly as she had planned.
Pepper had always placed Adrian above everything else. No matter what happened, she always seemed to think of him before herself.
The moment she finished speaking, another soft cry slipped from her lips. Pain trembled through her voice, as if the burn hurt too badly for her to bear. Her fingers tightened around Adrian’s hand.
Her nails pressed into his palm.
Then, as though her strength had run out, her hand slowly slid lower. Her fingertips brushed across his palm and down to his fingers, leaving a damp, ticklish trail that made him pause again.
At their age, both past fifty, people needed companionship and understanding more than passion.
At least, that was what Pepper believed.
All these years, she had been gentle and considerate. She had stayed quietly by Adrian’s side without asking for much.
She had never stood beside him as his wife or lover. Still, other than their business partners, she was the woman who had remained closest to him.
That was why she believed she only needed one chance-just one to break the cycle between them.
She wanted Adrian to see her as a woman deserving of staying by his side, someone capable of offering warmth, care, and tenderness—rather than simply as his ex-wife’s sister or the biological mother of his adopted daughter.
So, Pepper had come fully prepared when she brought the burn ointment and hot soup to his office.
She had also slipped something into the bowl of chicken and mushroom soup she brought for him, though the dose was light enough not to seem obvious.
Even if Adrian reacted to it, he would simply think his body had been suppressed for too long, and that desire would surface naturally. His metabolism was also healthy. Even if he had sensed something unusual and gone to the hospital later, the tests would have revealed nothing.
“Adrian Pepper held on to his hand.
She thought, Everything is prepared. The timing is just right. Today, I must cross that line with him. If I tried this again, Adrian would surely become suspicious.
A restless heat moved through Adrian’s body.
This was his private lounge. Usually, no one came in except the secretary who cleaned it. Yet now, the air was filled with the scent of an unfamiliar woman.
Adrian was over fifty, yet he was wealthy and maintained an air of elegance. He kept his wife’s position vacant all those years and took good care of himself. His body remained firm with age, and his refined, scholarly demeanor made him even more appealing.
For years, many women had set their sights on him.
Women of all ages had attempted to get near him. Tricks like Pepper’s were familiar; he encountered them multiple times each year.
Only this time, it was Pepper.
In Adrian’s mind, Pepper belonged under the category “family p>
Because of that, he had not thought too deeply about it at first.
Still, she had stopped him again and again. No matter how much he tried to ignore
it, suspicion began to rise.
He frowned and turned to look at Pepper.
The suit jacket covering her was pulled taut, and she held the collar tightly. He couldn’t tell if she was worried the jacket might slip and reveal her or if the pain from her. burn was too intense.
Her fingers pressed into the stiff fabric of his suit. The dark material made her hand
appear pale, delicate, and fragile.
Adrian was briefly overwhelmed, feeling as if something had drawn him in.
Something’s not right, he thought.
Adrian shook his head hard.
When he looked at Pepper again, his eyes had grown much colder.
Pepper’s heart skipped a beat, but she showed no sign of panic.
Instead, she seemed even calmer, tilting her chin up slightly and looking at him. “Adrian, I just wanted to say th your clothes got wet. If you go out like that and someone sees, it might not look good. Why don’t you go to the restroom and change it p>
When Adrian heard that she had only stopped him to remind him about his clothes,
he lowered his gaze and looked down.
Right, my shirt really is wet.
A large patch is soaked, and the fabric is wrinkled too.
If Pepper genuinely aims to have people misunderstand us, she wouldn’t keep
bringing it up.
A trace of guilt rose inside Adrian at once.
His suspicion just now seemed unfair.
Because of that guilt, it became harder for him to refuse her.
“Alright. I’ll change p>
With that, Adrian opened the wardrobe beside him, took out a white shirt at random, and went into the restroom.
Pepper watched him disappear behind the door, and a satisfied smile slowly tugged at her lips.
Before the smile could fully form, a soft click came from inside.
Adrian had locked the restroom door.
Pepper’s expression stiffened. She clenched her teeth until her jaw ached.
Inside, Adrian quickly changed into a After that, he braced
clean shin
both hands on the edge of
and lowered his head. Cet
The air in the restroom felt stuffy and unmoving. Pepper’s perfume still seemed to
cling to the space around him.
The heat in his body burned even stronger.