I Rejected Being The Investor's Mistress

Owen Morgan sipped his coffee slowly, the soft light accentuating the sharp contours of his face. Evelyn Howard glared at him, eyes blazing with indignation. He leisurely swirled the coffee cup in his hand, saying, "I haven't done much, really. Just helped Dr. Jensen Romero achieve his dream of studying abroad and promised to fund all his research expenses going forward."

Evelyn’s eyes widened in disbelief. "You want Dr. Romero to go abroad? What about my sister?"

Owen raised an eyebrow, smirking as he placed the sturdy coffee cup heavily on the table, his voice laced with sarcasm. "What's your sister got to do with me? You're so noble, so impressive; why don't you just find another leading doctor for her? Is it wrong for me to sponsor someone out of goodwill?"

Her whole body trembled with fury as she glared at him insolently. Owen had cornered her, knowing she lacked the connections and resources to find anyone better than Dr. Jensen Romero.

Owen’s gaze traveled over Evelyn with a suggestive glance, assessing her from head to toe. "Evelyn, I don’t want to make things difficult for you. Just say the word, and I can bring in top experts from New York to make sure your sister gets treated."

As he spoke, his gaze fixated on her smooth, fair legs, and his hand inched closer to them. The warmth of his touch sent a shiver through Evelyn, prompting a violent shudder.

Her temper finally snapped, and she grabbed the coffeepot from the table, swinging it fiercely at his head. "You jerk, get lost!"

She’d had enough! From the moment she accidentally ran into Owen three months ago and started being hassled by him, she'd been holding back this anger. Now it burst free.

Thick blood trickled down from Owen's head as he let out a faint curse, his eyes filled with malice. "You dare hit me, Evelyn? Have I been too kind to you?"

Evelyn took a step back, her chin raised defiantly. "You've gone too far. You can pester me all you want, but my sister means everything to me. If you dare harm her, I'll drag you to hell with me!"

She appeared calm on the surface, but her hands were shaking so much she could hardly lift them. The bright red of Owen's head wound made her feel faint.

"You ungrateful wretch. Do you honestly think I care about the lives of you and your sister?" Owen snarled. "The game’s over, Evelyn. Today, no one can save you."

Ignoring his bleeding wound, Owen lunged to grab Evelyn. In a panic, she shoved the chair at him and sprinted for the door.

Owen tripped over the chair, sprawling clumsily on the floor. Before he could react, the smoke alarm blared overhead, releasing a cascade of water that drenched him.

Cursing under his breath, he got to his feet, drenched and furious, as Evelyn shouted out. "Somebody, help! Mr. Morgan has fainted, quick, come in..."

The bodyguards stationed outside heard the cries and burst into the private room immediately. "Mr. Morgan, are you alright?"

Taking advantage of the chaos, Evelyn dashed for the exit. Owen wiped the water off his face, shouting angrily, "Idiots! Get her back!"

The sound of footsteps behind her sent a surge of terror through Evelyn. She couldn’t let them catch her!

In her desperate flight, she collided with a warm, protective figure. "Are you alright?" a familiar voice asked, and Evelyn looked up.

She found herself enveloped in Everett Scott's embrace, his arm securely around her waist, casting a steely gaze at the approaching bodyguards. Evelyn clung to Everett's arm, her voice trembling, "Mr. Scott..."

"It’s okay," Everett assured her softly.

In the next moment, he scooped Evelyn up in his arms, glaring at the bodyguards with icy authority. "If you want to keep your jobs, back off."

Intimidated by his commanding presence, the bodyguards could only watch helplessly as he carried Evelyn into an elevator. As the elevator descended, they hesitated, unsure whether to pursue them. Moments later, Owen emerged.

Clutching his wounded forehead, he kicked one of the bodyguards in frustration. "Where is she?"

"She... she got away with someone," one stammered.

"Who?" Owen demanded.

"I don’t know," came the muttered response.

"Useless!" Owen seethed, his headache intensifying. Seeing the elevator had reached the ground floor, he knew it was too late to catch them now. Just then, the restaurant manager appeared, drawn by the commotion in the private room.

"Mr. Morgan, oh my, what happened?" the manager exclaimed.

Seething with suppressed fury, Owen barked, "Get the surveillance footage. I want to know who had the guts to snatch her away from me!"

In the surveillance room, as the manager squirmed under Owen's glare, the screen showed only static. "Mr. Morgan, it seems the cameras malfunctioned today. We didn’t capture the hallway, and the smoke alarm's issue is still under investigation."

Owen kicked the wall in frustration, everything going wrong. Meanwhile, outside the restaurant, Everett had already helped Evelyn into his car.

As the events replayed in her mind, Evelyn felt waves of relief mixed with fear, curling up like a frightened rabbit. Sitting beside her, Everett asked with concern, "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine..." Evelyn shook her head, clutching his arm tightly as if it were her lifeline. "I... I injured Owen. Could I go to jail for this?"

Her stunningly beautiful face was pale, combining fragility with resilience—strength born from adversity.

Everett gently patted her back to calm her. "No, you won’t."

"That's a relief." Evelyn exhaled, a timid smile appearing. Hitting Owen had been satisfying. But as she thought of her sister still in the hospital, her spirits fell again.

"So, Mr. Scott, are you still willing to marry me? The registry office should still be open."

Everett looked at her. She was terrible at hiding her emotions—her fiddling fingers as good as confessing: I’m sorry, I need to use you.

Without hesitation, Everett replied, "Yes, let’s go get the marriage license now."

Half an hour later, they emerged from the registry office. Everett opened the car door and moved to the driver's seat. Evelyn, holding the marriage certificate, glanced at Everett’s faintly smiling picture. Her own expression beside him was somewhat stiff.

Her heart beat wildly. "Regrets?" Everett's voice sounded in her ear.

"No," she replied, sliding the certificate into her bag. "It's just that..."

She didn’t finish before her phone rang. The caller ID displayed Owen's name. Evelyn’s fingers froze for a moment. Everett took a quick glance but said nothing, simply stepping aside to give her space.

Taking a deep breath, Evelyn answered the call.