Chapter 3 Bethany's An Escort

Aimee's loud voice drew everyone's attention, including Jonathan's.

Fortunately for Bethany, he quickly lost interest and headed for the door as though nothing happened. His entourage followed, and together, they all left the hotel.

As soon as they were gone, Aimee poked Bethany with an inquisitive look in her eye.

"That was weird, huh? Why would Mr. Bates be interested in your room?"

Aimee was puzzled. She had expected something sensational to happen, but unexpectedly, Jonathan left as though the revelation meant nothing to him.

Bethany breathed a sigh of relief and replied, "My room has a good view. Maybe he wants to stay there."

"Seriously?"

"Don't forget he's the CEO!"

Aimee shrugged. Bethany's words made sense—since she and Jonathan were from two completely different worlds, nothing could have happened between them.

"Do you think a gorgeous yet cold man like Mr. Bates is good in bed?" she suddenly asked, wriggling her brows at Bethany playfully. "He's tall, so I bet he's big 'down there,' too!"

Bethany was speechless.

Aimee's fantasies about how good he was in bed were exaggerated, but as for his size... It was indeed quite big, though since it was her first time, she had no one else to compare it to.

Bethany suddenly realized her mind was drifting off to more inappropriate thoughts.

She shook her head, banishing those dirty images to the back of her brain. She blamed Aimee for being a bad influence.

Soon, Carson Smith, the manager of their department, arrived. He was wearing a business suit and leather shoes, his thinning hair barely concealing his shiny scalp. He took the materials from Bethany and flipped through them, displeasure evident in his voice. "In the past two years, the policy has tightened. Promoting such a project wasn't easy, but now, this accident happened. If the additional money required is too much, it'll eat up your bonus."

Bethany didn't say anything, but Aimee secretly shot Carson a disdainful look. It was obvious the fault lay with Carson. To compete for the project, he had even dared to take on the role of replenishing party.

Suddenly, Carson looked Bethany up and down, as though he was sizing her up.

"Bethany, I just remembered something," he said, his tone notably gentler. "You're from Brokdon, right?"

"Yes."

"Perfect! Mr. Bates is also from Brokdon. I'm inviting him to dinner tonight, and you could use your shared hometown as an excuse to probe him."

Carson wasn't making a request; he was ordering her to do it.

But Bethany wanted to avoid meeting Jonathan after what happened last night.

Biting her lip, she said diplomatically, "Mr. Smith, I'm not sure I'm qualified to talk to Mr. Bates."

"Isn't it normal to converse with each other when people sit at the same table?"

"Yes, but—"

"No 'buts.' Dress up nicely tonight. Don't embarrass me!"

After saying that, Carson hurried out of the hotel. Aimee could only roll her eyes and follow him out alongside Bethany.

That evening, after the first round of negotiations with the representative from Glora Company, Carson urged Bethany to return to the hotel to prepare for their dinner with Jonathan.

She didn't know how Carson had even managed to convince Jonathan to have dinner with him, but sure enough, Jonathan showed up.

As soon as Bethany entered, she found him occupying the main seat.

Jonathan had taken off his suit jacket and draped it over the armrest. The top two buttons of his shirt were left undone, exposing just a glimpse of his clavicle. His noble features and golden-rimmed glasses gave him an air of restraint.

There were four people in total—Bethany, Carson, Jonathan, and Jonathan's secretary.

Noticing that Bethany hesitated at the door, Carson stood up and pulled out the chair next to Jonathan. "Come here, Bethany."

Biting her lip hesitantly, she awkwardly made her way over.

But before she could take her seat, Jonathan's cold voice interrupted her. "Isn't Bethany an assistant? Since when did she work as an escort?"