Chapter 212

Chapter 212

Julianna pushed him away fiercely and scrambled up, clutching the duvet to her chest. “What did you do to me?”

Graham propped up his body with his hands, leaning lazily against the headboard, the duvet at his waist, revealing a well- defined chest and sculpted abs. He stretched an arm out to grab a pack of cigarettes from the nightstand and lit one up Inhaling deeply, he blew a smoke ring toward Julianna, prompting a few coughs from her.

With her eyes red from fory, she glared at him. “Graham, the jerk, what the hell did you do to me!

As casual as ever, Graham replied, “Brushed your teeth, gave you a bath, wiped you down, and did what men generally do to

women.

The thought of her first kiss being stolen by Graham, and now bizarrely robbed of her purity as well, she felt incredibly wronged. She thought. He plays around with other worch and then lays his hands on me, what’s all this about?”

Glaring at him in anger. Julianna exclaimed, “Why?”

Graham watched her annoyed expression and couldn’t help feeling a little amused, “Why what?”

“Why touch me if you don’t like me!”

“Do you think I don’t like you?”

Julianna sniffed, eyeing his rebellious demeanor, “Graham, you’re such a jerk! I will wish you’ll be infertile, with a houseful of offspring!”

“Are you suggesting you’ll cheat on me?” Graham raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.

Julianna was furious, how dare he suggest she would cheat when he was the one who had wronged her? At this moment, she felt she was cuckolded. She closed her eyes and then leaped up, the blanket wrapped around her as Graham’s cover slid away. Her cheeks flushed, Julianna kicked his shin hard before hopping off the bed and stonning into the bathroom Pulling the blanket away, she examined her reflection in the full–length mirror. Apart from some marks on her neck, collarbone, and front, there were no other traces. Most importantly, she felt no discomfort. Her frown deepened. She thought, Isn’t the first time supposed to hurt? Does this mean Graham is lacking? The thought made Julianna scorn him even more. Tall, strong, and with good looks, yet as it turned out, he was too slight! That had to be the case, for she hadn’t seen any traces of blood on the bed when she got up. This obvious absence was enough to doubt Graham’s adequacy. Indeed, appearances could be deceptive. They said men with high noses were supposed to be capable, but this was an exception. She decided to let Hilda Larson have this man, who seemed all bark and no bite.

Disgusted, she showered and dressed in a high–neck beige sweater and light blue jeans. Raising her chin defiantly, she declared, “From now on, we go our separate ways. I will have my lawyer contact you about the divorcel

Grabbing her cell phone from the nightstand, she saw a photo push notification and an article about Graham’s nightout with Hilda. She clicked on it and after reading, her face twisted with disgust. This man had the gall to have a secret tryst with his secretary and then come back to her bed–repulsivel Clutclung the phone, Julianna, nearly retched.

“So quick to feel sick? Are you pregnant already?” Graham chuckled.

Enraged. Julianna clenched her jaw and shot him a deadly glare before storming out of the bedroom and slamming the door behind her. Graham understood that Juliama wasn’t happy, but he hadn’t anticipated her mood would lips like a switch after seeing his phone. Angrily, she had left without a word. He glanced at his own phone and saw similar messages flashing on

the screen.

His eyes turned glacial in an instant, and he dialed Hilda’s number.

She picked up promptly, her voice raspy with tension, “Mr. Whitlock!”

1/2

D

7

10:32 Thu, Oct 10 B

Chapter 212

“Did you hire someone to snap photos of me visiting your apartment last night?” Graham demanded.

“No.” Hilda grasped what Graham was getting at immediately. When she saw the photos and news, she knew Graham woul confront her. “Mr. Whitlock, I swear I didn’t. I don’t know what’s going on here! It must be Karl Zamora’s doing!”

With a tone as cold and non–negotiable as a judge’s verdict, Graham declared, “You will receive a resignation notice from 1 today. Gather your things and leave the company,”

Stunned by Graham’s decisive action to fire her, Hilda realized she couldn’t argue. Nobody could overturn a decision mad by Graham Whitlock when his mind was set. She would have to wait for another chance to get close to him.

After hanging up. Graham ensured that all misinformation was scrubbed from the internet and managed to catch the paparazzo responsible. Under pressure, the pap admitted that Karl Zamora had orchestrated the stunt, trying to fabricate scandal with Hilda to force her into a corner and claim her for himself, Graham called his lawyers, sued Karl Zamora, and had Whitlock Group handle the PR carefully. Since Hilda was the victim and a woman’s reputation was delicate, they just reported that Hilda had been in danger and Graham stepped in to help, keeping details hush–hush.

He tried calling Julianna, but she wouldn’t pick up. Eventually, he realized she’d blocked him. The memory of her scornful look was easy to misinterpret. He pressed his lips into a thin line got dressed, and left the house.

Meanwhile, Julianna sat in a coffee shop, her gaze locked on the steaming coffee before her. She stirred it with a spoon and, finding it too bitter, added a sugar cube. It didn’t help much, and she fought back tears that splashed into her cup. Footsteps neared, and she looked up to see Stephanie walking in. Julianna wiped her eyes, managing a strained smile. “You came.”

Stephanie sat down across from her and passed a tissue. “About the stuff online? I saw it’s been taken down.”

Julianna just nodded and relayed the whole ordeal about her affair with Graham. “Whenever I see Graham now, I feel like throwing up. How could he be so vile!”

Stephanie saw Julianna’s red nose and asked tentatively, “Julia, is there some kind of misunderstanding here?”

“What sort of misunderstanding could there be? He was caught red–handed!”

Vincent had told Stephanie about Graham’s clean romantic history, and Stephanic believed Vincent, convinced that Graham was a decent man not likely to double–deal. “Hilda Larson is messy, and I doubt Graham is oblivious to that.”

“So why doesn’t he fire her?”

“Hilda’s resume was polished and spotless; no issue for her to join Whitlock Group. Graham is strict about keeping business separate from personal matters. Without a valid reason, he won’t just fire someone.”

Julianna blew her nose, “But they traveled together and watched fireworks!”

“Seeing isn’t always believing, Julia. Have you fallen for him?”