They Had an Engagement?

It took a while before someone approached the door from inside and shouted through it.

"Leave the package outside, and we'll pick it up later."

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Marigold continued banging on the door like a maniac. She wished she could smash it. Then, she heard the sound of the peephole being turned, followed by frantic footsteps, arguments, and, finally, the sound of the door opening.

Yes, it was Jenny Whitehouse, the renowned international superstar, the youngest dual award-winning actress in history, who opened the door for her.

She was only wrapped in a towel, her hair disheveled on her shoulders, and there were some visible love marks on her neck. She looked at Marigold as if she were amusing, a smugness evident in her eyes.

"Come in."

Marigold wasn't surprised by how she knew who she was. As a third party involved in their relationship, her own existence became somewhat peculiar.

Marigold entered the bedroom. The man on the bed was buried under the covers, resembling an ostrich burying its head in the sand. Marigold took out her phone and started snapping pictures of the two of them. Jenny didn't try to stop her; instead, she approached the bed and forcefully pulled the covers off.

David lay naked on the bed, his eyes filled with shock, anger, and impatience.

Marigold remained silent, not wanting to say a word. She took a few more photos of David and sent them all to Brian.

"You knew about this affair between your artist and my fiancé, didn't you?" she asked.

Seeing her taking photos and sending messages again, David disregarded his own dignity and lunged at her, attempting to snatch her phone.

"Mary, how could you do this? It's a misunderstanding, believe me. It was just a rehearsal before the shoot, all a big misunderstanding. Don't spread this recklessly; it will tarnish the company's reputation and Jenny's future," he pleaded.

"Future?" Marigold's voice turned sharp. Her emotions surged like a flood coming down from a snowy mountain, unstoppable. "At a time like this, you're still thinking about her future? Have you ever thought about our future?"

"I heard you two were getting married?" Jenny interjected, smirking as she watched the drama unfold. "Don't worry, ma'am. David and I are just satisfying our physical needs temporarily; it won't affect your marriage. You still have a bright future ahead."

Marigold's mind exploded with a buzzing noise. Physical needs? Bright future? How did she connect these two things together?

Marigold sneered and fiercely rebuked Jenny, "I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in collecting rotten garbage bags. Besides, can his 'size' really satisfy you?"

Jenny's face flushed with anger. "Being with him ignites desire in me, unlike with you, right, baby?" she turned to David for confirmation. David's expression was grim, caught between admitting and denying.

"Furthermore, no matter which tabloid you plan to send these photos to, I advise you to drop that idea. They won't be exposed successfully. Do you think the B.E. board is a pushover? They'll buy those photos first and then destroy them. In the end, the only one who will suffer is you. Yes, ma'am, if you dare to expose our photos without permission, the B.E. legal department will come after you for compensation. After all, my image rights are closely protected. It depends on whether you have the money to compensate. If you can't afford it, there's another solution: pretend you didn't see anything, delete the photos obediently, and leave."

A crisp slap landed on Jenny's innocent and beautiful face, leaving five red fingerprints clearly visible. Jenny stumbled and was thrown onto the bed.

Although Marigold had suffered from poor health before, she had served in the military. The harsh training had left an indelible mark on her, giving her strength and reflexes far beyond that of an average woman.

"Do you even know what you're saying, you wretch?" Marigold intended to stay calm, but her words came out as angry cries. "Do you know who sent me here? Do you think no one knows about your affairs, that no one can control you?!"

"And you!" she pointed at the cowering David and cursed loudly, "Seven years, David, we've been together for seven years. I wasted my time with you! Even dogs know to lick and love me! You're worse than a dog!"

"It's all your fault, Mary bitch!" David, disregarding his own dignity, began to shout at her. "You lost your job, you can't make money. Without money, we can't start a new life, we can't start a new life without money, okay? Jenny has money, Jenny can give me the life I want, and love, and fame... Can you give me that? You can't do anything, you're a loser, Mary. Think about why you got cheated on. You're not beautiful enough, you can't earn money, you can't even do well as an on-air stripper... Do you think your little secrets can hide from me? Yes, I've been in your live stream, watching your pathetic strip dance. Honestly, it made me sick. Without me, you're nothing, Mary, and yet, I'm still willing to be your fiancé. You should be grateful and proud."

Marigold's heart was pierced so hard that blood flowed all over the floor. In the face of a wealthy and influential woman like Jenny, she could still maintain her dignity. But this man, the man who had been with her for seven years, used such words to judge and humiliate her, as if she were the one who was now stripped naked here.

"Oh, really?"

A sexy and lazy deep voice came from the entrance of the room, startling everyone. This time it was Jenny's turn to panic. She instinctively grabbed a long coat and draped it over herself, trying to hide all traces on her body. But there he was. The man descended like Apollo into the tiny presidential suite.

Marigold was still immersed in this agony. Her brain has lost some of its ability to turn, and her vision is getting darker and narrower. She even felt a tightness in her chest, unable to breathe. Not even Brian's arrival brought her any relief. In fact, his arrival added to the pressure. She hadn't even decided whether or not to forgive him.

Brian paced into the room, surveying the disheveled figures inside. He sneered coldly and said, "Jenny, I gave you a chance. But you still chose to betray the strong bond between our two families."

Jenny's face turned pale, but she still pretended to be calm and walked over to a lounge chair, elegantly reclining in it. "What's the matter? Are you here to catch us in the act too? It's quite a scene today. I'm just having fun. You can have fun, too. Maybe even cross-match the four of us. How about that? Do you like that?"

Brian gave her a dirty look and said in a deep voice, "I don't give a shit what garbage you're dating with. " He noticed the pale look on Marigold's face and the beads of sweat on her forehead, realizing that something was not right. He quickly reached out and held her, asking in a concerned voice, "Are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?"

Marigold desperately shook her head, trying to indicate that she was fine, but the next moment, her feet left the ground as she was lifted horizontally.

"You look like you're about to faint. You need some rest."

Everyone looked at Brian in astonishment, including a terrified Jenny.

"What's going on, Brian? This woman... do you know her? Wasn't she just David's fiancée?"

Brian held Marigold firmly, scanning the two disheveled figures in the room with a venomous gaze, showing a disdainful sneer. "Guess who gave her the room number to find her way here? Let me inform you officially, Mary is now my personal assistant, an official employee of B.E. And you, David Collar, you're fired effective today. As for you, Jenny Whitehouse, I can keep your scandalous affairs a secret from your dad, but our engagement is hereby canceled."

Everyone was shocked, including the weak Marigold nestled against Brian's broad and solid chest. Marigold couldn't activate her slow-running brain for fast calculations; all her consciousness was focused on digesting one thing: Brian, he was actually Jenny's fiancé? They had an engagement?!

At this moment, David heard the terrible news and started crying in anguish. Jenny screamed and lunged at Brian like a madwoman. Brian, while protecting the woman in his arms, easily evaded Jenny's attack.

"I disagree!" Jenny cried out, like a true lunatic, completely devoid of the demeanor of an international superstar. "This is an engagement between our families. You don't have the right to cancel it on your own! I won't accept it, Brian, I won't accept it. Are you going to ruin my reputation? Don't forget who I am. I am the heiress of the Whitehouse family, and not even the Bennett family can completely turn against the Whitehouses!"

"I'll deal with the elders. I won't leave my future in anyone else's hands. I choose my woman myself. I've said it before, I'm not trying to ruin you. I'm tired of a life controlled by fate, and I believe you don't want that kind of life either: saying you want to marry me while fooling around with men outside, from movie stars to football players, even your own makeup artist... Don't you think that's a bit too much for me?"

"I'm a big star! I live on gossip! Please, Brian, even if you don't want to marry me, can you not tell my dad about canceling the engagement? He'll break my legs!"

"He won't." Brian sneered. "He'll only break your path to stardom, cut off your sources of wealth and connections, and lock you up in the tens of thousands of acres of your family's estate for the rest of your life, then marry you off to a scion of another major family. You deserve all of that, Jenny. It suits you."

"Ugh..." Marigold suddenly let out a moan. She was really feeling uncomfortable and couldn't bear it any longer. She instantly lost consciousness and passed out.

Brian suddenly became anxious. He no longer paid attention to the mournful figures in the room and carried Marigold in his arms, rushing towards the door. 

"I'm sorry, Mary. Are you okay? Wake up, Mary, don't scare me..."

Damn, he had done such a terrible thing to the woman in his arms, and she was the one who hurt the most in the whole thing. It's all his fault!