Chapter: 1171

Bethany, caught off guard, gave a startled shake of her head.

"No, thank you! There's no need. I can take a taxi."

"It's alright! We've been friends since our days at Goldwald Company!"

Colt insisted with enthusiasm.

Yet Bethany continued to retreat, taking cautious steps backward. "I really don't need it. Please, just go."

Colt hesitated, then a look of realization dawned on him. “Ah, I get it! Are you worried Mr. Bates will be jealous? Well, then I won't risk making him unhappy!"

“Jonathan and I..." Bethany began, exasperated.

“Did you have an argument?"

"No..."

"So, Mr. Bates can get quite jealous! But that's to be expected. You're so beautiful. Mr. Bates has every reason to keep a close eye on you, just in case another Ryan comes along."

It was only now that Bethany heard Ryan's name tumble from Colt's lips.

Since Jonathan's crushing blow, Ryan had vanished from the spotlight, leaving no trace of his whereabouts. Bethany hadn't even considered digging for news about him.

“Speaking of him, Ryan is really struggling! I've heard he has to start a whole new business from the ground up. On top of that, he has to avoid any connections with Bates Group. If he wants to make deals, he can only work with their rivals. He should have known better than to compete with Mr. Bates."

Bethany's face darkened. "Ryan was just my boss. I don't want to hear anything about him.”

“Ah, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have brought him up. I'll get going. See you tomorrow."

“See you."

Bethany felt a wave of relief wash over her only after Colt slipped back into his car. Just then, her phone lit up with Brody's call.

She glanced at the screen, a smile creeping across her face before she answered.

Could it be that Brody was calling to lay claim to the flowers?

"Hello, Brody. What's the matter?"

“Bethany, didn't you mention that you're not a fan of flowers? Why did you go ahead and accept flowers from someone again? Mr. Bates knows about it. He seems calm, but he's asked me to cancel today's hospital appointment."

Bethany was puzzled.

Did this mean...?

“The flowers aren't from Jonathan?" she asked.