The next morning, as soon as Duke pulled his car into the underground parking lot of the office building, Rachel got out of her Porsche. Here was the only place she could see him. She had been waiting. The minute he came into view, she walked toward him.
"Duke, good morning." In a white dress, curly hair swinging in the wind as she walked, Rachel had put on an innocent image instead of her usual sexy style.
"Morning," Duke grunted without looking at her. He locked his car and was ready to leave, obviously not interested in speaking to her.
"Duke, can I talk to you for a few minutes?" Rachel asked in a rush and quickened her steps, gripping her dress and biting her lip.
"About what?" Duke asked briefly and slowed down his steps.
"About... Belinda," Rachel hesitated, studying his expressions.
"What about her?" Duke stopped and turned around abruptly. Apparently, even Belinda's name itself meant a lot to him.
"Do you not know the kind of woman she is? She is marrying you because she wants to get the Leng Group, not because she loves you," Rachel told him. She was convinced that when Duke got to know this, he would leave Belinda. Then she'd have her opportunity.
"Oh. Really? Where did you hear that rumor?" Duke asked with a sneer. Indeed, marrying him hadn't been Belinda's intention. However, she hadn't eventually married him because she wanted the Leng Group - Belinda wasn't interested in anything Duke had. He had told Rachel about it before. It seemed like she had forgotten that. Or maybe she was just pretending to have forgotten.
"It is not a rumor. She told me about it herself. I'm not lying," Rachel replied in a triumphant tone. She thought she finally had something over Belinda that would clear all the obstacles in her path to become Duke's wife. Yesterday, she had noticed Belinda drove a Lotus sports car. It didn't cost much. Duke hadn't bought her a better car. Rachel was convinced that Belinda didn't mean to Duke as much as he claimed she did.
"She told you herself? Are you sure?" Duke asked mischievously, wondering if he had missed something.
"Of course. I have no reason to lie to you." Rachel made herself sound as sincere as possible.
"When did you see her?" Duke asked abruptly in a grim tone. He could put up with her creating trouble or playing dirty tricks when it came to him. However, if she decided to make Belinda her target, she was on dangerous ground.
"Last night. That's when I got to know how vicious that woman is." Rachel thought she had done Duke a huge favor by finding out Belinda's true nature. Duke ought to be thankful to her. She felt pretty good about herself.
"So it was you she met last night. What did you say to her?" Duke glared at her and suddenly gripped her jaw between his fingers. No wonder Belinda hadn't eaten anything last night. She had been somewhere with Rachel. Belinda disliked her immensely. Rachel must have incensed her so much that she had been too beside herself to eat. But why hadn't Belinda said a word about it to him? Was it because she didn't think it mattered? Or because she just didn't take him seriously enough?
"Urgh... I said nothing. Could you let go of me first?" Rachel tried to take Duke's hand off, but to no avail. How much he had changed! The old Duke would have never laid a finger on her.
"Said nothing? How much of an idiot do you think I am? Don't mess with me. You can keep refuting it. But you'll be clearing your desk soon. And believe me, you'll never be able to find another job again. So, think wisely." Duke's hand held her jaw more tightly. Rachel started to sweat with pain. Her face went pale.
"Okay, okay. I'll tell you. Let go of me first." Rachel was scared. Duke used to be so gentle. He had never even raised his voice to her when they were together. Yet since she came back, Duke had yelled at her and now he was being violent with her.
"This better not be a trick. You wouldn't want to provoke me." Duke withdrew his hand. Rachel's sorry expression aroused no mercy in him at all. He could be very ruthless if need be.
"I just wanted her to leave you. So I offered her 50 million dollars, but she told me that was too little money. She wanted the Leng Group. These were her words. I swear," Rachel said with trembling lips and took a few steps back in fright, looking at him warily.
"You wretched woman, how dare you insult her with your dirty money? That's what I'm worth to you, 50 million dollars?" Duke found he was quite dirt cheap in Rachel's eyes. Fortunately, Belinda hadn't taken the money and left him. Otherwise, he would have personally strangled Rachel.
"No, that's not what I meant. I just didn't want to lose you. I thought that woman would take the 50 million and go away! Instead, she told me she wanted the Leng Group for herself. I didn't expect her to be so greedy." Clearly, Rachel wasn't as smart as she thought herself to be. She didn't sense the ridicule in Duke's words.
"Right, you don't want to lose me. But have you wondered if I will accept you? You want to come back to me by bribing my bride-to-be 50 million dollars! Do you really regard yourself that highly? Or, is it that you think I am stupid enough to welcome back a divorced woman in my arms, who previously hurt me? Why the hell would you think that's even possible?"
Duke questioned her sardonically. Even if she hadn't been married once and gotten divorced, he wouldn't ever take back a woman who had left him years ago without a second thought.
"You loved me! Have you forgotten? Are you doing all this to get back at me?" Rachel was afraid but she didn't want to give up yet. She brought up the past again, hoping it would turn the tide in her favor.
"Loved you? Hah! You think you are all that? You believe you are worthy of me? I'm warning you, don't bother hatching your little plots anymore. You are lesser than a stranger to me. Try any tricks again, and you are dead. Understood?" Rachel had brought this on herself with her overconfidence. Looking at her, Duke only felt repulsion and ire. Her pale face and sorrowful eyes didn't trigger any other emotions in him.
"Why are you doing this? I love you so much. You know that, don't you? You are so cruel to me. I know I hurt you in the past, but I explained myself to you. I had no other choice. If I had a family as rich as yours, I wouldn't have married a man I didn't love just for the sake of his money." Rachel felt regretful and blamed herself for having been tempted by wealth. It was her who should be Duke's wife, not the arrogant Belinda. But bygones were bygones, and regrets didn't mean anything now.
"You never loved me. Even today, you only love the money. Don't speak of love again. It's an insult when it comes from your mouth." Duke secretly felt blessed that Rachel had left him. He would have destroyed his life if he had married her.
"So I am the shallow one, is it? But who isn't? These days all relationships are based on money. There's no perfect love anymore in this world. Wake up! Every woman with you is out to get your money." Rachel didn't understand what was wrong if she had an appreciation for the rich. Why was she so evil in Duke's eyes just because she valued wealth? Wasn't Belinda the same? Didn't she love his money as much as Rachel did? So why didn't Duke hate her?