"Fair enough." Damon Coleman opened his PayPal, "Send your paynt request, I’ll settle it. I’m done playing."
Ariana managed to muster up a small smile, opened up her PayPal.
After Damon had paid, he stood up and left to smoke outside the living room.
Mitch had been silently observing from the sidelines. His expression was unreadable, but when Ariana glanced at him, he quickly averted his gaze and retreated to the kitchen.
For Luna’s happiness, I ultimately found myself stepping outside to find Damon, who was out in the patio smoking.
He was wearing a simple black t-shirt, revealing the toned muscles of his arms. It was just right, not too skinny, not too muscular. It seed his smoking habit was growing, as he was often seen with a cigarette in his hands.
Upon seeing , Damon raised an eyebrow before stepping away.
I approached him once more.
"Don’t you dislike the sll of smoke?" he questioned, surprised to see seeking him out. His eyes were focused on , reflecting the slight irritation on my face.
I didn’t respond to his question but instead asked, "Tell , do you know what’s going on between Mitch and Ariana?"
At the ntion of their nas, a aningful look crossed Damon’s face. He glanced back towards the living room and snuffed out his cigarette beneath his shoe, "I have a hunch, what about it?"
"How far have things gone between them?" I pressed.
"All I said was that I sensed sothing was off, how would I know how far they’ve taken things?" Damon looked at , slightly exasperated, "Eliana Brooks, take it easy."
I was naturally frantic, considering this matter affected Luna’s marital happiness, and my tone wasn’t the kindest.
Damon’s reminder brought back to my senses.
"I’m sorry, I’m just a bit on edge." I slightly adjusted my tone, "Since Mitch is currently partnering with you and you spend quite a bit of ti together, I thought I’d ask you."
Damon gave a small laugh with a slightly devilish look in his eyes.
Despite being a man in his thirties, there wasn’t a wrinkle on his face. Instead, his age seed to have added a mature and composed air to his already exceptional character, making him even more charming.
Catherine had to be careful, as it seed that Damon was even more attractive e to Ariana than Mitch was.
At the sa ti, I felt a sense of relief. Thank goodness this kind of man was no longer my husband, or else I’d have to be on guard against all sorts of other won for the rest of my life. During my past life, I wasn’t able to fend off Ariel, and in this life, I couldn’t fend off Catherine. It seems I’m destined to be single.
"Most of my interactions with him are solely work-related, we haven’t t up much privately recently." As my tone softened, so did Damon’s.
"How did you sense that sothing was off between Mitch and Ariana?" I asked, furrowing my brows.
Damon answered, "At one of the executive gatherings, Ariana shouldn’t have been there, but Mitch invited her. Also, so job promotions and demptions reveal that he treats Ariana differently."
Hearing this made my blood boil.
Apparently, it wasn’t just the insinuations in the chat history between Luna and Mitch. Mitch seed to be giving Ariana special treatnt.
I cald myself down and asked, "What’s Ariana’s educational background? Which company did she work for before?"
Damon looked at with a half-smile, "Curious?"
Of course, I was curious. If Ariana was genuinely competent, then I could understand Mitch’s actions. But if she wasn’t, then Mitch’s actions would indicate an inappropriate relationship
"Yes, do you know?" I admitted openly.
"I don’t." Damon’s response was curt, his face expressing disinterest, "I’m partnering with Mitch, but our companies aren’t rged. We each manage our people. I have no interest in Ariana’s background."
I had nothing to say to this, as it was a reasonable point.
So, I’ll have to investigate Ariana myself and get to the bottom of this.
Just as I was pondering my next steps, Damon spoke up again, "I could pull up her resu for you if you want my help?"
"Can you?" I was definitely in need.
If Damon could help access Ariana’s information, it would save a lot of ti and help figure out if Mitch was indeed in the wrong.
"I can. But as you know, I’m a businessman. I believe in quid pro quo." Damon’s gaze pinned down, "What do you say?"
"State your terms first," I asked directly.
"I haven’t decided yet." Damon shrugged after a mont of thought.
"Then, forget it." I imdiately rejected his offer.
Although I wanted to help Luna, Damon wasn’t exactly the most trustworthy person. I didn’t want to fall into his trap and invite Catherine’s wrath, causing trouble for myself.
Seeing my refusal, Damon quickly moved to stop , "I promise it won’t be anything you can’t handle."
"Really?" I was skeptical.
"Yes. You should know that our companies keep employee information confidential to prevent poaching by competitors. So if you were to investigate on your own, it would be quite difficult. By the ti you get what you need, it might already be too late." Damon kindly reminded .
I wasn’t entirely aware of this, but Damon probably wasn’t lying.
So companies do encrypt employee data, especially for key positions.
But was Ariana worthy of such asures?
She wasn’t, but Mitch, being the fool he was, might just do sothing like that.
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. Any injustice Luna suffered felt like an Injustice to , and I couldn’t stand for it.
"I have two conditions: first, it can’t involve my two children, and second, it can’t require to do anything that goes against my conscience." Right now, all I wanted was to figure out Ariana’s background as soon as possible and co up with a counter strategy for Luna.
"What do you consider being against your conscience?" Damon seed a little confused..
"Anything that crosses the line between a man and a woman, or anything illegal," I answered solemnly.
Damon paused for a mont, a low chuckle emanating from his throat. "You think I’m still hung up on you, don’t you? That I’d use so scandal to make you fall into my arms?"
I didn’t respond because I was sowhat worried about that. If I admitted it, I’d sound too vain.
Damon’s smile deepened, followed by a sigh, "Eliana, when did you get so self-assured? I’m not so far gone that I’d resort to such a pathetic tactic."
"You wouldn’t be the first ti you’ve used such tactics on , Damon. You seem to overestimate your own sense of morality," I retorted icily.
Damon’s smile gradually faded, his gaze showing a hint of complexity. Then he nodded, "Yes, I admit I had been out of line in the past."
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