Love at First Sight? Mr. Harrison Has Been Scheming All Along-Chapter 49: "I will keep my distance from all women other than you.

Chapter 49: Chapter 49: "I will keep my distance from all women other than you.

"Mr. Harrison," Rory Linden said quickly. "Since I gave you my word, it stands—whether I was drunk or sober. I agree."

Her tone was sincere and forthright.

Surprisingly, this made Sean Harrison feel a pang of guilt.

"You don’t have to answer me so quickly. Think it over. You can bring up any conditions you have, be it financial or otherwise. Afterward, I’ll have my lawyer draft a formal agreement to protect your interests."

Sean Harrison’s tone was calm.

Rory Linden thought for a moment before asking, "What does pretending to be your fiancée entail?"

"You’ll need to continue living here with me, as you are now. I might occasionally pick you up from work, and there will be some events you’ll need to attend with me."

"Okay."

As far as Rory Linden was concerned, that was no different from her current life.

"My mother is a shrewd woman; she’s not easily fooled. She could have people watching me at any time, so when we’re together, you’ll have to act a little more intimate."

Sean Harrison wasn’t just saying that for effect.

He knew his mother, Charlotte Rhodes, better than anyone.

Planting people around him was exactly the kind of thing she would do.

For instance, one of the secretaries in a minor role in the CEO’s office was one of Charlotte Rhodes’s people—someone he had deliberately instructed the HR department to let through.

"’A little more intimate’ means..."

Before Rory Linden could finish, the man’s large hand covered the right hand resting on her lap.

The man said, "Like this."

The tips of Rory Linden’s ears instantly turned red, and she nervously pulled her hand back. "I understand. I’ll do my best when we’re in public..."

’They weren’t a real couple. Even if they were pretending, there had to be boundaries.’

’Otherwise...’

’She really wouldn’t be able to control her own heart.’

Sean Harrison asked, "And you? What do you require of me?"

"First, I want the matter with Gary Sinclair resolved as soon as possible, and I want him to go to jail." Rory Linden lowered her gaze to the hand he had just held and continued, "Also... I hope you’ll be mindful of your personal life, Mr. Harrison."

"Hm?"

"It’s just... we are living together, after all. If you’re going to have relations with other women, please take precautions. To say nothing of diseases like HIV, even syphilis can be a lifelong condition. It’s not good for your health."

Rory Linden didn’t know why this had suddenly occurred to her.

After what happened last night, she had a faint feeling that...

...at some point, her fake relationship with Sean Harrison might just cross a line.

"Alright. I will keep my distance from all women other than you." Sean Harrison paused, then asked, "And in return, is it too much to ask that the same condition apply to you?"

"No, that’s not too much. I will."

Rory Linden agreed without a moment’s hesitation.

’Her social circle was too small.’

’It wasn’t like she had any close male friends to begin with.’

The car stopped at the entrance of Elysian Hospital.

Rory Linden was working in the outpatient clinic that morning, and she spent the entire time in her consultation room.

When her morning shift ended, a few colleagues invited her to lunch at the cafeteria.

Just as she stepped out of the outpatient building, she saw Evelyn Irving standing by the entrance.

When she saw Rory Linden, she quickly waved her over.

Regardless of anything else, Evelyn Irving had always been good to her over the years. Rory Linden excused herself from her colleagues and walked over to Evelyn.

"Rory, this is for you." Evelyn Irving took a jewelry box from her bag. "Miles told me you gave him money. I know you wouldn’t accept it if I paid you back, and over the years, you’ve been like a daughter to me. Just think of this as a gift."

"Auntie Irving, you don’t have to. I told you, the Harrington Family doesn’t owe me anything. Since I’m able to pay it back, it’s only right that I do."

Rory Linden pushed the jewelry box away.

’She couldn’t accept it.’

Evelyn Irving made no move to take the box back. "Rory, I know you received a thirty-million-dollar watch from Sean, so you probably look down on these cheap things of mine. It’s true our family’s fortune can’t compare to Sean Harrison’s..."

"What thirty-million-dollar watch?"

Rory Linden was baffled.

Her first thought was that Evelyn Irving must have heard a rumor and gotten things wrong.

’How could she possibly accept a thirty-million-dollar watch from someone!’

"The watch on your wrist last night was an antique Patek Philippe. It sold at auction a few years ago for thirty-three million," Evelyn Irving said, then asked tentatively, "You didn’t know?"

?!

Rory Linden was utterly shocked. "The watch I wore yesterday? Thirty-three... million?"

’Forget thirty million.’

’To her mind, even a thirty-thousand or three-hundred-thousand-dollar watch should be so exquisitely crafted that it would be recognizable at a glance.’

’But the watch from yesterday had looked rather unassuming.’

’How could it be worth thirty million?!’

"Yes. But it’s not surprising that Sean would let you wear such a valuable watch. After all, with your face and your general air, you must be just his type."

As she spoke, Evelyn Irving looked Rory Linden up and down.

Rory Linden asked, "What do you mean?"

Evelyn Irving said, "When Sean was in school, he knew a woman named Nadia Willow. She was about a year or two older than him. Has he ever mentioned her to you?"

Rory Linden shook her head.

’But she had a good guess.’

’Nadia Willow. That must be the Miss Willow that Evelyn Irving had mentioned before.’

"Sean and Miss Willow met while studying abroad. My mother-in-law—his mother, Charlotte Rhodes—and my father-in-law were a second marriage for both of them. At the time, the Rhodes Family was in decline, and Charlotte Rhodes was looked down upon by everyone. She went through a period where she was acting particularly erratically and didn’t treat Sean well. I heard that he even attempted suicide several times when he was in middle school."

Rory Linden already knew everything Evelyn Irving was saying.

But she remained silent.

"Later, Sean’s condition gradually improved, and it was because of Miss Willow. We outsiders don’t know the specifics of what happened between them. We only know that when Nadia Willow got married, Sean sent a wedding gift of immense value. After that, he never had another woman get close to him."

Evelyn Irving clearly only knew bits and pieces of the story.

’But even those bits and pieces were enough to form a complete picture.’

Evelyn Irving took a photograph from her bag and handed it to Rory Linden. "Look, this is a picture of Nadia Willow."

Rory Linden didn’t take it.

The woman in the photograph wore an elegant qipao, and her features were at least forty or fifty percent similar to Rory’s.

Evelyn Irving carefully watched Rory Linden’s expression. "Nadia Willow’s father is a diplomat, and her mother is a university professor. She’s an exceptional woman herself. Even though she grew up abroad, she loves Celestrian culture and always likes to wear qipaos to formal events. And that watch you wore yesterday? That’s her favorite brand, too."

The woman’s voice wasn’t loud, but her words hit like the August midday sun beating down on the earth.

Every single word found its way into Rory Linden’s ears, unimpeded.

’No wonder... ’

Rory Linden suddenly felt that all of the man’s actions over the past few days made perfect sense.

’There was no sudden, inexplicable affection at all.’

’It was just because she had this face...’