Chapter 78

They had just arrived at the private room and hadn't even taken their seats when people started trickling in.

Ethan greeted everyone with practiced ease.

"Is everyone here?" someone asked.

"The guest of honor hasn't arrived yet," Ethan replied with a smile.

As he spoke, the door opened, and a figure walked in briskly.

When Christina saw who it was, she was stunned.

Wasn't that William? How was it that she kept running into him everywhere? What bad luck.

But clearly, in this setting, neither of them showed any sign of knowing each other. She just followed behind Ethan and greeted everyone.

It seemed like Ethan and William were quite familiar with each other. Ethan casually slung an arm around William's shoulder. "Come on, everyone's been waiting for you. Have a seat."

"Pour the drinks," someone called out as they all sat down.

Ethan introduced her with a smile, "Let me introduce you. This is Christina, one of Kelvin's students. She's handling the project we're working on. She's quite capable."

"Is that so?" William glanced at her.

Christina stood up and poured drinks for everyone.

"I hope you all can look out for me. I'm the least experienced among Kelvin's students, so I appreciate your trust. This drink is for all of you."

With that, she downed her drink in one go.

Her sincerity was clear, making the rest of the evening easier to handle.

In front of everyone, William didn't give her any face. Instead, he took out a cigarette but didn't light it.

Ethan called out, "The lighter's right in front of you. Light his cigarette."

Christina knew he was deliberately targeting her. She took a deep breath, suppressing her frustration. For the sake of her job and career, she picked up the lighter and walked over.

As she lit the flame, William took a deep drag.

In the swirling smoke, his expression was unreadable.

He casually flicked the ash, and it seemed to drift intentionally towards Christina's chest.

Startled, Christina quickly patted it out, but her shirt was still singed with a small black mark.

"Sorry, I didn't notice," William said nonchalantly.

His tone made it hard to believe it wasn't intentional.

Christina suppressed her anger and smiled faintly. "It's fine. I'll go clean up."

William was really too much! But the deal was almost closed, and she didn't want to jeopardize it because of her own issues. She couldn't face Kelvin if she messed this up.

Once outside, she finally felt like she could breathe again.

Ethan sensed something off between them and raised an eyebrow. "Do you two know each other?"

"No," William replied coolly.

Ethan didn't press further and lifted his glass. "Come on, let's drink. It's rare for us to get together. Let's not leave until we're drunk."

William put down his glass and stood up. "I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" Ethan asked.

But William didn't answer and left the room.

Christina splashed some water on her face and grabbed a tissue to clean the brown stain on her shirt. Though it wasn't burned through, the mark was quite noticeable on the white fabric.

She took a deep breath to calm herself. Just as she was about to leave, she saw William in the mirror.

William closed the door behind him and, before she could react, pinned her against the sink.

"What the hell are you doing?" Christina looked up at him coldly.

William's eyes were probing, dark and deep.

"Isn't it a coincidence that you keep showing up around me, Christina? What are you after?"

"You're overthinking it," Christina glanced at him. "Ethan is my client. How was I supposed to know you two knew each other?"

"You didn't know?" William's eyes filled with anger. "Is it really that coincidental?"

Christina rolled her eyes.

If she had known he would be at this gathering, she would have found any excuse to avoid it.

In her previous life, the distance between her and William was like a galaxy. She had no idea who was in his circle.

"Believe what you want. I don't owe you an explanation. Let go of me!"

Christina struggled.

William was much stronger, and she was no match for him.

"What do you want, William?"

She stomped on his foot and even tried to scratch his face.

William just looked at her coldly.

"If you want people to know we have a connection, go ahead."

Christina's hand froze in mid-air.

She couldn't believe how unreasonable William was. He pushed her away, but when she left, he kept coming after her.

Just then, Ethan's voice came from outside.

"William, are you in the restroom?"

The men's restroom was right next door.

If they both came out of the women's restroom, it would definitely raise questions.

Christina glared at him. "I'll go deal with him."

William watched her with amusement, as if he didn't care.

Seeing he wasn't going to stop her, Christina breathed a sigh of relief, opened the door, and quickly walked out. "Mr. Fisher, I didn't hear anyone come in."

"Let's head back to the room," Ethan said, not suspecting a thing.

After they returned to the room, William came back too. Ethan asked where he had been, but William just drank his wine without answering.

The dinner ended quickly.

As they left, William glanced at her. "Get in the car. I'll give you a ride."

Christina frowned. She didn't want to be associated with him at all. "No need. It's out of your way. I need to go back to school."

She didn't have to go back to school that night, but she didn't want to share a car with William. Plus, she needed to pick up something important.

William didn't argue, just ordered coldly, "Get in the car. Don't make me repeat myself."

Seeing his attitude, Christina didn't want to argue in public. She opened the back door and got in.

William didn't start the car, just glared at her. "Do you think I'm your chauffeur?"

Christina took a deep breath, suppressing her anger, and moved to the front seat.

With graduation approaching, the dorm was almost empty. She quickly found the brooch her father had left her, something very important to her.

William waited downstairs. Just as she reached for the door handle, Missy appeared.

"You're back at school today? Why didn't you say anything?"