Mated to my sister’s ugly mate

Alpha Kilian’s voice rumbled as he slowly rose to his feet, fixing his cold gaze on George. “You’re old. Don’t meddle in my affairs again.”

The subtext was clear. George had best stay out of his way.

Despite his wisdom, George was still angry enough to hurl something. But he managed to rein in his emotions, with Owen treating him to a glass of water. “Sir, have a drink. Young Master will understand your hard work and effort in the future.”

George sighed. “I hope so.”

Alpha Kilian stepped outside the tea house, taking out his phone to call Shadow. But then he thought better of it, slipping it back into his pocket. He was curious to observe how Shadow would handle this situation.

…

Shadow was almost caught off guard.

As she entered the office, she felt everyone’s eyes fall on her, their glances laden with strange undercurrents.

Shadow retrieved her phone in alarm, giving herself a quick look-over in case she had any visible flaws or marks. Yet, on her features, there was no trace of grime or anything unusual!

One of her female colleagues across from her must have noticed her faux pas and graciously tipped her to check her phone.

Reading entertainment news was a habit that Shadow had when she woke up in the morning. She had overslept a little today, so she skipped it. But it turned out that the headlines of the entertainment section were all related to her.

When she tapped in, she found a photo of herself and “Alpha Dominic” outside the restaurant from the night before.

Shadow soon regained her composure after her initial shock.

“Alpha Dominic” was arrogant and wild. It was only a matter of time before someone caught him in the act.

She had done nothing wrong and wasn’t afraid of being gossiped about. But what if the Lances family or Alpha Kilian himself saw the news?

Just then, Jason called her over. “Come to my office.”

Upon arriving, Shadow found that Jessica had taken quite the beating yesterday, her face still swollen. Consequently, the latter wasn’t in today.

As soon as Jason caught sight of her, his expression twisted in an unpleasant sneer as he demanded, “What’s this about you and Alpha Dominic?”Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

Shadow curled her lips, her tone indifferent. “Nothing.”

“Nothing?” Jason scoffed, placing a photo of her and Alpha Dominic on his desk.

Shadow leaned forward, resting her palms on the surface as her lips curved upwards. Her expression became more and more charming, her speech languid and leisurely. “You should ask Jessica that question. She took the photo, so she would know best.”

En route to Jason’s office, Shadow had weighed the matter very carefully. Aside from Jessica, who would have the guts to take such photos and send them to the media? It was easy to ascertain that not many people dared to cross the Lances family.

Moreover, few knew her and “Alpha Dominic” together.

“Shadow, when did you start to become so cold?” Jason seethed, shooting out of his chair.

Shadow took a step back, a glint of frost in her eyes. Her smile grew even more radiant. “Whether or not I’ll help you out with what we discussed yesterday depends on how you handle this situation.”

Jason had asked her to persuade Alpha Kilian into investing in the Eden Group, and she was still mulling it over. But now, with Jason’s words, she had become determined to go through with it.

Jessica deserved what came her way, but Jason had pretended that nothing of the sort had happened. He hadn’t even apologized to her properly.

And of course, Shadow wouldn’t help him.

However, deception was a standard tactic in warfare. Let’s see who came out on top and laughed last.

Even if they shared the same blood, once the emotional bond had been severed, they no longer needed to be cautious and leave room for one another.

All day long, Shadow heard people discussing this matter wherever she went. But she didn’t care. Those people didn’t have the guts to approach her no matter how much they wanted to.

It wasn’t until after work that the scandal on her and “Alpha Dominic” from earlier was taken down from the Internet. But people still talked about it incessantly on various forums and Tieba boards.

Hazel even phoned her. “Will you take me to the trending searches with you the next time you go? With your beauty and popularity, I’m sure you can make your debut after going a few more times!”

Shadow didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Do you think I’m willing to use that tactic?”

But then, Hazel got serious. “I saw the photo you know. Even though a swarm of people are saying the picture was taken from a high angle and that the contents of the photo aren’t true, I’m a seasoned pro and I know that the photo is real. I’ve long suspected that ‘Alpha Dominic’ had a thing for you. Are you guys really together?”

“No, absolutely not!” Shadow refuted vehemently. “Hurry up and wrap up filming so you can come back. I have to head out now. Bye.”

After hanging up, Shadow heaved a sigh of relief. She gathered her belongings and clocked out after work.

But the moment she stepped out of the main entrance, an abundance of reporters appeared out of thin air.

“Miss Eden, is it true that you’re involved with both your husband and cousin?”

“Besides your cousin, are there other men in your life?”

Shadow was taken aback.

Fortunately, she acted quickly, throwing on a mask to disguise herself. Eyeing the crowds, she said icily, “Those are all unsubstantiated rumors. I have nothing more to say. I’m not a member of the entertainment industry, so I don’t have any obligation to respond.”

A reporter caught on to Shadow’s crucial words. “Miss Eden, did you just say ‘not yet a member of the entertainment industry’? Does that mean that you plan on debuting as a celebrity in the future?”

Others jumped in as well. “It’s been said that for personal reasons, your husband may not be able to inherit the Lances Group, so you went into the entertainment industry to secure your place?”

“You’ve been involved in trending searches before. Was it for publicity?”

Shadow had no words.

Surrounded by reporters, she couldn’t break free.

Suddenly, shuffling footsteps sounded nearby, and a group of security guards appeared. They drove the reporters away, creating an opening for Shadow to escape.

Before she could grasp what was happening, Henry materialized, grasping her wrist and striding towards the parking lot.

But when Shadow remembered that his filthy hands had touched Jessica inappropriately earlier on, she pulled away from him with contempt.

Henry stood there for a moment, flabbergasted, before saying patiently, “Shadow, those journalists will catch up with us any moment now. You should get in the car first. I’ll take you away from here.”

Shadow hesitated, but ultimately decided to follow him inside the car.

She couldn’t underestimate the power of entertainment reporters. It was best to leave the scene quickly and think about what to do next.