Free Web NovelChapter 53: Chapter 53 The Trap Waiting in South Province
The art gallery was bustling with people.
After Ryan completed the purchase, he headed downstairs.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Rose ran after him.
“Ryan, wait.”
Even in her high heels, walking as fast as she could, she barely managed to keep up with his pace.
Ryan stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned around.
A car had already pulled up in front of him, and Owen stepped out to open the door.
Rose didn’t see Samantha anywhere, but she didn’t have time to worry about that. She fixed her gaze on Ryan’s deep, piercing eyes.
“That antique belongs to the Bennett family. It was my grandmother’s heirloom.”
“Hmm. So?”
Ryan’s expression remained completely impassive.
She could tell he saw nothing wrong with giving her grandmother’s heirloom to Samantha.
That sense of entitlement pierced Rose’s heart like a dagger.
For a moment, she wanted to argue with him, to demand an explanation. But Ryan’s cold, penetrating gaze served as a sharp reminder to stay composed.
“Anything else is fine. Even if you wanted to pluck the stars and moon from the sky for Samantha, it would have nothing to do with me. But when it comes to something that belongs to the Bennett family, I simply can’t accept it.”
She took a deep breath, trying to soften her tone.
“Ryan, I’ve never asked you for anything before, but this time...”
Going head-to-head with Ryan was clearly irrational.
In front of a man who didn’t love her, how could she possibly get her way by throwing a tantrum or making threats?
Ryan had rarely seen Rose like this.
Her hands hung stiffly at her sides, her fingernails unconsciously digging into her fingertips until the skin turned white.
It was a habit she only had when she was nervous or emotionally overwhelmed.
He simply watched her expression and replied in a calm, measured tone.
“That would require Samantha’s consent. Once the item has been given to her, it belongs to her.”
Rose’s resolve crumbled instantly.
It felt as though shards of ice had been forced down her throat.
The cold seeped deep into her bones.
So she was supposed to beg Samantha?
The Bennett family’s heirloom belonged to her family, yet she would have to rely on Samantha’s charity to get it back?
Rose could barely recognize the man standing before her.
They had once promised to live a peaceful life together.
Ryan had once looked after her.
What had caused him to change so completely?
Ryan didn’t wait for a response.
He turned and got into the car.
Rose instinctively took two steps forward to follow him.
But before she could decide what to do next, a cold voice sounded behind her.
“Move aside. That’s my seat.”
Rose turned around.
Samantha had appeared out of nowhere.
Rose looked at her with an icy stare.
Samantha merely glanced at her before walking past and taking the seat beside Ryan.
Confident.
Arrogant.
As though that seat belonged exclusively to her.
The car pulled away.
When Caleb and Jordan emerged from the gallery, they witnessed the latter part of the scene.
Caleb immediately hurried over.
“Rose? What were you talking to Ryan about?”
Rose looked up at the dazzling yet icy sunlight and smiled bitterly.
“Nothing much. Just got hit with another round of their lovey-dovey nonsense. Not exactly easy to swallow.”
In truth, Ryan had taught her another lesson.
She had meekly handed over even her husband to Samantha.
That family heirloom was merely an object.
How could she possibly compete with her?
A headache began to form.
She turned to Caleb apologetically.
“I think I’m going to head home. I probably won’t make it to tonight’s networking event.”
Caleb frowned.
“What could be more important than that? I’ll drive you home.”
As he spoke, he glanced at Jordan.
“Mr. Dutch, let’s get together another time.”
Jordan nodded.
“Of course.”
The two got into the car and drove away.
Jordan’s expression grew complicated.
He hadn’t expected Rose to be so desperate to please Ryan.
Even after being rejected, she had chased after him, only to be caught red-handed by the woman Ryan truly loved.
And if he hadn’t misread the situation, Rose had even glared at Samantha.
How could a woman trying to come between a couple act so brazenly?
Fortunately, Samantha was kind-hearted enough not to make a scene.
Otherwise, given Samantha’s online influence, Rose would have been cyberbullied until she couldn’t show her face in public.
Perhaps he really had fallen for Rose at first sight.
But now...
He would never allow himself to be seduced by this woman.
*****
Upon returning to G.S., Rose immediately immersed herself in laboratory work, conducting pharmacological analyses.
She was doing everything possible to keep her mind occupied.
Now that the joint laboratory with Columbia University had been established, she was serving as the lead researcher responsible for overseeing the project’s overall direction.
The responsibility was immense.
She had to supervise drug development, monitor progress, manage project risks, coordinate clinical trials, and oversee regulatory affairs.
The workload was enough to keep her so busy that she barely had time to let Ryan’s affairs affect her mood.
Ever since she declined Ryan’s invitation to spend the New Year in South Province with the Knight family, he had not contacted her again.
Meanwhile, Rose had been constantly thinking about how to recover her grandmother’s heirloom.
As the New Year approached, companies gradually began shutting down for the holiday.
Rose had originally planned to spend the holiday at Nathan’s home.
Then Caleb suddenly approached her.
“Would you be willing to go on a business trip over the New Year holiday?”
Rose paused.
“What’s it about?”
“A major pharmaceutical research institute is auctioning off a number of rare compounds next week,” he said. “Several of them are critical to projects we’re working on, and Columbia’s research team is interested in them as well. Opportunities like this don’t come around often.”
The timing happened to coincide with the New Year holiday.
Rose thought for a moment.
“Sure. But will the rest of the team be willing to go?”
At that, Caleb’s lips twitched.
“How could they not be? Our generous sponsor is pulling out all the stops. Ryan is covering everything—chartered flights, meals, accommodations—the works. He’s even offering an additional one hundred thousand dollars in holiday overtime pay per person. Everyone’s thrilled.”
Rose instantly understood.
It was all for the sake of ensuring the successful registration of Samantha’s first drug-development project at Columbia University.
They were truly going all out.
She shrugged. “Well, that certainly saves us some budget.”
“You’re surprisingly calm about it,” Caleb sighed.
Rose replied with a straight face, “If I weren’t, I’d probably have run to the Kingswell Group headquarters and jumped off the roof by now. At least that would give their stock price a serious hit.”
Caleb was speechless.
Only Rose could make jokes about something so depressing.
After saying goodbye to Nathan and everyone at the nursing home, Rose packed her luggage and headed to the airport.
Only after arriving did she discover the destination of the business trip:
South Province.
The same place where the Knight family was spending the holidays.
A faint sense of unease crept into her heart.
What a coincidence.
But South Province was enormous.
Shaking her head, she decided not to dwell on it.
The company had booked rooms at the most luxurious hotel available.
By the time the G.S. team and nearly thirty members from Columbia University arrived, it was already past ten o’clock at night.
They checked into a five-star resort hotel overlooking snow-capped mountains.
The resort featured natural hot springs and every luxury amenity imaginable.
Without Ryan’s sponsorship, they never would have received treatment like this.
After checking everyone in and seeing their luggage delivered, Rose finally made her way to her own room.
The moment she stepped inside, she froze.
The suite was nearly two hundred square meters.
For a moment, she wondered whether the hotel had accidentally upgraded her room.
Planning to ask about it, she headed for the door.
Just as she opened it—
“Rose, you’ve just arrived?”
Margaret stood outside, smiling warmly.
Beside her stood Ryan, his expression calm and unreadable.
Rose instantly realized something.
Her gaze locked onto Ryan.
Ryan met her stare without the slightest sign of guilt.
Margaret stepped forward and took Rose’s hand.
“Have you settled in? It’s getting late. Let’s have dinner together tomorrow. You two should get some rest tonight.”
She gave Ryan a meaningful nudge.
Ryan replied calmly, “All right. Whatever you say.”
Margaret smiled happily and walked away.
Ryan strode past Rose and entered the suite as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
Only then did Rose fully understand.
She had been completely outmaneuvered.
“Did you deliberately lure me here?” she demanded.
