Chapter 643: Can’t Hold Back

"Oh!"

"Zina!"

Vivian Sterling, who had been sitting on the sofa glaring at her phone and silently cursing a certain someone, hurriedly scrambled to her feet when she noticed the woman approaching.

Unfortunately, it was already too late.

"Vivian, what’s going on?"

Zina walked toward her with an amused smile, having clearly heard everything from the doorway. "Despicable? Scoundrel? I heard every word."

"N-no..."

Vivian’s expression immediately became awkward. "It’s nothing."

She hurried over as though she could somehow erase the entire scene by pretending it hadn’t happened, but Zina merely took her hand and guided her back toward the sofa. Once they were both seated, Zina looked at her curiously.

"Vivian, I thought I heard the name Marcus. Who is he?"

Marcus was unmistakably a man’s name, and judging from Vivian’s reaction, he was apparently a man capable of driving her to the point of openly cursing in her own office.

Zina had known Vivian for years, and she had never seen her behave like this.

She couldn’t help becoming curious.

Then, suddenly, something clicked.

"Oh!"

Zina’s eyes widened slightly. "Wait. Vivian, is this the same Marcus who signed that strange contract with you?"

She remembered the contract very clearly. She had personally helped draft it more than ten days ago, and although Vivian had never explained exactly who Marcus was, the unusual terms had left enough of an impression for the name to stick in her mind.

"Zina!"

Vivian’s face flushed with embarrassment.

She had been caught red-handed, and there was no point pretending otherwise. Looking at the woman she trusted and admired most, Vivian finally couldn’t hold everything inside anymore.

"Zina, it’s him." She took a breath, then continued with increasing frustration. "The new collection launches in seven days. I called him because I wanted him to handle the advertising and promotion, but he just kept talking nonsense and telling me he didn’t have time."

Her voice tightened.

"At a critical moment like this, he won’t even lift a finger to help me!"

The frustration that had been building inside her finally spilled over. Her eyes became misty, and before she could stop herself, tears began to gather at the corners.

For Vivian, it wasn’t only about Marcus.

The moment she finally let her guard down, everything she’d been holding inside seemed to come rushing back at once. The family’s rigid arrangements, the resentment she had never been able to voice, and the pressure she’d endured for the past two years all seemed to weigh on her at the same time.

She leaned against Zina’s arm, her shoulders trembling slightly as she finally allowed herself to cry.

"Zina..." Her voice was quiet and exhausted. "I’m so tired."

Zina’s expression softened.

"I don’t want to follow the family’s plans anymore," Vivian whispered. "I’d rather never marry than spend the rest of my life with a man I don’t love."

"Vivian."

Zina gently wrapped her arms around her.

She understood. Of course she understood.

Three years ago, she had faced much the same situation herself. She had managed to escape, but only temporarily, and even now she didn’t possess enough influence within the family to completely free Vivian from the same kind of pressure.

They had both been born into families that ordinary people could only envy, surrounded by wealth, status, and opportunities that others could never imagine. Yet those privileges came with chains of their own.

They had money, but not complete freedom.

They had status, but not the right to choose every part of their own lives.

And when it came to marriage, the choice could be taken out of their hands entirely.

What they wanted was actually very simple. They wanted to live according to their own wishes, choose their own paths, and, if they ever married, choose someone they genuinely loved rather than being handed a name and told to accept it.

Even if that person hadn’t appeared yet, neither of them wanted to surrender that choice.

"Marcus..."

Zina quietly repeated the name in her mind.

Who exactly is this man?

Vivian had always been proud and independent. She had turned down countless men without giving them a second thought, yet this Marcus had somehow managed to become someone she cared about, someone she was willing to rely on.

’Could it be...’

Zina’s expression became thoughtful.

She immediately remembered the family’s demands and the older generation’s stubborn adherence to traditions that had been passed down for generations. Those rules were treated almost like sacred law, and anyone who challenged them was expected to pay a price.

Zina couldn’t help worrying about Vivian. Her gaze shifted toward the desk.

"Marcus!"

A report sitting there caught her attention.

Zina walked over and picked it up. A photograph of a sharp-looking young man was attached to the file.

It was Marcus’s profile.

"Ah!"

She quickly scanned the information inside, and genuine surprise flashed across her face.

His numbers were extraordinary.

Even Zina, who had seen plenty of talented people in her time, couldn’t help being impressed by what she was reading.

So that was why Vivian had been willing to sign such an unusual contract.

"Marcus..."

Curiosity flickered in Zina’s eyes.

But when she continued reading and reached his background, her expression changed.

The surprise faded. Her heart sank slightly.

She glanced back at Vivian, who was still quietly crying beside her, and suddenly felt that this might be more complicated than she’d initially thought.

Ring... Ring...

Vivian’s phone suddenly began to ring.

She didn’t move.

Still leaning against Zina, she simply closed her eyes as though she couldn’t be bothered to deal with anything else at that moment.

Zina gently nudged her.

"Vivian, your phone."

"Don’t want to answer."

"The collection launches soon. It could be important."

Zina recognized the number. It belonged to one of Vivian’s important clients or acquaintances, someone who could potentially be calling about the upcoming launch.

She reached out and picked up the phone. Then her eyes widened.

"Vivian."

She turned the screen toward her.

"It’s Marcus."

"Him!"

Vivian immediately stiffened.

Yet despite her surprise, she still didn’t move from Zina’s side.

"Don’t answer."

Zina glanced at the phone, then thought about what she had just learned from Marcus’s file. After a moment’s hesitation, she rejected the call.

Several seconds later...

Ring... Ring...

Marcus again.

This time, Zina was already reaching toward the screen, intending to reject the call without bothering Vivian again.

But Vivian suddenly opened her eyes.

"Zina, is that Marcus?"

"Yes."

"I’ll take it." Vivian wiped the tears from her face and sat up. "Let’s see what that scoundrel wants now."

Zina sighed quietly.

She had barely seen Vivian wipe her face when the change came over her.

The exhaustion remained, but the vulnerable woman who had been crying against Zina’s arm disappeared behind the familiar mask of the decisive, confident CEO.

Vivian answered the call.

The screen flickered, and Marcus’s grinning face appeared.

Ugh.

That bastard.

The moment Vivian saw how pleased he looked with himself, her irritation returned in full force. She was already preparing to give him a piece of her mind when Marcus beat her to it.

"Hey!"

He waved cheerfully at the screen, then noticed Vivian’s expression and frowned in exaggerated concern.

"Beautiful, you’re still mad? You won’t even pick up my calls?"

Before Vivian could respond, Marcus leaned closer to the camera, apparently trying to see what was behind her.

"Beautiful, are you in your office?"

Vivian hadn’t planned on answering him at all, but his strange behavior immediately made her suspicious.

"What do you want?"

"Big news!"

Marcus’s expression brightened.

"Beautiful, wait for me in your office. I’m on my way."

"No. I have somewhere to be. I don’t want to see you."

Vivian’s tone was cold and firm, though her eyes remained fixed on the screen.

"And one more time, stop calling me beautiful!"

Marcus could tell she was still angry, but there was no way he believed the excuse about having somewhere to be. She had been sitting in her office moments ago, and the only reason she had picked up his call was because she wanted to know what he was up to.

Still, he had no intention of pushing his luck too far.

"Alright, alright!"

He grinned.

"My fault. Don’t be mad."

Then his expression turned mischievous.

"Well... I’ll be right there, Auntie."

He hung up before Vivian could respond.

On the other end of the call, Marcus leaned back with a satisfied grin, clearly pleased with himself.

After everything that had happened, he’d finally made up his mind.

CEO, this time I’ve got you.

"Auntie..."

Zina slowly turned her head toward Vivian, one eyebrow raised.

Vivian’s face twitched.

Then she groaned and covered her forehead.

"Zina, it’s him."

She looked utterly exasperated.

"The shameless bastard!"

And so, two stunning women sat together in the CEO’s office, waiting to see what exactly Marcus considered such "big news."