Anger thrummed in Skylar’s chest after listening to Tobias’ uninterested words.
She hissed, “Can’t you at least pretend to care? You could have asked if I was fine. Is that so hard to do?”
An exasperated sigh sounded from the other end of the call. “I’m busy, Baby. Besides, you wouldn’t be talking back so harshly if anything serious happened to you. Isn’t that right?”
Then Skylar hung up. She fumed at how Tobias wasn’t taking her seriously. Forget it. I’m not going to ask for his help anymore.
He’s clearly too busy to make time for me.
Meanwhile, Tobias sat behind his desk in a black suit. His expression turned grim as he looked at the phone in his hands. Why must the video call’s audio blast through the speakers? Couldn’t it just be subtle like a regular call?
Various executive members sat on the sofas around. A tense atmosphere permeated the air around them.
They represented different departments in the company and were giving detailed status reports to Tobias. It was halfway through this when Tobias’ phone rang. Then they sat uncomfortably as the woman on the phone threw a fit at Tobias.
That got them curious. Who’s this woman that is currently involved with Mr. Ford?
Eva, who took down the meeting notes with the other assistants, could tell that it was Skylar’s voice on the call.
Delight swelled in Eve’s chest. Tobias is way harsher to Skylar than I thought.
It looks like he no longer finds Skylar interesting.
“Let’s resume. We’ll adjourn this meeting after we complete the reports.” Tobias fastened the buttons on his suit and checked the time.
If I rush over to the filming site now, I’ll likely arrive by dawn. What’s the point of going on a hectic journey to see Skylar, who’s uninjured and perfectly fine?
I’m not the type to indulge in such romantic gestures.
After every executive member had completed their reports, Tobias dismissed the meeting. Everyone got up and left accordingly. They assumed that tonight’s meeting was simply routine work.
Shortly after, Tobias’ spacious office returned to its usual silence.
Then Sheldon entered. He promptly closed the door and turned on his heel to see what Tobias was up to—scribbling something. He heard the sound of Tobias’ pen scratching ferociously against the paper.
Sheldon approached the paper on Tobias’ desk. It was a name list of the company’s executive members. Tobias had struck off several names, such as Spencer Campbell, Dylan Slade, and others.
He immediately recognized these people. These were some of the older employees who had been in the company for the longest time. Confused, Sheldon asked, “Why’d you strike off their names? Shouldn’t you at least acknowledge that they’ve served us for a long time? Surely you’re not that heartless to remove them from the company?”
Tobias stopped striking out names. He looked up at Sheldon and said, “The company will be undergoing a reform. My company is not a nursing home for lax employees.”
An inexplicable feeling lingered at the back of Sheldon’s throat. He was worried that someday, Tobias would discard him like those employees.
Winnie might be right. I should start thinking about my future. I can’t allow myself to waste away as I’ve been doing this whole time.
Tobias leaned deeper into his chair. He pulled at his tie to loosen it, then looked at Sheldon. “Why have you come to see me? Are you short on money?”
At this, Sheldon shrugged off his original intention of asking for money. He shook his head and replied, “I’m introducing Winnie to Mom. I’m counting on you to be there too. We can’t have the spotlight shine on only me.”
Tobias’ face fell disapprovingly at Winnie’s name, yet he didn’t want to interfere with Sheldon’s relationship. He eventually grunted, “No promises. I’ll be there if my schedule isn’t too packed. Otherwise, you’ll have to figure it out yourself.”
…
At the hotel, Skylar’s spine was killing her. On top of that, her heart was in complete tatters after that video call with Tobias.
The next day, Skylar’s mind was still a jumbled-up mess. She was anxious about re-filming the harness scene from yesterday. I can’t trust anyone after that disaster. I’m never putting on another harness unless it is fully inspected and proven to be safe.
Josiah was too embarrassed to say anything to Skylar. After all, Skylar’s melodramatic request had saved her life yesterday. If he had stubbornly insisted on not having the mats, then his female lead would be bedridden in a hospital by now. He could never live with that guilt.
“How are you doing? Do you feel any discomfort anywhere?” Largo placed two bottles of freeze spray beside Skylar, offering them to her.
Skylar hadn’t expected Largo to be so considerate. He’s thoughtfully asking about my pains after the fall, and he even brought medicine!
He’s way more of a gentleman than that cold-blooded monster, Tobias.
Ultimately, women yearned to be cared for by someone special; Skylar was no exception. However, she had lost all faith that Tobias would ever become a gentle and considerate man.
