Chapter 7

Lex was left gaping at Tony in panic and disbelief. "Your man…?"

The Carters were one of Riverton's three giants and held a significant position in the east coast, and they stood among the top five in the nation's pharmaceutical business!

The Fishers were no more than insects before them.

On the other hand, Kate was staring at Ingrid as she hugged Tony's arm, feeling a sense of deja vu.

After all, she used to do the same with Tony, and she felt a pang of jealousy in turn.

"Tony… You're with her…?" Kate asked before she knew it.

Ingrid giggled and leaned her cheek against Tony's shoulder. "I'm Tony's girlfriend now… Why, I should thank you, Ms. Willow."

"Thank me?" Kate asked, at a loss.

"Yes!" Ingrid winked at her. "Thank you for dumping such a fine man and giving me a chance."

"I…" Kate flushed.

Truly, all it took was just a spark to send jealousy flaring!

"So you were cheating on me all along, Tony!"

Kate huffed as she came to her senses and hugged Lex's arm in turn, both to brag and to provoke. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder—if you think Tony's good, then think whatever you like! It's just like how I believe Lex is the best!"

"Really? Guess you're quite the poor judge of character, Ms. Willow!"

As she finished, Ingrid turned toward Lex with a threatening glare. "So, you're threatening my boy? Were you going to hurt him with that bat?"

Thud!

Lex flinched and dropped the baseball bat audibly, while Ingrid walked up and picked it up. "And did you think that I'll just let it slide?"

"N-No, please… It's just a misunderstanding…" Lex stammered, shaking his head repeatedly.

"You people say that everytime!" Ingrid bellowed.

Bang!

With one almighty swing, Ingrid left a deep dent on the hood of the Range Rover.

Still, it did not seem to hurt Lex—he was more worried that Ingrid would swing it on his head instead.

Smiling apologetically, he kept explaining, "Please calm down, Ms. Carter—I wouldn't have been rude to Tony if I'd known he's your boyfriend, don't you think? Can't you look the other way?"

Ingrid simply laughed at his face. "Who do you think you are, asking me to look the other way? Either Tony gets his satisfaction, or the Fishers can pack up and leave Riverton tomorrow!"

"Wait, what?"

Lex was left gaping, as it was really that easy for the Carters to destroy his family. "Please, Ms. Carter! Be the bigger person here… I've even sent the Venerable Healer Roch Jarek to treat your grandfather… Tony, I've made a mistake… Please don't take it to heart…"

Ingrid snorted coolly. "Actually, thank you for reminding me. That quack doctor you sent almost murdered my grandfather, and I still haven't punished you for that. And now, you tried to run your car into Tony and assault him? What, did you think my family is scared of yours?"

"My bad… My bad…" Lex dropped to his knees right then, bowing repeatedly in apology.

Still, just seeing Lex bending himself backward left Kate infuriated.

Stepping in front of him, she held Ingrid's gaze as she spoke evenly, "Please don't go too far, Ms. Carter. We respect you, and even tolerate you to partner with Carterbond Inc. However, you don't get to abuse that fact over personal reasons! We're partners, not beggars!"

"Oh, so you have a spine!"

Ingrid held a thumbs-up at Kate, but her tone soon changed sharply. "That said, I'm not sure if Mr. Fisher shares your audacity. Is he willing to bet his family's future on this?"

Just hearing that sent Lex jumping to his feet, pulling Kate behind himself and immediately lecturing her, "Shut up! How could you talk to Ms. Carter like that?"

When he turned back to Ingrid, he was at once fawning, bowing and apologizing. "Haha… It's a misunderstanding, an honest mistake! Please, just calm down…"

While Kate was left feeling completely disenchanted by Lex's behavior, Tony suddenly spoke, "That's far enough, Ms. Carter."

Then, giving Kate a long look, he turned to leave.

Ingrid snorted in turn. "Hmph. You're lucky Tony's too magnanimous to be petty with the likes of you. But this isn't over yet—remember, your father Andrew Fisher must attend the medical forum tomorrow and apologize to me as well as Tony, or I'll destroy your entire family!"

Tony paused when heard the name Andrew Fisher, while Ingrid pressed sternly, "You hear me?!"

Lex was nodding repeatedly as he answered, "Yes, yes, I'll definitely make sure to pass your message…"

-

Later, after Ingrid and Tony got into her Porsche, she asked, "How did I do?"

"How did you do?" Tony chuckled. "If by that, you mean putting up an act to help me get one back, I thank you for your kindness."

"Now, now. I might really fall for you in the process." Ingrid smiled at him, not hiding her interest.

Still, she was really not Tony's priority.

Instead, he asked, "By the way, the mayor must have told you that I'm looking into Andrew Fisher. Did you ask to see him to create an opening for me?"

"Not exactly," Ingrid replied, shrugging. "The man is actually tight-lipped, and I just chanced upon the information. Still, it's only natural that I want to help you since I owe you one."

"Does that mean you really consider yourself mine too?" Tony joked.

Ingrid simply nodded. "I'm serious about liking you. You have the looks, you're a great healer, and you're smart. A man like you is the best partner a woman like me can ask for."

Tony pursed his lips, not quite used to Ingrid's charms.

However, there was no question that the medical forum tomorrow was the perfect opportunity to investigate Andrew.

"Well, I'll be at the forum on time. Thanks for the help!" he told Ingrid.

Ingrid smiled wryly. "Please don't be so formal with me…"

-

Meanwhile, Lex and Kate were still scowling as they stood outside the hospital, with Lex ranting, "That prick! I didn't expect him to suck up to Ingrid Carter this soon… And that bitch is way out of line! If I wasn't being cautious about the big picture, I wouldn't have let her walk all over me!"

Kate was almost rolling her eyes—Lex's spineless reaction earlier had already left her thoroughly disappointed. "Tony isn't like that…"