MasukIn her hand, she carried a gold sponsor’s honour plaque representing Thorne Group. Surrounded by assistants, stylists, and security, she stepped into the corridor like a proud white swan who knew every camera had been waiting for her.
For today’s charity event, she was not only the representative of one of the top sponsors.
She had also arrived as the so-called most beautiful cheer captain, a spectacle designed to bring glamour and attention to the swimming programme
In her hand, she carried a gold sponsor’s honour plaque representing Thorne Group. Surrounded by assistants, stylists, and security, she stepped into the corridor like a proud white swan who knew every camera had been waiting for her.For today’s charity event, she was not only the representative of one of the top sponsors.She had also arrived as the so-called most beautiful cheer captain, a spectacle designed to bring glamour and attention to the swimming programme.“Coach Miller. Vance.”Catherine spotted Vance at once, his expression still dark from the earlier exchange. She also saw Coach Miller preparing to leave with Rebecca and Liam.Her boots struck a crisp rhythm against the floor as she hurried over. With practiced ease, she entered the circle of conversation as if she had always belonged there.She did not look at Rebecca.Instead, she moved straight toward Vance and reached for his arm with soft fa
“To tell you the truth, when Rebecca suddenly vanished three years ago and I heard she had married, I was heartbroken. She was one step from the highest stage.”He patted Liam’s back with a rough, affectionate hand.“There were times I thought, if she hadn’t married so young, if the man she ended up spending her life with had been Liam here, what a pair they would have made. Talent, discipline, temperament, even the way they move in the water—they matched each other. A real shame. Life never asks us old men what we want.”Miller spoke plainly, honestly, without the slightest idea of the knife he had just put through the room.He did not know that the billionaire sponsor standing before him was the lawful husband who had kept Rebecca buried in a manor for three years. He was only speaking as a coach, grieving the path his best student had lost and the partnership he had once imagined for two athletes he loved.
Vance’s warning gaze cut between them like a blade drawn through ice.His tall frame carried the cold authority of a man long used to command, and in that moment he seemed determined to use both identities—husband and sponsor—to draw Rebecca back inside the boundary of what belonged to him.Liam did not move back.If anything, the mockery in his eyes deepened.Under Vance’s lethal stare, he raised his right hand with unhurried ease. Then, as Vance’s pupils tightened, Liam placed that broad, calloused hand on Rebecca’s shoulder.The air around them seemed to freeze.Liam wore the black uniform of the national team, and when he lifted his arm, the fabric drew cleanly across the lines of his body. Years of elite training had given him the kind of physique no tailor could manufacture: wide shoulders, a lean waist, strong arms shaped by water, resistance, and discipline. It was a different kind of power from Va
The noise from the press reached its peak after Vance announced the sponsorship plan.For a few seconds, the entrance of the convention centre was almost impossible to move through. Reporters surged forward with microphones raised, camera flashes bursting one after another, turning the polished marble floor into a restless field of white light. Security moved at once, forming a human wall between them and the crowd, but even that could not entirely block the questions being thrown from every direction.“Mr Bradford, will Bradford Group be taking over the entire Commonwealth swimming sponsorship?”“Miss Perry, did you know about this arrangement before today?”“Is Captain Evans involved in the negotiations?”Vance did not answer.He turned slightly and placed his hand at Rebecca’s waist with practised ease, guiding her away from the crush of cameras and toward the VIP reception area. His palm rested firmly against her through the fabric of her hoodie, the gesture protective to anyone w
Before the Maybach reached the convention centre, Rebecca finally spoke.“Vance.”He turned slightly. “What is it?”She looked at the traffic ahead rather than at him. Her voice was quiet, but there was no hesitation in it.“Coach Miller and the team don’t know about us.”Vance’s hand tightened on hers.Rebecca felt it, but continued, “At St George’s, I told Coach Miller that my husband was only someone with the same name as you. Liam and the others believe the same.”His eyes darkened.“You want me to deny you?”“No.” Rebecca turned to him then. “I want you not to claim me in front of them.”The words landed between them with a cold precision.For a moment, Vance said nothing.Rebecca lowered her gaze to their joined hands. “This is my first public appearance after returning to the team. I don’t want it tangled with the Bradford family, Catherine, your mother, or our divorce. I don’t want Coach Miller to find out from a crowd of reporters that the man who stood beside Catherine at th
Outside the St Regis Apartments, media vans and black Land Rovers belonging to the security teams had already packed the street from end to end.After changing into the dark grey bespoke suit Rebecca had brought, Vance came downstairs with a sharp, unquestionable authority about him. He took Rebecca’s hand and led her straight into the back seat of the Maybach.The door closed heavily behind them, shutting out Catherine’s pale, wounded face and reddened eyes.Inside the car, the air-conditioning moved in cool silence.Vance lifted a hand and tugged at his tie with visible impatience. His long legs crossed beneath the tailored fabric of his trousers. His gaze seemed fixed on the street sliding past the window, yet most of his attention was locked on the unusually quiet woman beside him.“About last night.”He spoke slowly, his voice still rough from the hangover, though he was clearly trying to preserve his usual elegance and control.“I didn’t go to Catherine for a private meeting. I







