Secret Marriage: The CEO's Pampered Wife

"Oh, right," Tiana Underwood suddenly remembered. "Mr. Irving is coming over today. Miss Thorne, you should meet him in a bit!"

Just as Georgia Thorne was about to say there was no need, a commotion erupted at the entrance. Tiana Underwood’s assistant whispered, "Mr. Irving is here!"

Hearing this, Georgia Thorne turned and looked at the man in the doorway.

Erin Irving looked no different than usual, with his customary gentle refinement and impeccable bearing.

She watched as Erin Irving strode elegantly toward them. His gentle gaze swept past Georgia Thorne’s face before settling on Tiana Underwood.

Tiana Underwood stood up and greeted him with a smile, "Mr. Irving, you’re here!"

Erin Irving had recently acquired an entertainment company, and Tiana Underwood happened to be the star his company was heavily promoting.

As such, Erin Irving was technically Tiana Underwood’s boss, so she had no choice but to be respectful toward him.

Erin Irving hummed in acknowledgment, his gaze shifting back to Georgia Thorne. "Miss Thorne, it’s been a while."

"Hello, President Irving," Georgia Thorne greeted him, her smile not reaching her eyes.

She didn’t yet know that Erin Irving was Tiana Underwood’s boss. Assuming their relationship was unusually close, her smile grew even more rigid.

"And what brings Miss Thorne here?"

’He’s absolutely asking a question he already knows the answer to!’

Georgia Thorne was fuming internally but forced a smile. "Well, I’m here thanks to the business President Irving introduced me to, isn’t that right, Miss Underwood?"

Georgia Thorne cleverly diverted the conversation to Tiana Underwood, who picked up the thread. "Miss Thorne is here to deliver the design drafts. We’re just discussing some details."

Erin Irving casually glanced at the dress designs Georgia Thorne had created. "And how did the discussion go?"

"Miss Thorne is very talented."

Erin Irving didn’t act overly familiar with Georgia Thorne. He spent the entire time looking at the design drafts on her computer.

’If her computer weren’t in Erin Irving’s hands, Georgia Thorne would have stormed out of there in an instant, not wanting to stay a second longer.’

Finally, Erin Irving returned the computer to Georgia Thorne. "If we were in the same industry, I would honestly be tempted to hire Miss Thorne for my company."

"President Irving, you’re too kind. I’m not that talented."

"Who knows what the future holds," Erin Irving said, looking at her with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Georgia Thorne didn’t like Erin Irving’s smile. ’It just feels so fake,’ she thought.

"Apologies, but I have some things to take care of back at my company, so I’ll be leaving now. President Irving, Miss Underwood, goodbye." Georgia Thorne shoved her computer into her backpack and hurriedly left with Vivian Sawyer.

On the way back, they took the same small path. Vivian Sawyer, trailing behind her, asked intermittently, "Miss Thorne, it seems like you don’t like that Mr. Irving guy."

"Mm."

"Why’s that?"

Vivian Sawyer was a gossip hound and often read entertainment news.

The more she pictured Erin Irving’s face, the more familiar he seemed.

Suddenly, it clicked. She snapped her fingers. "Miss Thorne, isn’t that Mr. Irving the same guy who got into a fight with your husband a while back?"

Now that she made the connection, Vivian Sawyer was even more certain it was him.

"No wonder you don’t like him! You two are enemies—no, wait, is your husband and him mortal enemies?" There were tons of rumors online about Elliot Sheridan and Erin Irving’s fight. Some had dug up that the two had been rivals since their school days, the type who couldn’t stand the sight of each other. The rumors claimed the fight was over a project.

But Vivian Sawyer, ever the gossip, didn’t buy that they fought over a project. She was much more inclined to believe they were fighting over a woman.

Vivian Sawyer’s curious gaze fell upon Georgia Thorne. She suddenly latched onto Georgia’s arm. "Miss Thorne, the fight between Mr. Irving and your husband a while back... was it because of you?"

"..." Georgia was truly mortified. "Just do your job and stop gossiping!"

Just as the two of them stepped off the small path, a figure blocked their way.

"Miss Thorne, President Irving would like to have a word with you." The person blocking their path was Erin Irving’s secretary.

"Sorry, but I have nothing to say to him," Georgia Thorne refused.

The secretary’s expression didn’t change. "President Irving said that if you’re unwilling to come, we can also resort to forceful methods."

As he spoke, he glanced toward two bodyguards off to the side, signaling with his eyes for them to seize Georgia Thorne.

"Miss Thorne!" Vivian Sawyer had never seen someone try to abduct a person in broad daylight. Terrified, she hid behind Georgia Thorne.

"What do you think you’re doing?!"

She watched as the two bodyguards closed in on them, then roughly dragged Vivian Sawyer out from behind Georgia Thorne.

Vivian Sawyer struggled, crying out, "Miss Thorne!"

Vivian Sawyer was a petite woman and no match for the strength of two large men. Her face twisted in pain as they held her by the shoulders, and she cried out that it hurt.

Georgia Thorne couldn’t stand by and watch her friend get hurt. "Let go of my friend!" she said, her voice firm. "I’ll go!"

Erin Irving’s secretary gave a look, and the two bodyguards immediately released Vivian Sawyer.

"Miss Thorne!" Vivian Sawyer hid behind her in fear, tugging on her sleeve. Georgia Thorne gave her a reassuring look. "I’ll go and be right back."

"This way, please, Miss Thorne." The secretary gestured, and Georgia Thorne followed him.

Although the two bodyguards had let go of Vivian Sawyer, they remained in front of her, blocking any chance of escape.

Vivian Sawyer rubbed her aching shoulder as she watched Georgia Thorne walk away. Any neutral impression she might have had of Erin Irving instantly vanished.

’No wonder Miss Thorne doesn’t like him either,’ she thought. ’He’s so brutish, a complete thug.’

Vivian Sawyer was very timid. Watched by the two men, all she could do was pray in her heart that Georgia Thorne would be all right.

Meanwhile, Georgia Thorne stood in front of the car. The man inside taunted her, "What’s wrong, Miss Thorne? Afraid to get in? Scared I might do something to you?"

"President Irving, if you have something to say, you can say it just fine like this." Georgia Thorne wasn’t falling for it. ’Erin Irving is a dangerous man,’ she thought. ’Who would willingly get into a dangerous car?’

Erin Irving’s eyes narrowed into a smile. "Relax. I’m not going to do anything to you in broad daylight."

The moment he finished speaking, a hard shove to Georgia Thorne’s shoulders sent her stumbling, half of her body falling into the car. Her hands landed on the seat cushions.

She looked up right into Erin Irving’s face, magnified before her. The smile was completely gone, and his eyes were full of shadows.

He violently seized her wrist, yanking her toward him. The veins on the back of his bent hand bulged, his knuckles turning white. "I was originally quite interested in you. I really didn’t plan on doing anything. But now... things seem a little different. You go back and tell Elliot Sheridan that I’m not someone to be trifled with. What he owes me, he will pay back sooner or later."

With every word Erin Irving spoke, Georgia Thorne could feel another measure of his hatred for Elliot Sheridan.

Although Georgia Thorne was panicking, she forced herself to remain calm on the surface. "What does he owe you?"

Perhaps because of her question, the sinister man suddenly started to laugh again, squeezing her wrist until the bones seemed to creak. "He owes me far too much! Even if he paid with his life, it wouldn’t be enough!"

Georgia Thorne couldn’t imagine what kind of deep-seated vendetta existed between the two men, but she could see nothing but raw hatred in Erin Irving’s eyes.

"So? You want to kill him?" Georgia Thorne took a deep breath, enduring the pain in her wrist as beads of sweat began to form on her forehead.

Georgia Thorne was in agony, but Erin Irving seemed oblivious, the smile on his lips growing even wider, even revealing his sharp teeth. "That’s what I was originally thinking, but..."

Erin Irving’s gaze shifted to Georgia Thorne, his voice pausing for a moment. "...but now I’ve discovered a better option. Tell me, what do you think he would do... if you were to disappear?"

"What are you planning to do?"

"What am I planning to do?" Erin Irving stroked his chin. "I want to put a bullet in Elliot Sheridan’s heart. What do you think I’m going to do?"

’Georgia Thorne is Elliot Sheridan’s weak spot, after all. For all these years, I’ve never seen a single woman by his side, and now he’s gone and gotten publicly married. How very interesting.’

"What do you think about me just tossing you to Napoleon?"

Napoleon!

Georgia Thorne suddenly recalled their first meeting, when she had accidentally overheard Erin Irving on the phone, ordering someone to feed a hand to Napoleon.

Her heart clenched violently, and her scalp prickled. It was impossible not to be afraid.

Her voice trembled uncontrollably. "You’re a madman!"

"That I am," Erin Irving’s gaze grew even darker.

Then he abruptly released Georgia Thorne’s wrist and patted her on the shoulder. "Relax, I was just joking. Don’t tell me Mrs. Sheridan actually took me seriously!"

"Mrs. Sheridan, we’re all civilized people here. Who would do something so brutish, right?" Erin Irving looked down, adjusting his cuffs and raising an eyebrow. "Unless, of course, one is pushed to the brink."

"..."

Georgia Thorne was then escorted back, unharmed. Immediately after, Erin Irving’s people left.

"Miss Thorne, are you okay?" Vivian Sawyer asked worriedly.

"I’m fine."

Georgia Thorne shook her head, but Vivian Sawyer thoroughly checked her over from head to toe. Only after confirming that she was truly unharmed did Vivian hug her tightly. "You scared me to death!"

As the two of them were about to reach the office, Georgia Thorne instructed Vivian Sawyer, "Don’t tell anyone what happened today, understand?"

Vivian Sawyer nodded repeatedly and made a gesture as if zipping her lips.

Georgia Thorne’s expression remained grim. It wasn’t until the end of the workday that she firmly patted her own cheeks and forced a smile at her phone’s screen, trying to make herself look a little more natural.

’Erin Irving had sought her out for no other reason than to warn her, and by extension, to warn Elliot Sheridan.’

In the days that followed, Georgia Thorne threw herself into her work, becoming chaotically busy.

In the midst of designing the clothes, she also ran over to the film studio to meet with Tiana Underwood, discussing the details of the garments with her multiple times.

Tiana Underwood, unlike Iris Warner, was a very easy person to get along with. Everyone on the film set had high praise for her.

After interacting with her a few times, Georgia Thorne found that she was indeed a genuinely nice person.

Tiana Underwood had a gentle disposition and would offer suitable suggestions. They discovered they had a lot in common on many topics.

The three formal gowns were rushed to completion about a week before fashion week.

She called Tiana Underwood to schedule a meeting. Tiana expressed her surprise over the phone, "Miss Thorne, you’ve finished the designs already? That was so fast!"