Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming! - Chapter 251: Light or Gun?

Chapter 251: Light or Gun?

Ryan had already experienced Alice’s strong opinions about Mia the day before.

At that time, Alice only had disinfectant wipes on hand. If she had access to more thorough cleaning equipment, she probably would have made Ryan crawl inside and scrub himself clean.

So, when Ryan woke up the next morning, rubbing his hair as he walked into the dining room, he was shocked to see two girls sitting there.

“Mia? What are you doing here?”

Ryan hadn’t forgotten what happened yesterday. He remembered very clearly what Mia had done to him.

Considering what had happened, Mia should have been afraid of Alice finding out. But not only was she unafraid, she had shown up again today, as if nothing had happened.

“Ryan, did you forget something?”

Before Mia could answer, flashing her cute little tiger teeth in a grin, a cold, threatening voice cut through the air.

Ryan turned toward the voice and saw Alice standing there, her face dark and stormy. Clearly, she wasn’t pleased that Ryan’s first concern upon entering the room was Mia. 

After all, Alice was the one in charge here. As long as Ryan was staying under her roof, she expected to be his top priority.

“Oh, right. Good morning, Miss Alice.”

Ryan awkwardly rubbed his nose and slowly closed his mouth, which had been hanging open in shock. He greeted Alice with as much respect as he could muster.

“Mm, good morning.”

Alice responded coldly, her eyes darting between Mia and Ryan. Finally, she shot Mia a sharp, threatening glare.

Mia, however, didn’t seem to care. She shrugged casually, winked at Ryan, and then stuck out her pink tongue, running it teasingly across her lips.

“Ryan, you look so surprised to see me. Did you miss me?”

“Hehe, I missed you too~”

Crash!

A loud, piercing noise exploded in the room, startling both Ryan and Mia. They quickly turned toward the sound.

A glass cup had fallen from the table and shattered on the floor. Alice’s face was even darker now, and it was obvious she had caused the accident.

Mia glanced at Alice, whose expression had turned completely black, and felt a chill run down her neck.

There was no need to push Alice too far over something so trivial. Mia had plenty of ways to drive Alice crazy later.

Mia puckered her lips and blew a kiss at Ryan, but quickly dropped the playful act before Alice could throw something else.

A maid hurried over to clean up the broken glass, while Ryan swallowed nervously and carefully sat down next to Alice.

He had sat in this same spot yesterday morning. Back then, he had hesitated so much that he almost didn’t get to eat. Today, he wasn’t going to make the same mistake.

Seeing Ryan behave so cautiously today, Alice’s expression softened a little. But the tension between her and Mia was still suffocating.

The silent battle between them was intense, like two sharp blades clashing. It was terrifying.

The maid brought out breakfast, placing the dishes in front of the three of them before quickly leaving the villa. She knew better than to stick around for what was coming next.

Alice hadn’t eaten anything since she got drunk last night, and the early morning spat with Mia had drained her energy. Her face was pale from hunger.

But, determined to maintain her composure as the hostess, she ate slowly and gracefully, taking small bites.

In contrast, Ryan and Mia were devouring their food like they hadn’t eaten in days, practically inhaling their breakfast.

“Alice, your chef is really good,” Mia said with a smirk. “Can I take him with me? Oh, and Ryan too?”

Crash!

This time, it was the glass of milk in Alice’s hand. Ryan saw it clearly—it had shattered because Alice had crushed it with her bare hand.

“Say that again, I dare you.”

Alice’s voice was ice-cold, her eyes boring into Mia with a deadly intensity. She had reached her limit.

Mia was definitely doing this on purpose. Flirting with Ryan right in front of her—did she really think Alice was just going to sit there and take it?

Ryan’s eye twitched. He didn’t dare waste any time. He quickly grabbed a few napkins and rushed over to take the broken glass from Alice’s hand.

Thankfully, the shards hadn’t cut her palm, but the milk had spilled all over her. Ryan carefully wiped it off, trying not to make things worse.

Mia, on the other hand, didn’t seem the least bit fazed. It was as if she had expected Alice to react this way. She stared straight at Alice, her gaze unwavering. Mia had come here today with confidence, fully prepared to face Alice head-on.

“Miss Alice, calm down.”

Ryan was wiping the milky liquid off Alice’s chest, and seeing that the two were about to go at it, he quickly leaned in and whispered in her ear.

Mia was a little devil, no doubt about it. She had always been pushing Alice’s buttons, so pulling a stunt like this wasn’t out of character for her. If anything, it seemed like Alice was being a bit too quick to anger today.

In the past, Alice had always shown more interest in Ryan than usual, but she had never been this easily provoked. Mia had successfully gotten under her skin twice already this morning.

“Mia’s just like that. Getting mad only means you’re playing right into her hands.”

Ryan spoke earnestly, sneaking a glance at Mia. She bared her teeth at him playfully, clearly aware that Ryan was talking smack about her.

Hearing Ryan’s words, Alice finally calmed down a little, though her expression toward Mia remained icy.

“Ryan, we’ve got an update on yesterday’s situation.”

The maids had already left, so Ryan was the one stuck cleaning up the broken glass. After he finally finished and sat back down, Alice tapped the table with her right hand and spoke to him.

“Yesterday’s situation?”

What happened yesterday? Was she talking about Alice getting drunk?

Ryan thought for a moment, noticing Alice’s slightly awkward expression. He wasn’t sure if she even remembered what she had done last night.

Seeing the clueless look on Ryan’s face, Alice clenched her teeth and let out a cold snort. She could tell from his expression that his mind was wandering to some inappropriate thoughts again.

Under the table, she kicked him hard in the shin, her embarrassment only slightly easing after that.

“I’m talking about the construction site. The fight you got into.”

Seriously, at a time like this, and he still couldn’t focus? Alice wished she could crack open Ryan’s head and see if there was anything in there besides those dirty thoughts.

Now that Alice had spelled it out, Ryan finally pulled his mind away from the memory of Alice kissing him last night.

What really got his attention was Alice’s serious expression. Normally, even when facing tough situations, Alice would have a hint of confidence in her eyes. But today, her face was filled with worry, and Ryan could even see a trace of guilt.

“Did Marco really go through with it?”

Ryan immediately understood the gravity of the situation. Yesterday, Alice had mentioned a possibility: Marco might have retrieved the video footage, but instead of leaving it as it was, he could have edited it.

It wasn’t hard to guess what Marco would do. First, he’d cut out any footage of his own people, then splice together clips of Ryan fighting.

While such a video wouldn’t hold up in court, it would be more than enough for some shady media outlets to run wild with it.

“Yeah, Marco’s burned all his bridges.”

“Ryan, you’re famous now,” Mia chimed in, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She was feeling a bit jealous—since Ryan had walked in, he’d barely spoken to her, focusing all his attention on Alice.

As she spoke, Mia hopped off her chair, grabbed the TV remote from the couch, and handed it to Ryan.

“Go ahead, turn it on.”

Turn it on? Ryan held the remote in his hand, feeling a wave of bitterness wash over him. He didn’t need to turn it on to know what was waiting for him.

[Alice’s Second Dangerous Event Triggered: Light or Gun?]

Is the justice seen through the camera lens as pure as it seems? Standing in the spotlight, be careful. The light that shines on you can be both a beacon and a weapon.