Chapter 279 A Birthday Full of Twists (5)

• Marc Egerton’s heart gave a violent shudder, and a surge of cold, murderous rage shot straight up. What kind of pain could break a girl this strong and grind her down like this? Crying like that—was this a birthday party or a memorial service? “Don’t cry. I’m here today. No one’s laying a finger on you.” Marc gently patted Flo’s back and spoke softly. Flo hummed in reply and lifted her head. Tears still clung to the corners of her eyes, but her gaze had settled, calm in a way that said she’d found solid ground. In a mess like this, having someone to lean on was already enough. “And who are you?” Then Florence Winslow’s relative, He Qiuyan, strolled over, raking Marc up and down with a snide look. Marc said evenly, “I’m Flo’s fiancé. Just got back from a business trip.” “Screw this!” Sun Zhihui spat, face full of contempt. “You think we’re dumb?” “You’re just the guy she hired to play along.” “If she really had a fiancé, would she need me yesterday to pretend to be her husband?” He Qiuyan sneered. “Exactly. I’ve got someone who actually knows what’s up. This Mr. Sun used to be Flo’s boss—nobody knows her situation better than him.” Marc shrugged. “He’s just a boss. Big deal. Does Flo need his permission to get engaged?” He Qiuyan nodded, then arched a brow. “Mind if I ask where you work?” Marc said, “You do mind, and yeah, it’s not convenient to tell you.” He Qiuyan blinked, then covered her mouth and laughed. She shot Flo a smug look and curled her lip. “So this is your ‘excellent’ man? He doesn’t even dare say what he does—scared it’ll be embarrassing?” “Anyway, whatever he does can’t compare to my husband. At least he knows his place.” Marc smiled lightly. “In your eyes, excellence is just about a job and a paycheck? That’s shallow.” “How about this: I’ll make you a bet. Whatever your husband’s good at, lay it all out.” “I’ll go head-to-head with him till he taps out.” “If I win, you apologize to Flo, put on that three-piece bikini in your hand, and read out loud all those shameless lines you wrote on that slip.” “If I lose, name your terms.” Flo’s heart lurched hard. Lucas was basically courting disaster. Did he even know what Gao Cong was good at? How could he throw down a bet like that? Way too reckless. Odds of winning were damn near zero. Where was this blind confidence coming from? “My God! Did I go deaf?” Gao Cong dug a finger in his ear, then strutted up to Marc, eyes wide. “Did you just say you want to challenge me at the things I’m best at? That right?” Marc nodded without hesitation, and the crowd burst into wild laughter. “This guy got kicked in the head by a mule. Think he’s Monkey King now? Got seventy-two tricks up his sleeve?” “Now I finally get that saying—don’t fear a godlike enemy, fear a pigheaded teammate. Whether he’s Flo’s fiancé or not, this move is pure humiliation.” “Hahahaha… Flo’s gonna cry again. She called her fiancé here for backup, and he just threw her under the bus.”