No Wife, No Life Chapter 78

Caden appeared somewhat tipsy.

At this moment, he sat quietly without uttering a word, huddled in the corner, his eyes glazed over.

He seemed genuinely hammered.

"Caden, you're drunk," Harper said, eyeing him.

Caden mumbled something, then leaned in closer, giving her a slight smile.

"Not drunk enough to not recognize you," he said, squeezing her hand.

Was he really drunk?

His fingers traced circles in her palm, sending a slight tickle up her arm.

He pulled her closer, pressing tightly against her.

Harper could feel the heat radiating from his body.

His chin rested on her shoulder, his breath hot against her ear, his lips brushing her earlobe.

Given the current state of their relationship, this level of intimacy seemed rather excessive.

Harper's cheeks flushed, her voice softening, "Caden, are you really still sober?"

Caden's eyes were filled with intense emotions.

Being this close, he could smell her faint fragrance. Her neck was so fair and delicate, tempting him to kiss it.

Was he sober?

Of course, he was.

He was just pretending to be drunk.

When he was sober, he could restrain himself, but now he just wanted to be more reckless, to be closer to her.

He didn't answer, remaining silent.

Harper pushed Caden away and slowly withdrew her hand.

At that moment, a drunken researcher approached with a bottle of liquor, a mischievous grin on his face, clearly up to no good.

"Harper, come have a drink with us," he said.

Noticing that Caden was drunk and feeling a bit tipsy himself, he seized the opportunity to flirt with Harper.

Harper's expression remained calm, her gaze indifferent.

"Who are you?" she asked.

Her implication was clear: why should she drink with him?

The researcher's face darkened immediately.

Harper had embarrassed him.

A person's behavior when drunk often revealed their true character.

A man who harassed female colleagues after a few drinks likely didn't have a great character.

"Why are you being so arrogant? I'm just trying to be friendly," the researcher snapped, his voice rising in frustration.

Before Harper could respond, Caden, who had been pretending to be drunk, snatched the bottle from the researcher.

"How do you want to drink? One glass each, or Harper drinks for everyone?" he asked coldly.

It was clear they were bullying Harper.

With so many people, even if Harper had an excellent tolerance for alcohol, she'd get drunk.

Seeing Caden sober up, the researcher's arrogance faded.

He forced a smile, "Mr. Elikin, we didn't mean anything by it. Harper just started working with us, and this is our way of welcoming her."

Caden's tone was icy, "When I was in charge, I never saw this rule. Should we start now?"

He had drunk a lot but wasn't actually drunk.

His eyes, which had seemed hazy, were now sharp and piercing.

He still wore a smile, but it was a dangerous one, more intimidating than ever.

The researcher sobered up instantly.

He waved his hands frantically, "No more, Mr. Elikin, I misspoke."

He retreated to his seat, head down, not daring to say another word.

Caden set the bottle down and turned his gaze to Harper.

Harper remained calm and composed.

"Caden, you weren't drunk. You were faking it," Harper said, almost laughing in exasperation.

Caden really loved to put on an act, always playing a role.

Thinking about how Caden had been clinging to her earlier, Harper couldn't help herself and stepped on his foot with some force.

Caden winced, "Harper, take it easy."

"Alright, since you're sober, give me that researcher's file. He can't continue with the project. Find a suitable time to let him go," Harper said.

Caden raised an eyebrow, "Are you serious?"

Wasn't it a bit excessive to dismiss him solely because of his poor conduct when drunk?

Harper nodded slightly.

"That guy has a dark mind. He shouldn't stay in the lab. I even suspect he's created some malicious software."

Caden's eyes turned cold.

He remembered that previously, some female employees had complained to him about this researcher named Damian Scott.

They said he had secretly taken photos of them and used those pictures to harass them.

However, because the matter hadn't escalated, he had suppressed it.

Now, reminded by Harper, he recalled Damian's behavior and immediately grabbed Harper's wrist, "Come with me."

He pulled Harper out of the room.

Caden led Harper to an upstairs room.

It looked more like a presidential suite, fully equipped with office facilities.

"Check if there's any software installed in that room," Caden said, his eyes dark.

Harper felt a chill, sat down, and quickly started typing on the keyboard.

Although the room had a signal jammer, those guys were IT experts, and it might not be enough.

A few minutes later, Harper found several undetected monitoring devices.

There were three or four of them, all aimed at her position, even under the table, targeting her private areas.

If she hadn't worn pants to the meeting today, they might have succeeded.

Harper's face grew colder as she continued typing, discovering a virus-laden live stream link.

That jerk had not only installed cameras to film her but also started a live stream on a porn site.

The stream's title was "Majestic City's Big Shot's Plaything."

With her and Caden gone, the comments section was filled with filth.

[Was that the big shot from Majestic City? They couldn't wait, huh?]

[Yeah, she's so pretty; no wonder she's being played with. I'd do the same.]

[Women like her are just toys for men.]

These were the milder comments; many were even more vulgar.

Caden's eyes grew colder, his gaze sharp.

"Fire him and call the police," Harper's voice icy.

Her expression was stern. She prided herself on her high standing in Majestic City, earning respect through her abilities.

But now she had become the object of someone's sick fantasies, and it was disgusting.

"I'll get to the bottom of this and give you an explanation," Caden said, turning to leave.

"I'm coming with you. If I stay here, they'll really think I'm useless," Harper said, her eyes cold, a hint of sarcasm in her gaze.

Caden paused, looking at her.

"I was wrong. You're Harper; you are self-reliant and resilient, no need of anyone's protection."

His tone firm, his eyes filled with admiration.

Harper was truly the woman he admired.