All Chapters of I Was Their Clown, Now I Wear the Crown: Chapter 51
- Chapter 60
78 chapters
Chapter 51: Evidence
Around noon, I got another call from Rocco Evans. His voice was lazy, said he was hungry.When he saw me outside my hotel room door, he froze, then pointed at the white mesh bandage on my head and burst out laughing. The laughter died just as quickly as it started."Kian, who did this? Gavin Price or Bansa?" He was like a different person, his face filled with rage."Calm down. I was just feeling cooped up last night and went looking for a fight.""Who? Bansa? That son of a… I'm gonna go mess him up!"Rocco started stomping toward the elevators, ready for war.It took some effort to hold him back. The guy was a total hothead. I had to explain the whole story from last night, telling him how Bansa got on his knees and begged for forgiveness before he finally backed down.But then he started laughing again. All the way from the elevator to the restaurant, he was trying to hold it in, letting out little snorts every few seconds.During the meal, he didn't dare look up at me, practically
Chapter 52: Hostility
The HR assistant who hired me had mentioned that Ava Barlow was the daughter of the big boss. She was definitely part of the same Barlow family that ran Richland Group. Her being at a small subsidiary like Intelli-Ware Solutions was probably just for training.On top of that, Richland Group also had a few senior executives with the last name Price. They had to be Gavin Price's family.It wasn't strange for a corporation to have people from different families in its ranks. Maybe a few old friends built the business together, and now their kids were all benefiting from it.As for whether there was any infighting, I couldn't be sure.After two days of mind-numbing boredom, Ava finally called me. It was evening, and I was on the toilet when my phone rang.I answered, and before I could even say hello, her emotionless voice came through. "Kian, I've signed the official contract with BTT.""Yeah? That's great news. But from your tone, you don't sound very happy about it.""I'm not unhappy.
Chapter 53: A Man's Gotta Bend
Looked at it that way, this Ken Corning was no simpleton. With his brains and tactics, he had to be a real player in the office politics game.Maybe he had someone backing him up, or someone feeding him ideas.Otherwise, as Ava's direct subordinate, where would he get the nerve to pull these stunts? After all, Ava was the daughter of a top executive at the parent company.Looks like I'll have to keep an eye on this punk from now on.Because of my sudden appearance and the exchange between Ava and Ken, the atmosphere in the room turned cold. After Ken sat down, nobody spoke above a whisper.Thankfully, the waiter started bringing out the dishes just in time, saving us from the awkward silence.Ava had the waiter open two bottles of red wine and pour a glass for everyone. She raised her glass and gave a little speech—the usual stuff about how hard everyone had worked—and then we all toasted.The atmosphere finally thawed.I drained the red wine in my glass, savored the aftertaste, then
Chapter 54: Confession
He gave me another thumbs-up, then leaned in close to quietly discuss the psychology of a woman like Ava, and how one might go about pursuing her.He was just a very curious, friendly guy who loved to chat, and maybe a little bit of a closeted romantic.His colleague from BTT was deep in conversation with Ken and the others. Ava was talking quietly with a few of the female colleagues, letting out rare, soft laughs from time to time.A smile from Ava was indeed a rare sight.Come to think of it, I don't think I'd ever seen her laugh. She was always stone-faced, cold, and arrogant.Of course, she had her moments of fear. Like three years ago, when Rex Vance almost got her. Or recently, when I pinned her against the wall, and when I hooked her onto the bed with my foot. She'd looked terrified then.It just went to show that her cold, arrogant exterior was just an act. Inside, she was fragile. It was easy to break through her facade.Fueled by the drinks and the music, the atmosphere in t
Chapter 55: Shameless
Ava looked up and glared at me, then clutched her stomach and walked painfully to the curb to hail a taxi.But her steps were unsteady. It clearly wasn't just cramps; she seemed very weak."In a hurry to go put on a pad, are we?" I walked up beside her, hailing a passing taxi for her."None of your business."I opened the car door for her. She got in without a word of thanks and grabbed the handle, trying to slam the door shut.I held the door open. "Ms. Barlow, don't be stubborn. You're not in any condition to be alone. Let me take you back. What if you pass out on the way? You're not afraid some Kathan guy will drag you off into the mountains?""Shut up!"Ava glared at me again, but after a short pause, she scooted over.I got in and sat next to her. After giving the driver the hotel address, I turned to her. "You have pads at the hotel, right?"She paused, then frowned. "I forgot to pack them."I slapped my forehead. "Where are we going to buy them this late at night? Wait, the hot
Chapter 56: You Shameless Jerk
She snorted loudly, took the pads into the bathroom, and slammed the door shut.I used the glass to crush the dates and ginger, carefully picking out the pits from the dates.Ava pulled open the bathroom door and walked out. As she passed me, she said, "I'd like to see what kind of tricks you can pull," then walked straight to the bed. She grabbed the remote, turned on the TV, kicked off her heels, and climbed onto the bed, pulling the blanket over the lower half of her body. She leaned back against the headboard and watched TV with a blank expression.I focused on preparing the dates. I checked the kettle and felt the water was about the right temperature. I took it into the bathroom and soaked a clean towel in the hot water."Here, put this hot towel on your stomach," I said, running over to the bed and handing it to her.She stared straight ahead, stone-faced, and didn't take the towel."It's going to get cold. Hurry up. The sooner you're done, the sooner I can go back to my room a
Chapter 57: She Really Was Beautiful
She suddenly grabbed a pillow and threw it at me with all her might.I managed to raise a hand and block it just in time. Otherwise, it would have hit the wound on my forehead again."Alright, other leg."I let go of her right leg and reached under the blanket to grab the other one.She put up a token struggle, then obediently let me take hold of her calf.But she kept the blanket pressed firmly over her thighs, not letting me get a peek at the scenery higher up.I stopped teasing her and focused on massaging her leg. The only sound in the room was the TV.After about ten minutes, when I felt like I was done, I looked up and saw that her eyes were closed. She was leaning against the headboard, perfectly still. She seemed to have fallen asleep.I whispered, "Ms. Barlow, I want to touch your thigh."No reaction. Her eyelashes didn't even flutter. She was really asleep.Looking at her face, which was even more exquisite in its stillness, my mind started to wander again, especially with h
Chapter 58: Scoundrel
She was wearing a black slip dress, which made her skin look even paler and more radiant, especially around her chest and shoulders, where only two thin straps held the dress up.I held the bouquet of vibrant roses out to her. "Ava, these are for you. I hope you have a wonderful day.""Who are you calling Ava? Get out!" she snapped, her face flushing red. She covered her chest with one hand and pointed at the door with the other."You, of course. Doesn't it sound more intimate?""You... you're nothing but a scoundrel!""How am I supposed to win you over if I'm not a little bit of a scoundrel, right?"Ava was too angry to speak. She just spun around, walked into the room, and slammed the container of breakfast down on the table."Tsk, tsk, look at you, throwing a tantrum. You've spilled the porridge."I hurried over, placed the flowers on her nightstand, and then carefully opened the outer plastic bag. I wiped the container clean with a tissue and set it on the table."Have you brushed
Chapter 59: A Man's Compliment
I couldn't help but stare. "I always thought you looked beautiful in your work clothes," I said admiringly, "but I never expected you to be even more stunning in this outfit."Ava kept a straight face. "Save the flattery. It doesn't work on me.""It's not flattery. I'm being completely honest. If you entered a beauty pageant, Miss Universe, Miss World, you'd win them all. Even the Miss Sapphire pageant here in Katha, you'd be a shoo-in.""Hmph, I told you, your smooth talk doesn't work on me."As she walked over to the nightstand to organize her things, she suddenly froze. She turned back to me, frowning. "Did you just say the Miss Sapphire pageant?"I nodded casually. "Yeah. The champions they pick every year are gorgeous."She instantly flew into a rage, grabbing a pillow and throwing it at me. "You jerk! How dare you compare me to a pre-op trans woman? Did you think I didn't know the Miss Sapphire pageant is for them?"I caught the pillow and gave a sheepish grin. "But they are ver
Chapter 60: I Only Like You
She spoke as if she hadn't heard me, talking more to herself. "Actually, ever since I saw the scars on your body, I've felt incredibly guilty. I can't even imagine what you went through in that place. I just know those scars must have been painful.""If I hadn't run away back then, you wouldn't be like this. So I've always felt guilty, always blamed myself. But I didn't know how to make it up to you, how to apologize. Because you always act so shameless and disgusting, and it makes me so angry...""Ms. Barlow, hold on a second. You want to make it up to me? That's easy. Just go out with me."She continued as if I hadn't spoken. "I know you're not a bad person. I could tell from the day of the Festival of Waters. You're actually kind-hearted and soft. And last night... I don't know when I fell asleep, but when I woke up, the blanket was tucked in neatly around me... Thank you.""Oh, and I also heard that on the night of the festival, when Bansa and his guys were beating you up, you had