This was exactly how Joe treated people he didn’t care about. Marcus knew this well, but he didn’t expect Joe to reject him so firmly, without so much as acknowledging their mutual friends—Rowan and the others.
It was embarrassing. Weren’t they fine before the flight and during the journey? Why did Joe’s attitude change after they landed? Could the phone call Joe received have put him in a bad mood?
If so, who could’ve made a call in the middle of the night that caused Marcus such trouble?
Once they got into the car, Paul pulled out his phone, cursing as he snapped a picture of his swollen forehead. “Damn it! How unlucky! I’ve been riding a wave of good luck lately. How did it all turn around so suddenly?”
Joe glanced at Paul before his gaze settled on the photo Paul had posted on Instagram about an hour ago. In the photo, Marcus was clearly visible in the background. Skylar must have called him after seeing the picture. Joe hadn’t noticed the ring on Marcus’ hand earlier, but now, seeing it in the photo, he realized it had an unsettling aura—maybe because of what Skylar had said about it.
“If Marcus contacts you, keep your distance from him,” Joe said, his voice cold.
Paul was taken aback. Joe seemed particularly harsh toward Marcus. Had Marcus offended him somehow? Or was Joe’s mood soured by the chaos on the plane?
“Did Marcus offend you?” Paul asked, unsure.
Joe responded by showing Paul his WhatsApp conversation with Skylar. After reading it, Paul’s eyes widened.
“No wonder I’ve been so unlucky today!” He had been confused at first, but now, everything made sense.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. If Marcus was sick, wouldn’t it affect other people too? Could Rowan, Ethan, and Lukas be at risk? The situation seemed especially concerning for Ethan and Lukas. They were both rather indiscriminate in their romantic choices. There was a possibility they could’ve shared the same girlfriends as Marcus—did they also risk exposure to whatever Marcus had?
“Should we tell Mr. Jakeman and the others to get a thorough check-up?” Paul asked, his voice tinged with worry.
Joe fell silent for a moment, considering. Then, he typed a message and sent it to the group chat with Rowan and John.
He wrote, “Marcus vomited blood on the plane. If you’ve shared a girlfriend with him, go to the hospital for a check-up.”
The message caused a stir.
Rowan responded almost immediately: “Vomited blood? What happened? And since when did you two become so close that you meet up in person? I thought you didn’t like hanging out with Marcus and Ethan.”
John chimed in: “Could Marcus have AIDS? He’s always had a cold when I run into him at restaurants.”
Rowan replied sharply, “F*ck this!”
John added, “Rowan, you hang out with Marcus a lot. You should get checked. Let’s avoid meeting for now. Good luck.”
Joe replied, “Good luck.”
Rowan didn’t respond after that. He was likely either panicking or booking a hospital appointment for a check-up. He might also be frantically checking Instagram to see if he had any overlapping girlfriends with Marcus.
In any case, it was clear that Joe and the others would be up all night, restless and anxious.
Meanwhile, Steven had just exited the laboratory at the company when he saw a weary-looking Kenny standing in front of him.
Steven pretended not to see him and walked past.
However, Kenny stepped forward and stopped him. “Wait. Do you know anything about Skylar being a mistress? Not only that, but she also got that guy she’s involved with to sabotage our company. We’re facing a lot of problems now, and she’s likely behind all of this.”
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