Chapter 6 More Like A Curse

Rosanna looked back at Millie with a calm look.

Millie, however, wore a charming smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Ms. Williams," she said sweetly, "you look a lot more worn out in person than you do on screen."

Rosanna replied with a calm tone, though her words carried a hidden jab, "I've been looking after a stray tomcat at home. Every now and then, he gets distracted by a female cat in heat and runs off to chase her. Lately, he's been keeping me up at night."

Millie understood exactly who Rosanna was referring to. Her face tightened, her smile faltering. "If a tomcat keeps chasing strays, maybe home just isn't enough for him," she replied coldly. "You are clearly unable to keep him in check."

Rosanna let out a soft sigh and said, "That's true. So once things calm down, I'm planning to get him neutered for good."

Then, she added with a hint of sarcasm, "Still, I do feel a bit bad for that female cat that keeps hanging around downstairs for my cat. She's still in heat; what's she going to do?"

Millie's anger showed on her face, but she didn't snap at Rosanna since other people were around.

Their exchange stopped as the elevator doors slid open.

Millie escorted Rosanna and the others to the top floor before walking away.

Backstage, Cecily Mason, Rosanna's makeup artist, leaned in and whispered, "When you brought up the cat story, I saw that Miss Rogers didn't look too happy. She looked at you with a lot of hostility. She's Oliver's favorite, and not someone we could afford to mess with. Be more careful next time you speak to her."

"Oliver's favorite, huh?" Rosanna murmured, her voice laced with sarcasm. "Definitely not someone I could afford to cross."

Everyone in Qegan knew Oliver had feelings for Millie. What they didn't know was that Rosanna was actually his wife.

Rosanna reminded herself that her health mattered more than petty love triangles. This mess wasn't worth her energy.

The year-end party was set for five in the evening in the big conference room at the top of the Marshall Group building.

Just last week, the Marshall Group finalized their collaboration with the TV station, and by yesterday afternoon, the director of the year-end event, Jeffrey Brewer, had already brought in the camera and lighting team to get everything in place.

Rosanna and her co-emcee took the stage for a run-through.

With more than three years at the TV station under her belt and over countless major events behind her, handling a room of under a thousand guests was a breeze for Rosanna.

Once she and the male emcee had gone over their cues and roles, Rosanna slipped backstage, settling into a quiet spot to review her lines.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps filled the entrance. A young assistant's voice echoed. "Mr. Marshall and Ms. Rogers have arrived."

Upon hearing that, Rosanna bit her lower lip.

It seemed like the harder she tried to avoid watching Oliver and Millie parade their relationship around, the more the universe shoved them in her face.

She refused to let them get under her skin; her focus stayed glued to the script in her hands.

But barely thirty seconds passed before her gaze involuntarily shifted to Oliver.

He chatted briefly with Jeffrey and then made his way over to say hello to the male emcee.

A moment later, Rosanna heard the familiar footsteps coming her way.

She kept her eyes down and acted as if she hadn't noticed Oliver approaching at all.

"Rosanna, Mr. Marshall has come to visit us," Jeffrey quickly said upon seeing Rosanna like that.

With no other choice, Rosanna stood, gave Oliver a quick look, and greeted him like a stranger. "Mr. Marshall," she said, her voice flat.

"Ms. Williams." Oliver gave her a polite nod, his tone cold but civil. "If there's been any lapse in hospitality here, feel free to point it out. But I'd appreciate it if you didn't make things difficult for my secretary."

Rosanna blinked, stunned by the accusation.

Make things difficult for his secretary?

What was he even talking about?

She hadn't done a thing. As long as Millie didn't start anything, she had no interest in even speaking to her.

Meanwhile, Millie stood quietly behind Oliver, her eyebrows slightly drawn together, looking like someone who needed protection.

"I came here with Rosanna. She and Miss Rogers were just talking about taking care of pets. I think there's been some kind of misunderstanding, Mr. Marshall." Jeffrey chuckled awkwardly, stepping in to mediate. He kept glancing at Rosanna, quietly urging her to apologize and smooth things over.

Now, Rosanna finally understood the situation. Millie had gone straight to Oliver and twisted their brief exchange into some kind of grievance.

So that was why Oliver was here-to get back at her for Millie.

If Millie hadn't taken a jab at her first, she wouldn't have clapped back.

But of course, Oliver only believed what Millie said.

Rosanna knew explaining wouldn't change anything, so there was no point in doing that. She chose to hold her ground and keep what little dignity she had left.

"Mr. Marshall," Rosanna said coolly. "Listen carefully-I'll only say this once. I have never made things difficult for Miss Rogers."

Before Oliver could reply, Jeffrey reached over and gave Rosanna's sleeve a subtle tug, hoping she'd take the hint and stop talking.

Rosanna looked away from Oliver. She gathered her script and turned toward the makeup room.

Behind her, Millie's saccharine voice followed. "I must've overreacted. It's my fault for misjudging Ms. Williams. I'll apologize to her now, and let's just forget this ever happened..."

Rosanna didn't bother listening. She pushed open the makeup room door and entered, with Cecily following close behind.

This year, the Marshall Group had gone all out for the year-end event; there were even separate dressing rooms for the emcees.

Rosanna had brought along three different outfits. After chatting with the male emcee, she had chosen the one that looked more elegant.

While Cecily was doing her makeup, she started chatting casually.

"Even though their social status isn't the same, you can tell by the way she looks at him-Millie really does have feelings for Oliver. But when it comes to his feelings for her... It's hard to say for sure."

Rosanna smiled bitterly. "Your judgment's off. Oliver clearly has deep feelings for Millie as well."

Cecily gave her a curious look. "You sound like you know him."

Rosanna's expression twisted with sarcasm. "I'm not lucky enough to know someone like him."

Cecily narrowed her eyes. "I really get the feeling there's some history between you two. If not that, then maybe he's got his eye on you."

"Don't talk nonsense," Rosanna said quickly. "Everyone in Qegan knows Oliver's heart is with Millie. He only came here today to defend her."

Years of working in a place as cutthroat as the TV station had taught Cecily when to hold back. Sensing she might've touched a nerve, she didn't press the matter.

"Every anchor here has some sort of sponsor behind them. Oliver might be a flirt, but he's handsome and rich. Even if a woman ends up being his little secret, she's hardly losing anything."

Rosanna scoffed, "Maybe... But I bet being his wife feels more like a curse than a dream."

Cecily raised an eyebrow. "Why would you think that? That's not true."

She chuckled knowingly. "Well, no matter how wild he is outside, he still has to do his part at home. You can usually tell a man's performance in bed by his features, like a strong jawline, thick hair... And Oliver? He's got all the signs. I bet he's amazing in bed."

The comment caught Rosanna off guard.

Cecily's casual words had accidentally struck too close to the truth.

For the first two years of their marriage, Rosanna and Oliver had lived like strangers under the same roof. They had slept in different rooms.

Aside from their first time, there had been no physical intimacy between them in those two years.

However, in the third year, Oliver had stumbled into her room drunk one time. That night had changed everything.

No matter how much she resisted him, he always knew how to make her body betray her. She hated that he had that power. Hated it even more that she remembered exactly how good it felt.

"Being his wife means having money to spend and incredible sex. And if they had a kid together, they wouldn't easily get a divorce," Cecily said. "His wife would have no pressure and no need to work. That's a hundred times better than us working so hard every day just to make a living."

Rosanna felt her irritation rising with every word.

But before she could respond, a knock came at the door. Then, the door swung open, and Oliver walked in.