Chapter 887

This was the guard's first time seeing Joe with a woman. Though dumbfounded, she maintained a composed expression. After Joe and Skylar entered the elevator, she texted Paul: “Mr. Ziegler, Mr. Martin brought a beautiful woman to the office. Is she his future wife? Mr. Martin seems very kind to her; he held the door for her and let her enter the elevator first.”

For others, this was merely gentlemanly behavior. However, Joe never acted this way. Hadn't everyone assumed Vera was his future wife, as the gossip columns suggested? Anyone witnessing them together would have thought so.

Paul replied minutes later: “Trust your intuition, but avoid excessive gossip.”

She understood immediately. Skylar was Joe's wife, but she couldn't tell anyone.

Skylar and Joe took the elevator directly to his office, which occupied the entire floor. The view was spectacular; they could see the entire Jipsburg skyline from his window.

“Do you like it?” Joe asked, noticing Skylar’s thoughtful gaze out the window.

Skylar turned to him. “This is my first time seeing Jipsburg from this angle. It’s… unusual.”

Joe smirked. “I’ll take you to the rooftop later.”

“Alright.”

She began examining his office. It was sparsely decorated, lacking antiques; instead, a few modern art pieces adorned the space. There were clearly no negative items present.

Skylar smiled. Joe was very observant in this regard, perhaps influenced by Skylar’s experience with such items.

She approached his desk, which was minimally cluttered: a computer, a file, and a pen holder with several fountain pens. Skylar imagined the weekday chaos of files and contracts he likely reviewed.

Joe followed Skylar's movements. He raised an eyebrow as she paused before his desk. He’d recently decluttered; it used to hold more items.

“Is there a problem?” he asked.

Skylar started to shake her head, but then her eyes fixed on the pen holder. “It looks fine. But may I examine the pens and the holder?”

“Sure.” Joe followed her gaze. He usually used those pens to sign contracts.

Skylar removed the pens and scrutinized the holder. It was a beautiful, modern piece; nothing appeared amiss.

Yet…

She sensed something was wrong.

Then, she examined each pen individually. Her gaze sharpened upon seeing a luxurious, custom fountain pen. Skylar removed the cap.