Chapter 324 Two Impossible Goals
Samantha didn’t leave Sky High Technologies right away.
Nor did she head upstairs for the shareholders’ meeting.
Her heart was pounding so hard it almost hurt, but she forced herself to think rationally.
She couldn’t rush to Ryan with nothing more than a suspicion.
First, she needed proof.
Using a delivery app, she ordered an at-home pregnancy test and waited in the lobby until it arrived.
The moment it did, she hurried into the women’s restroom.
She tested herself once.
Then again.
Then a third time.
Every result was the same.
Two unmistakable pink lines.
Samantha stared at the tests in silence.
Her fingers slowly tightened around them.
Whether the baby belonged to Ryan or not didn’t matter.
Right now...
This child was the strongest bargaining chip she had.
Throwing away an opportunity like this would be foolish.
The last traces of hesitation disappeared from her face.
She tucked one of the test sticks into her purse and walked decisively out of the building.
A notification from Sky High flashed across her phone.
[You were scheduled to attend today’s shareholder meeting. Your absence will be recorded as a voluntary abstention from all votes and resolutions.]
She dismissed it without reading the rest.
None of that mattered anymore.
As soon as she stepped onto the sidewalk, she called Ryan.
The phone rang.
No answer.
She didn’t hesitate.
Flagging down a yellow cab, she gave the driver the address of Kingswell Group headquarters in Midtown Manhattan.
At this hour, Ryan was almost certainly still in his office.
During the ride, she called Daisy.
"I took three tests," Samantha said.
"They’re all positive."
Daisy let out an excited breath.
"I knew it."
Samantha wasn’t nearly as relieved.
"My biggest problem isn’t Ryan."
"It’s Ethan."
"If he finds out I’m pregnant, he’ll never leave me alone. He could ruin everything before I even get the chance to talk to Ryan."
After all...
A pregnancy couldn’t be explained away as easily as a drunken one-night mistake.
The Knight family wasn’t easy to fool.
Daisy thought for a moment.
"He only knows the two of you were together that one night," she said.
"He has no idea whether you’ve been sleeping with Ryan since then."
"If he ever starts asking questions, adjust the timeline."
She lowered her voice.
"Tell a small lie about when you conceived."
"The important person isn’t Ethan."
"It’s Ryan."
"As long as Ryan believes the baby is his, everything else can be managed."
Samantha slowly nodded.
That made sense.
By the time the cab reached Midtown, she had almost convinced herself everything would work out.
She even caught herself smiling.
Nervous.
Excited.
Hopeful.
The taxi pulled up in front of Kingswell Tower.
The receptionist recognized Samantha immediately.
She had been coming and going from the building for years.
No visitor badge.
No appointment.
No questions.
She was waved straight through.
Just as she stepped toward the executive elevators—
Someone suddenly grabbed her wrist.
A familiar body leaned close behind her.
"What a coincidence."
Ethan’s lazy voice carried a mocking smile.
"Fancy meeting you here."
The fantasy she’d been building shattered instantly.
Every ounce of excitement disappeared.
Samantha jerked her arm free and spun around.
"Ethan."
Her expression hardened.
"Watch yourself."
"We haven’t had anything to do with each other in a long time."
She instinctively looked around.
Fortunately, the lobby wasn’t crowded.
The morning rush had long since ended.
Watching her pretend to be untouchable made Ethan laugh.
"So you’ve already started acting like my future sister-in-law."
His smile dripped with contempt.
"That’s ambitious."
He had never doubted Ryan cared about Samantha.
But Ryan wasn’t the only person who mattered.
The Knight family wasn’t ruled by one man.
Their grandfather would never willingly welcome someone like Samantha into the family.
If the old man had been back in New York instead of overseas, Ethan doubted this scandal would have lasted more than a week.
Samantha—and the entire Hill family—would have been erased from Manhattan’s social circles already.
His words made Samantha’s face tighten.
"Show some dignity."
"If you end up in prison, don’t expect me to wait around for you."
Ethan chuckled.
"So that’s it."
"You decided aiming higher was easier."
"You only dated me because you wanted Ryan."
Samantha didn’t deny it.
Years ago, she’d assumed Rose had disappeared for good.
She imagined Rose living somewhere in a tiny Midwestern town, married to an ordinary man, raising a handful of children far from New York.
Finding out instead that Rose had married Ryan Knight—the most eligible billionaire in the city—and become Mrs. Knight had been almost impossible to accept.
She had never believed Rose was better than she was.
She certainly wasn’t willing to accept that Rose had won.
"Believe whatever you want."
She turned to leave.
She had no interest in arguing.
The only person she cared about seeing today was Ryan.
Before she could take another step, Ethan grabbed her again.
This time, he dragged her through a heavy fire door into an empty emergency stairwell.
The metal door slammed shut behind them.
Samantha’s pulse spiked.
"What are you doing?"
"This is Kingswell Tower."
"If you touch me, I’ll—"
"You’ll scream?"
Ethan smiled.
He stepped closer.
Close enough that she had to back against the concrete wall.
"Go ahead."
His voice dropped.
"But before you do..."
"I’ll give you one choice."
He leaned toward her.
"If you don’t want me walking into Ryan’s office this minute and telling him exactly what happened between us that night..."
"...you’re going to help me."
Samantha stared at him.
"What are you talking about?"
"I want a copy of Ryan’s confidential expansion proposal."
He spoke as casually as if asking for coffee.
"The strategy for Kingswell Group’s AI infrastructure and clean-energy division."
"The board presentation for the second half of the year."
Samantha’s eyes widened.
"You’re insane."
She’d heard enough whispers to understand what he meant.
The project represented tens of billions of dollars in future investment.
Wall Street was already speculating about it.
Government regulators were watching it.
Inside the Knight family, everyone wanted a piece of it.
Ryan controlled the initiative.
Ethan wanted to take it away.
He wasn’t asking her for a favor.
He wanted her to become a corporate spy.
To betray Ryan.
Seeing the anger trembling through her body only amused Ethan.
He casually patted her cheek—a gesture so condescending it made her skin crawl.
"You can refuse."
He shrugged.
"But I still have the video from that night."
His smile widened.
"I wonder what my brother would think if he watched it."
The blood drained from Samantha’s face.
She had spent the entire cab ride rehearsing how to convince Ryan this baby belonged to him.
Now Ethan had appeared out of nowhere.
One sentence from him could destroy everything.
She clenched her fists.
"What makes you so sure I can get it?"
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
"My brother trusts you more than anyone."
"Everyone in this building knows you’re free to walk into his office whenever you want."
"He’d never suspect you."
That was exactly why Ethan had chosen her.
Ryan had held the upper hand within Kingswell Group for too long.
If Ethan couldn’t wrest control of this new strategic division away from him, he’d spend the rest of his career living in his brother’s shadow.
Silence filled the stairwell.
Finally...
Samantha lowered her eyes.
"I’ll do it."
She had no choice.
Her own future depended on Ryan believing this pregnancy was his.
Nothing could interfere with that.
Ethan smiled with satisfaction.
He gently brushed a strand of hair away from her face.
"That’s my girl."
"I’ll be waiting."
Still smiling, he turned and walked back toward the executive offices.
Samantha remained where she was.
Disgust churned inside her.
The moment he disappeared, she furiously wiped the spot on her cheek where he’d touched her.
After taking several steadying breaths, she straightened her clothes.
Then she walked toward Ryan’s office.
She now had two impossible goals.
Convince Ryan to marry her.
And somehow steal the most valuable confidential document in Kingswell Group without destroying everything she’d worked for.