Elizabeth York's scandal remained the top trending topic the following day.
Her management team couldn't suppress the media coverage completely—not with Samuel Mitchell secretly pressuring the press behind the scenes.
Samuel felt quite pleased as he watched the news unfold. After some consideration, he decided to call Elise Scott.
Elise had been following the news as well, and she immediately recognized Samuel's handiwork in the situation.
He was clever enough to use one scandal to bury another, all to protect Mitchell Corp from further damage caused by his own controversies.
"Elise... Do you really think William Levine would publicly support Elizabeth York?" Samuel asked contemptuously when she answered.
Elise had no desire to engage with Samuel, especially since telling him that Elizabeth was actually part of the Levine family would likely give him an aneurysm.
"Do you think William would announce his relationship with Elizabeth or quietly make the scandal disappear?" Samuel continued mocking her. "See? You're just one of his many women."
Elise remained silent, which only seemed to fuel his contempt. "I'm genuinely curious... How exactly did you manage to seduce William? Did you throw yourself at him? You used to push my hands away whenever I tried to touch you before, only to turn out this easy!"
"Oh, I threw myself at him and then some," Elise replied, not bothering with explanations. "As for why I wouldn't let you touch me? Let's just say you weren't worth my time."
"Elise Scott!" Samuel snapped angrily.
"What exactly do you have over William Levine, anyway?" Elise continued her scathing response. "Are you more handsome? Wealthier? More influential? Clearly, you're none of those things, so you have no right to criticize my relationship with him! And let me give you some friendly advice—Sophia has always been obsessed with what I have. She can't stand seeing me with anything better than her. Weren't you ever concerned that Sophia might develop feelings for William?"
"She's nothing like you!" Samuel shouted, furious and unable to tolerate Elise's disdain.
"Well, it's your choice whether to take my advice or not," Elise said before ending the call.
Samuel glared at his phone screen displaying 'call ended.'
He had intended to mock Elise, but she had turned it around and highlighted all his inadequacies!
Then he remembered Sophia's increasingly unpredictable behavior toward him recently...
Frustrated, veins bulged prominently on his forehead.
After hanging up on Samuel, Elise couldn't resist texting William.
[Did you see the news about Elizabeth?]
[I did.]
His reply came quickly, but showed clear indifference.
[Aren't you going to help clear Elizabeth's name? Many people are assuming she has a sugar daddy.]
[She hasn't asked for my help.]
Elise didn't know how to respond to that, but William added: [I never supported her acting career anyway. It might be for the best if this scandal makes her retire.]
[Are you even related?!]
Elise couldn't stop herself from snapping at William.
Even though she had only recently met Elizabeth, she could sense the younger woman's passion for acting—more importantly, Elizabeth possessed natural talent and brought every character she played to life.
Nevertheless, William replied: [We're just cousins.]
Elise rolled her eyes, finally understanding why Elizabeth was so intimidated by William—the man was completely unyielding!
[Elizabeth could always return to Levine Holdings to assist me if she leaves acting. There aren't many Levines available to manage our expanding business.]
It sounded like an explanation from William, but Elise wondered if he was actually boasting.
Who in their right mind would describe their family business as 'expanding' so blatantly?!
Still, something puzzled Elise.
[What about Ethan Parker?]
[You certainly pay him extra attention, don't you?]
Elise could practically feel the jealousy radiating through the phone. She smiled as she typed her response.
[He's helped me on multiple occasions.]
She genuinely considered Ethan someone reliable and trustworthy.