Chapter 2

Lily's POV

The apartment in East City was tiny, not even big enough to store my parachute pack.

I spent the entire night packing up the equipment I'd once treasured like precious possessions, stuffing them one by one into the cramped storage room.

At dawn, Payton's secretary called.

"Mrs. Payton, Mr. Payton has instructed that for next month's extreme sports reality show, he hopes you can help Miss Sophia."

The hand wiping my helmet paused. "Sophia? Isn't she afraid of heights?"

The secretary gave an awkward laugh. "Miss Sophia says... she wants to challenge herself. After all, Mr. Payton feels this show has very high viewership, which would help Miss Sophia's career..."

"And Mr. Payton's intention is for you to serve as her dedicated safety instructor, protecting her throughout."

Have a world champion serve as a safety instructor for a delicate female celebrity?

And watch my own husband dote on another woman in front of a national audience?

"I refuse." I coldly uttered those words.

"Mrs. Payton..." The secretary's voice lowered. "Mr. Payton said if you refuse, Payton Corporation will withdraw all sponsorship of your skydiving team for the second half of the year."

I shut my eyes tightly. My heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand.

Payton, you're so cruel to me.

My team had over a dozen colleagues who'd been with me for a long time. They desperately needed this sponsorship to maintain the high training costs.

"Fine." After hanging up, I looked at myself in the mirror with reddened eyes and forced out a smile more painful than crying.

The debt I owed Payton. I was close to finally paying it off.

On the day of filming, the weather was hot.

Sophia wore a custom pink skydiving suit and was surrounded by a cluster of assistants as she approached.

She wore delicate makeup and had her hair carefully styled. She didn't look like someone here to skydive. More like she was walking a red carpet.

Payton followed beside her, holding a parasol, carefully shading her from the sun.

"Hello, Lily." Sophia walked up to me with a sweet smile. "I'm really afraid of heights. Payton insisted I try skydiving. You must protect me, okay?"

I handed her a set of basic protective gear with an expressionless face. "Put it on. Check the buckles."

Sophia suddenly cried out, looking at Payton with grievance. "Payton, this buckle is so hard. It hurt my hand."

Payton immediately dropped the umbrella, took her hand with concern and blew on it gently, then turned to look at me coldly. "Lily, can't you help her? What am I paying you for?"

The surrounding crew members all turned to look, their eyes full of curiosity.

I took a deep breath, stepped forward, and efficiently fastened Sophia's safety buckles, tightening the straps.

"It hurts! Be gentler!" Sophia's eyes immediately reddened.

Payton shoved me aside and shielded Sophia behind him.

"Lily, you did that on purpose, didn't you?" His eyes were icy, as if I were a criminal.

The push made me stumble backward, my back hitting the hard cabin door.

"Skydiving isn't acting. If the straps aren't tight, there could be an accident." I looked straight into his eyes, my voice completely flat. "If Mr. Payton is worried about her, you can take her and leave right now."

Payton's expression was terrible. He was about to speak when Sophia tugged at his sleeve. "Payton, Miss Lily is just looking out for me. I'm fine. I can handle it."

He glanced at me coldly. "If anything happens to Sophia, even one hair on her head, I'll make you pay."

The plane took off. As altitude increased, the cabin pressure began to change. Sophia's face turned pale. She clutched Payton's arm tightly, trembling all over.

"Payton, I'm scared... I don't want to jump anymore..." Her voice took on a tearful quality.

Payton held her tightly, constantly comforting her, then turned and roared at the pilot. "Turn back! Can't you see she's uncomfortable!"

The pilot looked at me somewhat helplessly. "Miss Lily, this..."

"We can't turn back." I looked calmly at the instrument panel. "The air currents are unstable right now. Forcing a landing is too risky. We must either jump at the designated altitude or circle to burn fuel."

"I told you to turn back, don't you understand!" Payton suddenly stood up, rushed over to me, and grabbed my collar. "Lily, do you want to make Sophia uncomfortable? You crazy woman!"

Looking at him, I suddenly felt utterly absurd.

I was a professional skydiving athlete using my professional knowledge to protect everyone's safety, yet in his eyes, I'd become a vicious woman jealous of someone else.

"Payton, let go." I said coldly.

Just then, the plane suddenly encountered strong turbulence. The fuselage shook violently. Sophia screamed and fainted.

Chaos erupted in the cabin. I quickly steadied myself and checked Sophia's vital signs. She'd only fainted from extreme fright. Nothing serious.

But Payton had completely lost his rationality. He shoved me away, held Sophia tightly in his arms, and glared at me with bloodshot eyes. "Get away! Don't touch her!"

I sat on the cold metal floor, watching him hold another woman while trembling, and my heart felt like it was being pierced by millions of needles simultaneously. The pain made even breathing taste of blood.