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Chapter 16
“Man, you’ve got some nerve,” Scarlett finished with disgust..
Sarah, amused by her friend’s outburst, couldn’t help but smile.
James frowned. “My mother threw you out? You were sick?”
Playing concerned now?
Sarah glanced at the courthouse doors, finding the whole thing ironically funny.
“Yes,” she said flatly. “So, Mr. Chancer, if you care at all, handle the paperwork quickly. Let’s avoid any more…
misunderstandings.”
She pulled Scarlett away before James could respond.
As soon as she left, James called Charlotte about yesterday’s events.
“I wanted to let her stay,” Charlotte said, sounding apologetic. “But your mother… well, you know how she feels about Sarah. She
called the security before I could do anything else.”
James felt oddly uncomfortable. “Charlotte, that house was meant to be hers.”
Meanwhile, Sarah opened her phone to find a flood of messages from Steven,
“We could do $3,000?”
“Even $2,500 works!!!”
“Hello???”
“You there?”
“Price is totally negotiable!!!”
Sarah couldn’t help but let out a laughter.
At the Reynolds estate, Steven stared dejectedly at his phone. “Boss, she’s not responding. I offered $2,500! Is that still too
much?”
Zachary arranged roses in a vase, unhurried. “Give it time.”
Steven studied him suspiciously. “What’s your plan? It’s your apartment – why not just offer it to her directly? If you like her,
why pretend to be not involved?”
Zachary gave him a look, trimming excess leaves. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Maybe not,” Steven muttered. “But she’s divorced now. Didn’t think you’d go for someone who was married…”
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He stumbled mid–sentence, nearly face–planting.
Looking up pitifully, he saw Zachary wiping his hands, elegantly passing by his side.
“Talk too much,” his boss murmured, as his expensive leather shoes gleamed with a warm yet suspicious luster. (2)
As Steven steadied himself, Sarah’s reply came through,
“Thanks, Mt. Miller, but let’s stick to market rate. We can view the apartment whenever you’re free.”
Steven showed Zachary the message helplessly. “Boss, she wants market rate…”
Zachary raised an eyebrow and then smiled tenderly, a rare sight. “Market rate it is, then.”
Later that night at Mirage Lounge, James sat surrounded by his usual crowd, drinking silently. D
His friends kept their distance, gossiping among themselves, “So he really got divorced? Charlotte must be next, right?”
“Obviously. Her parents are already in town.”
“Better match anyway. Sarah was… you know. No degree, no family background, just an orphan.”
“Hey, that’s not fair. Remember when James hit rock bottom? Sarah pulled some big contracts for him.”
James’s head snapped up. “What did you
say?”
