Chapter 1026
Noreen opened her mouth, her throat suddenly dry. Just as she was about to nervously agree, the phone in her purse rang at the most spectacular worst possible moment.
The name “Claire Chase” flashed on the screen, like a bucket of ice water dumped directly on their heads.
She shot Seth an apologetic look and hit answer.
Claire’s excited voice rang out from the speaker. “Honey, Sophia Cole told me you got off work early! Perfect! Let’s go shopping! Your birthday party is coming up, so we need to pick out some gorgeous clothes and jewelry!”
Faced with Claire’s overwhelming enthusiasm, Noreen couldn’t bring herself to refuse and quickly agreed.
When she hung up, a terrifyingly low air pressure settled over the dead silence in
the car.
Gripping her phone, Noreen carefully turned her head.
She was met with the man’s tightly clenched jawline.
It was painfully obvious how deeply resentful he was.
He looked like a large, dangerous cat whose owner had fed him one bite of steak before snatching the bowl away. His entire aura screamed, *I am furious* and *You are playing with my feelings.*
“Claire again.”
He ground his back teeth, his husky voice steeped in pure, unadulterated bitterness and frustration.
“Next time, absolutely next time,” Noreen quickly tried to soothe his ruffled feathers.
Having grown accustomed to her empty promises, Seth begrudgingly accepted his fate.
He even drove her straight to the mall where she was supposed to meet Claire.
Before getting out, Noreen tactfully leaned over and pressed a few soft kisses to his lips. “Don’t be mad.”
Seth grabbed the back of her head, giving her a mild, punishing bite on the lip before reluctantly letting her go. “Go on. Go see your real partner.”
Noreen nearly burst out laughing at his dramatic jealousy.
She kissed him one last time before stepping out, mimicking his usual commanding tone. “Good boy.”
Inside the mall, Claire was texting Sophia Cole.
Claire: *Bottom line, report her location to me at all times. I’m going to intercept
them at every turn! I will not let jerk Seth get a single opportunity!*
Sophia Cole replied meekly: *Is this really a good idea?*
When gods fight, mortals suffer.
And Sophia was very much the terrified mortal…
Shaking in her boots.
Claire boldly guaranteed her safety: *Don’t worry, my status is way higher than jerk Seth’s right now. I can protect you.*
Claire was starting to feel like a full-blown psychopath.
On one hand, she furiously wished that miserable bastard Seth would stay the hell away from her precious friend.
On the other, she felt terribly guilty for actively sabotaging her friend’s hard-won romance.
She kept ping-ponging between the two extremes, feeling diabolically evil.
Noreen arrived right on schedule, and Claire instantly pocketed her phone grinning as she looped her arn through Noreen’s. “Come on! Let’s go blow some cash!”
They hadn’t enjoyed a carefree shopping spree like this in ages, and they ended up buying quite a bit.
Finally, they wandered into a high-end luxury jewelry boutique to pick out some accessories.
The second they walked in, Claire spotted the store’s newest crown jewel.
It was The Amore Diamond Bib.
It featured five layers of flawless, natural diamonds cascading in a minimalist, precision 18K white gold setting.
Under the store’s brilliant spotlights, the entire piece shimmered like a flowing river of stars.
With unparalleled fire and top-tier clarity, it rested in all its extravagant glory on the velvet display bust.
It was completely mesmerizing.
“Honey, try this on! You would look absolutely stunning in it!”
Unable to refuse, Noreen let the sales associate bring it over to try on.
Just as Claire had predicted, the necklace perfectly elevated Noreen’s elegant aura.
She made the call immediately. “We’ll take it!”
While Noreen went into the fitting room to take off her other pieces, Claire handed her credit card to the associate.
Just as the associate opened the payment system and prepared
swipe anew group of custom et
strolled into the boutique.
Jasmine was leading the pack. She marched straight to the cash register and demanded, heard you got a new cet of high end jewelry in Bring it out for us to see.”