Chapter 245

Chapter 245
Noreen woke to find the night well underway.
She glanced around the car, but Seth was nowhere in sight, and for a moment her thoughts drifted. Typical Seth, she thought–so irresponsible he’d probably just dumped her on the side of the road and taken off.
But then she realized the car was still there. Any curse words she’d been about to mutter had to be swallowed back.
Noreen got out and started walking home, not planning to say goodbye or even look for him.
She’d barely taken a few steps when a man’s voice, edged with mockery, called out behind her, “So I’m just your chauffeur now? Not even a thank you?”
Busted. Noreen had no choice but to stop and turn toward Seth.
He’d been standing behind a tree–she hadn’t noticed him there before. Looked like he’d been smoking; the ashtray on top of the trash can was overflowing with cigarette butts.
At the sight of them, Noreen wrinkled her nose without thinking.
Once, she would have worried about his health. She would have tried to talk him into quitting, or at least cutting back. But now, all she did was take a step away, not wanting the smoke to reach her.
“If that’s how it is, you can start by paying me back all the ‘thank you’s you owe me,” she said.
Over the past seven years, she’d given him rides far more often than he had her.
Seth took another drag, smoke veiling whatever was flickering in his eyes. Only a faint, raspy note colored his voice. “ Alright. Thank you.”
“That’s not very convincing.”
Just because he said it didn’t mean she had to accept it. Besides, belated gratitude didn’t mean
anything now.
Seth managed a crooked smile. “So what would make it convincing?”
“Wire me five million and we’ll call it even,” she shot back.
She really could have used that money right now. The source of this content ɪs
Seth raised an eyebrow. “What would you do with that much?”
“Hire a harem of male models to keep me entertained.”
Seth let out a half–laugh, half–scoff. “Sorry, can’t help you. Not a penny.”
Then that was that.
Noreen turned and strode off, as cool and unbothered as ever.
This time, Seth didn’t try to stop her.
He took a long, last drag, holding the smoke in until he couldn’t anymore. Only when it slipped from
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Chapter 245
his lips and faded into the night did he look after her–helpless–as if something he’d been holding onto for too long had finally slipped away, leaving nothing behind.
For Noreen, the little episode barely registered. By the next day, she’d already forgotten about it.
It was Sophia, always nosy, who cornered her the next afternoon, eyes bright with gossip. “So, what happened yesterday? Why’d Seth come pick you up for dinner?”
At that moment, Noreen’s mind was too preoccupied with scraping together five million in funding to care about Sophia’s curiosity.
But Sophia pressed on, bold as ever. “You two aren’t getting back together, are you?”
Noreen laughed out loud. “What, do you think I’ve lost my mind or gone blind?”
“Neither,” Sophia replied.
“Exactly,” Noreen said. “So if I’m not blind or crazy, why would I get back with him?”
“I’ve never believed in getting back together anyway. If you really care about something, you don’t break it in the first place.”
“I don’t give second chances. You get it right from the start, or that’s it.”
A mistake was a mistake. Some things you just couldn’t undo.
The Port Redevelopment Project was breathing down her neck, and Noreen needed to land investors before the tender meeting.
She called Dylan, asking if he was free for lunch.
He said yes.
Noreen made a reservation and texted him the address.
Meanwhile, Dylan told his assistant to cancel his international flight and push the business trip back.
The assistant was stunned. “But this trip is crucial for Omniva Group’s expansion and keeping our biggest clients-”
“Just reschedule it,” Dylan cut her off.
“ …Understood.”
Dylan actually arrived at the restaurant before Noreen did. By the time she walked in, he’d already ordered for both of them.
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