Chapter 275

Chapter 275
Claire was about to snap back, anger flaring, but Noreen clamped a hand over her mouth before she could utter a word.
Noreen’s own voice was eerily calm, her face a mask. “She’s drunk and talking nonsense. If you want to press charges, go ahead.”
Without waiting to see Seth’s reaction, she grabbed Claire’s arm and headed for the door.
They didn’t get far before Seth caught Noreen by the arm, pulling her back.
“Explain it to me. Whose life do you think I owe you for? ”
Noreen turned, sharp emotion flickering in her eyes. “Are you sure you want to know? ”
Seth’s hand tightened on her arm, then loosened, then tightened again–like he couldn’t decide whether to hold on or let her go.
Noreen found it almost laughable. Her tone turned icy with scorn. “Looks like you don’t really want to know. Frankly, you don’t deserve to.”
She led Claire out, leaving the room in a heavy, suffocating silence.
Jude opened his mouth several times, wanting to say something, but in the end he stayed silent.
Ten minutes later, Seth snatched up his coat and stormed out.
Healy, who’d watched the whole scene from start to finish, drained the last of his whiskey. Leaning on his hand, he turned to Jude. “So, Jude, who do you think Seth actually loves? ”
Jude didn’t hesitate. “It’s got to be Bianca.” He’d seen it with his own eyes, after all.
Claire couldn’t hold her liquor nearly as well as Noreen. When they got back to their apartment after leaving the bar, she crashed almost immediately.
Noreen, on the other hand, couldn’t sleep at all. Her mind flickered with images–memories, half–formed and elusive, vanishing before she could grasp them.
Not wanting to disturb Claire, she finally got up and stepped out onto the small balcony for some air.
Outside, a light rain had started, pattering softly through the leaves overhead. The damp smell in the air only deepened her sense of heaviness.
As she was heading back inside, Noreen caught sight of a familiar silver–topped Maybach parked discreetly on the curb. If it hadn’t been for the wind and rain, she probably wouldn’t have noticed it at
all.
Under the glow of the streetlamp, she saw the man standing beneath a tree. The rain was barely more than a mist, and the branches offered some shelter, but his clothes were soaked through. He must have been standing there for a long time.
But what was the point of this, really?
Maybe before–before these seven long years–she might have been moved. But now, all she felt was emptiness. It all felt meaningless.
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Chapter 275
Loyalty, sincerity–those things were far too fragile.
She’d learned not to expect them anymore.
The old Noreen, the one who fought for every win, who obsessed over every slight, was gone.
Without hesitation, she turned away, went back inside, closed the balcony door, and crawled into bed.
If he wanted to stand in the rain, she figured, let him. He could drown in it for all she cared.
The next morning, while Noreen was eating the breakfast Claire had made, she mentioned what she’d seen the night before.
“What a performance! Trying to look all tragic and devoted–why couldn’t it have hailed last night and knocked some sense into that bastard?” Claire ranted without restraint, not caring who heard her.
But after venting, she turned gentle again, worry in her voice. “Noreen, you have to keep moving forward. Promise me, okay?”
“I will,” Noreen replied.
The truth was, ever since she’d decided to walk away, she hadn’t even considered looking back. Mistakes, missed chances, regrets–she had no time for any of it. Cool logic and a little bit of heartlessness were what kept her afloat.
After Claire left, Noreen called up Sophia Cole and asked her to help find a new place. She was determined to move out by the end of the week.
“You can count on me!” Sophia promised.
Later that day, Noreen made her way to the offices of Ascendancy Group.
This time, it was the deputy director who greeted her, apologizing for the change. Apparently, Director Lowell was supposed to meet with her, but at the last minute, he’d gotten called away to care for Mr. Harcourt, who’d come down with a nasty cold.
“So I’m stepping in,” the deputy explained. “Director Lowell and Mr. Harcourt are incredibly close. There was even a big meeting scheduled for today, but Director Lowell canceled everything just to take care of him. ”
It was clear from her tone that the woman was a bit of a gossip. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ.net