Chapter 182

Harrison narrowed his eyes, a quiet calculation flickering in their depths.
Helen mustered her courage and, half-testing, half-intentionally, said, “You probably don’t know this, but Anastasia is quite the center of attention now. There’s even a whole online thread at our university dedicated to her, saying she’s the real campus queen-and loads of guys are dying to date her!”
She leaned in a little, lowering her voice conspiratorially. “If you ever need, I could pass along some information for you
The air was utterly still.
Harrison’s long fingers curled, tapping lightly against the armrest of his chair. His gaze, cold and fathomless, fixed on Helen.
The pressure was suffocating. Helen could hardly breathe.
Just as her anxiety peaked-right when she thought she might collapse-his deep, richly resonant voice broke the silence.
“Logan, show her out.”
The tension drained from Helen’s body and she all but collapsed, boneless, onto the floor.
She knew she’d made the right gamble.
At Kingsbridge University, Anastasia had no idea that someone had just tried to cozy up to her husband-right under her own roof, no less.
She noticed Helen’s absence in class that morning, but didn’t give it much thought.
It wasn’t until near the end of the lecture that Helen slipped in through the back door. Even with a mask on, it was obvious-both sides of her face were swollen, as if someone had given her a good beating. Follow current novels on.net
Logan’s handiwork, no doubt. He might’ve let Helen off easy, but after all the nasty things she’d said about Anastasia, there was no way she’d get away without a little payback.
Anastasia also noticed the way Helen looked at her now-equal parts jealousy and fear, as if something had happened.
She narrowed her eyes for a moment, then dismissed it. Not worth her attention.
A few minutes later, class ended.
Anastasia gathered her things and headed out to meet Juliet.
Though they weren’t in the same program, their classes this morning happened to
be in the same building, so they’d agreed to walk out together.
“Anastasia!” Juliet called out, dashing over, her face lighting up.
Anastasia’s expression softened. The two cousins linked arms and walked out into the courtyard.
Suddenly, a plaintive voice called after them: “Anastasia, Juliet!”
They both stopped in their tracks, their faces turning cold in perfect unison.
Penelope.
Penelope looked pale and fragile, the picture of wounded innocence.
A glacial smile curled at Anastasia’s lips.
Juliet had been falsely accused, and Anastasia had been planning to confront Penelope about it—she hadn’t expected Penelope to come running to them herself.
“Anastasia, why did you have to slander me?” Penelope’s voice trembled, her eyes red as if she might burst into tears. “Everyone says I tried to steal Sandra’s boyfriend, but that’s not true! I know you’re biased toward Juliet—she is your cousin, after all-but it was Juliet who cheated with Samuel, not me. There’s actual proof. How could you accuse me?”
“Or do you just want to ruin my life?”
The scent of drama was in the air. A crowd began to gather, people recognizing Penelope and whispering about the hotel incident.
Penelope felt every one of those stares, each one a knife to her pride. She hated Anastasia with every fiber of her being. She’d known this would happen the moment she decided to confront them, but she’d had no choice.
Thanks to Anastasia, everyone knew the truth now: she was just the Sterling family’s stepdaughter, her grades were nowhere near good enough for Kingsbridge-she’d bought her way in-and the jewelry she flaunted actually belonged to Anastasia’s late mother.
No one had a clue what she’d been through these past few days.
And now, when things were already unbearable, Anastasia was spreading rumors that Penelope had seduced Samuel.
If that stuck, she’d never survive at Kingsbridge.
So today, no matter what, she had to pin this mess firmly back on Juliet.