Chapter 21
Sometimes, the three of them played cards together, but other times, Helen would slip away to meet up with the new guy she had just met.
Over the past couple of days, Emily had gone out of her way to avoid Justin, and luckily, they hadn’t crossed paths again.
In the parking lot, Helen’s car was still damaged from the accident and had been towed for repairs. Sean offered to arrange a car and driver to take them home.
Helen was impressed. “Wow, Sean! I didn’t expect this. You’re really stepping up!”
Sean had been quick and generous with the compensation, and arranging a car for their ride home was a nice touch. After spending these last few days with him, Helen, who wasn’t one to hold a grudge, had completely forgiven him.
Sean flashed a bright smile, his youthful face beaming. “It’s the least I could do.”
He called his friends over to help load Emily and Helen’s suitcases into the trunk. If he hadn’t had plans with his buddies, he would have driven Emily home himself.
Emily and Helen waved as they got into the car. “Alright, see you around!”
“See you, Sean’s girl!” Sean’s friends chimed in unison, with the red–haired guy shouting the loudest.
Now that they knew Sean’s interest wasn’t in the “old woman” from the parking lot incident, they couldn’t be happier. His mood was completely lifted.
Helen, now settled in the car, rolled down the window and called out to Sean, “So that’s why you’ve been so helpful lately. You crashed my car and ended up falling for my friend, huh?” She playfully reached an arm out, pretending to claw at him.
“Sean, cut it out! That’s not funny,” Emily said sternly, her tone a clear warning.
Seeing that Emily was annoyed, Sean turned and gave his friend a light kick, scolding him for running his mouth. He signaled the driver to get moving.
As the car pulled away, Helen’s voice drifted off in the wind. “Sean, you sly devil. Here I was, thinking you were such a stand–up guy.”
“Seriously, Sean,” the red–haired friend slung an arm around Sean’s shoulders. “You’re really interested in that old woman’s friend?”
Sean brushed his arm off and gave him a look. “Hey, watch your mouth. She’s like a sister, alright? Don’t go calling her ‘old.“”
The way he said ‘sister‘ had a noticeably different tone, suggesting a special affection.
“No way! You’re serious? So, it’d be a bit of an age gap, huh?”
The boys laughed and joked as they got into their own car and drove off.
Meanwhile, Justin stood by the window of his room, on the phone, catching sight of Sean seeing Emily off. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he could tell from the scene that they were in good spirits.
His expression was anything but pleased, though it was hard to tell if it was because of the phone call or what he was seeing below. His voice grew even colder as he spoke.
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+15 BONUS
Chapter 21
“Yes, I’ll be at the office this afternoon. Schedule the meeting for then,” he said, cutting off the conversation once he had received all the updates. Hanging up, his expression was unreadable, as if he didn’t care at all.
Just then, the doorbell rang. Justin opened the door to find Emma standing there.
“Justin, have you packed yet?” she asked cheerfully, her suitcase by her side.
Somehow, he had managed to smooth things over with her after that night, and by the next day, they were back to normal, as if nothing had happened.
“There’s still a little left to pack,” he replied, stepping aside to let her in.
