Chapter
Calvert was in a real pickle, trying to decide whether to hand over his phone case or head to the funeral home to pick out a casket, when Everard, said with a hint of favoritism, âCordelia sure treats me differently.â
Lowering his gaze to the pen in his hand, Everard added, âSheâs into her studies, not to her phone.â
Calvert, having narrowly escaped disaster, was speechless. He said, âYouâre right, boss, youâre one of a kind. Thank goodness you were there last night, otherwise that imposter wouldâve gotten away. I thought it was just a simple scam, but it turned out to be a pro.â
Everard cut in coolly. âYouâre just too useless.â
Calvert tried again, âThe cops said theyâve recovered most of the money. When are we giving it back?â
Hearing this, Everardâs eyes darkened, âNo rush.â
Let the Smiths and the Delaneys sweat and scrape by for a while for daring to mess with Cordelia. If it werenât for his reputation, heâd hold onto that money himself, to get back at them for Cordelia.
Meanwhile, after leaving Midnight Scent, Sanderson sent the candid photos heâd snapped to Lorna.
Lorna replied quickly, âCuto
but not sugarâmommy material, right? He is definitely not as hot as Lia, no wonder the price tag was just 300 bucks.â
Sanderson was at a loss for words.
After messaging Lorna, and thinking about the chilly scene at Midnight Scent, he decided to lend a hand.
At the office, he went straight to the procurement department, dropped the name and address of Midnight Scent, and said, âFrom now on, letâs get all our office supplies from them.â
With such a client, those two at Midnight Scent would make a living. But to his surprise, half a day later, the procurement manager came to him, âMr. Delaney, they wonât sell to us.â
Sanderson was stunned, âWhy not?â
âThey said the order was too big, too much of a hassle to count, and they didnât want to do the grunt work of loading up the goods.â
Hearing it, Sanderson was speechless.
No wonder, despite the size of Midnight Scent, they werenât making much money.
At school.
Cordelia handed out the gifts sheâd bought for everyone. When she gave one to Merry, she tore it open on the spot and gushed like a chatterbox, âWow, Lia, how did you know I love this brandâs phone case? Iâm too broke to afford it right now. I canât believe you got it for me, and in pink, my favorite color. You really do spoil me, Lia. By the way, what did you get for Yates and the others?â
âThey got red phone cases,â Cordelia replied.
Merry chuckled, âSo you got us all phone cases, huh?â
Cordeliaâs eyes flickered. She wasnât a good liar so she looked down at her book before replying, âYeah, thatâs right.â
But she had bought something different for someone special.
While shopping, she felt a phone case just wasnât right for Everard. He was different from the rest.
Their peers, Little Fang, Little Flame, and even Little Parrot, were always on their phones, but Everard was the only one engrossed in thoughtâprovoking books. So when she saw that sleek fountain pen, she bought it without hesitation.
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His fingers were long and beautiful, and she imagined him holding the pen. The thought made her thrill. His serious demeanor while reading had an oddly enticing effect on her.
Cordella always found teasing a bit childish, like when the orphanage director would try to amuse her, and sheâd feel helpless. But today, seeing Everard, usually calculating and confident, thrown off by her teasing, it was somehow amusing.
âLia, is this problem hard?â Merryâs voice pulled Cordella from her thoughts.
She looked up to find Merry curiously peering at her book, âYou this problem for ten minutes.â
ally work so fast, but youâve been staring at
Sheâd just been lost in thought for ten minutes? She looked closer and realized it was a simple physics. multipleâchoice question about leverage. She coughed, âYeah.â
Merry scratched her head, âSeems like the answer should be C, right? Or did I get it wrong?â
Merryâs grades were always near the bottom, but even in their advanced class, the basics were covered. Such a simple question was hard to play dumb on.
Thankfully, Latham began the lesson, and Merry turned away, sparing Cordelia further embarrassment.
After class, Merry proudly paraded her new phone case around, eliciting envious glances and remarks like, âHey, a new phone case?â
With a smug smile, Merry boasted, âYes, a gift from Lia.â
Others looked on with envy. Could Merryâs phone case carry a bit of Liaâs luck?
Hayley snorted, âWhatâs the big deal? Itâs just a phone case. Whatâs there to show off about? Who canât afford one?â
Juliana was angry after hearing that. Sheâd been distracted all day because of a family crisis, down to her last two grand, she couldnât afford a new case.
Then she caught Hanley looking at her. As their eyes met, Hanley quickly looked away.
Juliana clenched her fists. The Fosters must know about her familyâs trouble. What did that mean for their engagement?
In the following days, the Smiths and the Delaneys were at the police station daily, asking about the. investigation. Calvert, however, seemed to have vanished without a trace, leaving everyone to give up hope. Cordeliaâs life was smooth sailing, with Hackettâs birthday just around the corner. Lorna had hired a tailor to come over and take Cordeliaâs measurements for a customâmade dress.
On a Saturday evening, Lorna and Larry picked Cordelia up from school, and the family of three headed to Delaney Manor for dinner.
This tradition was a request from Steward when the family split. He wanted to prevent the branches of the family from drifting apart, and above all, he cherished the idea of family unity. Sanderson was determined not to let Steward down
As they stepped out of the car, the sounds of a dispute echoed from inside the old house.
Cordelia and Lorna walked in to hear the sobs of Kermit, âSanderson, I really realize my mistake, please help me out. You canât just stand by and watch us starve, can you?â
Sanderson frowned, âItâs not like weâre out of food at home. Is it that hard to live a little more frugally for a while? At the very least, when next monthâs company dividends come in, youâll have enough to get by.â
His words had barely faded when Rachel burst into tears, âBut time waits for no one. Hackettâs birthday is almost here, and we donât even have two decent outfits to wear.â
It was then that Laurinda spoke up, âItâs not a lot of money. Since Rachel has mentioned it, why donât you cover the cost of our outfits for the occasion?â
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Chapter 102
[The moment youâve all been waiting for is coming soon⦠Donât rush! Please leave your comments, folks
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