“What happened here?” Willow Sterling pushed her hair aside, revealing the distinct, intimate mark.
“Don’t tell me that dog Zion Hawthorne did this.”
Rowan Keller subconsciously raised a hand to touch it, not expecting a mark to have formed so quickly.
Willow Sterling read the conclusion from her expression.
“It really was him?”
“Mhm,” Rowan Keller admitted.
“That son of a bitch!
He’s messing around with Serena Sterling while still doing this to you.” Willow Sterling’s resentment toward him deepened as she cursed, “What a scumbag, a bastard, a rotten piece of trash!”
Rowan Keller silently agreed.
Willow Sterling was so furious she wanted to castrate him.
“There’s something I want to talk to you about,” Rowan Keller said, having decided after much consideration to just bring it up directly.
Willow Sterling had endless patience for her.
“Go ahead.”
“I might need to crash at your place for a few days.” Even though they were best friends, Rowan Keller preferred to ask first out of basic respect.
“I haven’t found a new apartment yet, and I can’t go back to the old one.”
Zion Hawthorne had changed the passcode.
She couldn’t just shamelessly show up.
‘Besides, she and he should be keeping their distance from each other anyway.’
“This place is your place.
Stay as long as you want.” Willow Sterling knew how stubborn she could be, so she didn’t keep nagging her like before.
“Come over here and register your fingerprint.
That way, you can get in and out easily when I’m not home.”
This time, Rowan Keller obliged.
After her fingerprint was registered, Willow Sterling had planned to help her look into private diamond collectors, but a frantic call from her dad summoned her to the company.
It was an order she couldn’t refuse.
“It’s fine, go take care of your business,” Rowan Keller said, not wanting to get in the way of her important affairs.
“Okay, wait for me at home and text me if anything comes up.” Willow Sterling knew her father wouldn’t call her over unless it was important.
“I’ll be right back.”
Rowan Keller hummed in agreement and saw her to the door.
Willow Sterling’s parents were in a marriage of convenience.
Although they both went their separate ways after the wedding, they doted on Willow.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was their precious little princess.
Less than an hour after she left, a message appeared on Rowan Keller’s phone.
Mr.
Grant: [Hello, is the ring still available?]
Rowan Keller replied quickly: [It is.]
The man asked for her phone number and called her, getting straight to the point.
“I’m very interested in the diamond on that ring you have.
If it’s convenient, let’s meet to discuss the details.
The price is negotiable.”
“And you are?” Rowan Keller wouldn’t rush to meet someone without confirming their identity first.
The man introduced himself. Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
“I’m the CEO of Grant Group, Sidney Grant.”
After speaking, he also sent her his business card and personal information for review.
After confirming the details, Rowan Keller agreed.
“Where should we meet?”
She had heard of Sidney Grant of the Grant Group.
He was known to be an upstanding and good person with a solid reputation in their circles.
Doing business with someone like him was relatively safe.
“Kyoro Grand Hotel, conference room 2801,” Sidney Grant gave her the address.
“I happen to be here for a business meeting.”
Rowan Keller agreed.
“Okay, I’m on my way.”
Although Sidney Grant had a good reputation, just in case, she sent two messages to Willow Sterling to inform her of her whereabouts before she left.
She also activated her phone’s emergency SOS feature so she could ensure her own safety as quickly as possible in case of an accident.
‘After all, there were very few trustworthy people in this world.’
Willow Sterling received the messages immediately.
Just as she was about to take out her phone to look, Mr.
Sterling cleared his throat.
“Are you that eager to get away from me?
We’ve only exchanged a few words and you’re already on your phone.”
“I’m worried Rowan might need me for something,” Willow Sterling said as she unlocked her phone.
“You still haven’t told me why you called me here.”
Mr.
Sterling suddenly snatched the phone from her hand.
“What are you doing?”
“Choose one.” As Mr.
Sterling spoke, his gaze swept over her message list.
Seeing two new messages from the pinned contact she had named “My Every-Dumb-Thing Sharer,” he discreetly shifted the phone and deleted them.
He knew that contact was Rowan Keller.
Willow Sterling: “?”
Willow Sterling didn’t notice what he’d done.
“Choose what?”
“Me, or your phone,” Mr.
Sterling said, giving her no reason to be suspicious.
“Duh, my phone, obviously.” Willow Sterling stood up and snatched her phone back.
“If I chose you, who knows what all your little girlfriends on the side would say about me behind my back.”
Mr.
Sterling didn’t dare respond.
Willow Sterling had no interest in her parents’ love lives, as long as they didn’t try to manage hers.
“If there’s nothing important, I’m heading back.”
“Wait,” Mr.
Sterling said, stalling for time as he recalled someone’s instructions.
“Do you know about Rowan Keller and Zion Hawthorne’s divorce?”
“I do.
“Try to keep your distance from her for a while.
If she’s in trouble, don’t get involved,” Mr.
Sterling warned, not wanting her to be targeted by Zion Hawthorne.
“I know you two are close, but sometimes you have to learn to lay low and avoid the storm.”
Willow Sterling called him a lunatic and left.
After leaving the company, she went to meet with the two private collectors.
If the talks went well, the ring could be sold.
If not, she would have to find another way.
An hour later, Willow Sterling had met with both collectors, but neither would take the ring.
She sent a voice message to Rowan Keller explaining the situation.
“I just talked to those two guys.
Neither of them dares to take the ring.
They said that dog Zion Hawthorne put the word out in our circles that whoever buys it is making an enemy of him.”
After sending that, Willow Sterling sent another message.
“Is there anything you want me to bring back to eat?
We can figure this out slowly.”
But her messages were met with silence, like a stone dropped into the sea.
No messages appeared on Rowan Keller’s phone at all.
From the moment she stepped into conference room 2801, she was fated to receive no messages from anyone.
A signal jammer had been activated for the 25th floor and above.
Rowan Keller noticed this when she checked her phone, and a sense of unease began to creep in.
Although the main door was open, the sight of the two tall, burly bodyguards in black suits standing at the entrance was intimidating.
“Where’s your boss?” Rowan Keller asked the man standing beside her.
“He’s in the adjacent conference room speaking with an important guest.” The man was Sidney Grant’s secretary and answered her question smoothly.
“He should be finished shortly.”
Rowan Keller pursed her lips before asking, “Why is there no signal in here?”
“Our boss’s discussion with the guest is highly confidential.
The jammer was installed specifically to prevent any leaks,” the secretary answered methodically.
“The signal will be back once their meeting is over.”
Rowan Keller nodded, but her heart was still unsettled.
‘She couldn’t receive messages, and she couldn’t send any.
If something unexpected happened, she had no idea how she would contact Willow Sterling.’
Another minute or two passed, but Sidney Grant still hadn’t appeared.
Rowan Keller’s gaze swept around the conference room.
Then she stood up and said politely, “I just remembered my friend is waiting for me downstairs.
I’m going to go down and let her know, so she doesn’t get anxious.”
With that, she walked toward the main door.
However, when she reached the doorway, the two bodyguards extended their arms, blocking her path.
“What is the meaning of this?” Rowan Keller clutched her bag tightly, looking back at the unsmiling secretary.
“My apologies for making you wait, Miss Keller,” Sidney Grant said, his gentle, pleasant voice drifting over as he walked in through the doorway.