“You mean it’s not the worst?” Alexander couldn’t help but laugh.
“Of course not!” Evie looked at him, her smile growing even brighter.
Alexander shook his head, still amused. The driver opened the back door. Alexander gestured for Evie to get in first, then followed her inside.
The driver closed the door, returned to his seat, and pulled away from the hotel.
From a corner of the lobby, Grace watched Alexander hold Evie’s shoulder as they walked out and got into the car.
A wave of emptiness washed over her. Her heart ached, but she felt powerless.
From the moment she was born, she was never meant to have a future with Alexander.
All the happiness she had stolen was fleeting.
She had been so cruel in the end, hoping he would remember her forever—even if it was through hatred.
Inside the car, Evie bit her lip. She wanted to tell Alexander she had seen Grace in the lobby.
She hesitated. The driver was there. It wasn’t the right time.
When they returned to Sterling Manor, Alexander asked, “Is there something you want to tell me?”
“I saw Grace in the hotel lobby tonight,” Evie finally admitted.
“So?” Alexander looked at her calmly.
“Nothing. I just thought you should know,” Evie replied.
“Do you report every time you run into someone you know?” Alexander asked, ruffling her hair with a soft laugh.
“No, but she—”
“What about her?”
“She’s… special,” Evie mumbled.
“Special how?” Alexander stared directly at her.
Evie was at a loss for words.
To her, Grace was Alexander’s ex-girlfriend. That made her special.
But to Alexander, if he had truly moved on, then she was just another person.
“It’s fine. We just said hello,” Evie finally said.
“Alright. If there’s nothing else, go take a bath first,” Alexander said.
“Okay.” Evie nodded and headed upstairs.
After her bath, Evie grabbed her phone. No missed messages.
She called Charlotte directly.
The phone rang for a long time before Charlotte picked up. “Hello?”
“I just got home. Are you back yet?”
“I just walked in the door.”
“Good.”
“Evie—”
“Yeah? What’s up?”
“Nothing. Happy birthday.”
“Thanks. I had a really good night. Thank you,” Evie said sincerely.
“I’m glad you were happy,” Charlotte said softly.
“Of course I was!” Evie laughed. “Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”
“No reason. I just suddenly felt uneasy.”
“You’re impossible. You drank too much tonight and now you’re overthinking. Go to bed early. Let’s go shopping this weekend,” Evie said.
“Okay. You rest early too. Good night.”
“Good night.”
Charlotte hung up and turned to Noah. “She still didn’t tell me anything.”
“She will. It’s just a matter of time,” Noah said with a smile.
“So she’ll wait until everyone else knows first?” Charlotte scoffed.
“Maybe you’ll be the first person she wants to tell,” Noah replied.
Charlotte rolled her eyes. Was that supposed to make her feel proud?
Evie held her phone, thinking that Charlotte was home now. Noah must be almost there too.
A moment later, she received a text from Noah: “I’m home. Happy birthday, sis.”
“Thanks,” Evie replied.
She almost typed “brother” at the end, but deleted it.
She had only called him that because she lost a bet. Normally, she could never say it.
Then she thought about Charlotte being back in the country. She needed to find the right time to confess that she was married.
Otherwise, knowing Charlotte’s personality, the more she hid it, the angrier Charlotte would be.
Evie sighed. Maybe she could talk to Charlotte this weekend when they went shopping.
She hoped Charlotte wouldn’t be too angry. And she hoped Charlotte wouldn’t mind sharing that gossip with her.
Sometimes, the more nervous she was about something, the worse she handled it. If she didn’t care at all, it would be easier.
As Evie drifted off, she felt a cool touch on her neck.
She looked down. A necklace rested against her skin. A pink diamond hung from the pendant.
Evie turned her head in surprise. Alexander was standing behind her.
“Happy birthday, Mrs. Sterling.”
“How did you know it was my birthday today?” Evie asked happily.
“If I said the secretary reminded me, would you still be happy?” Alexander said half-jokingly.
“It’s okay. But if you remembered it yourself, I’d be happier,” Evie said with a smile.
“It has nothing to do with the secretary,” Alexander said.
He didn’t say that he only remembered because the card he set up for her was linked to his phone. The birthday notification reminded him that today was her Gregorian birthday.
“Thank you, husband. I love it,” Evie said sweetly.
“Is that all?”
Evie had to turn and kiss him.
Alexander deepened the kiss with a smile, then lifted her up and carried her back to the bedroom.
That night, some were lonely, some were in pain, some were happy, and some were indifferent. It was a tapestry of different lives.
Noah had told Charlotte that liking someone wasn’t wrong. But disturbing them was.
Charlotte had told Noah that he was an idiot. But how could she like an idiot?
Grace worked the night shift. In the early morning, the hotel grew quiet. Her heart felt empty.
She couldn’t stop missing him. The feeling flooded her, but she could only let it break.
Someone else’s head should be on that pillow.
She didn’t want to let go, but she couldn’t hold on. So she had to let go, even if it hurt.
Evie went to work as usual. That morning, a small incident in the secretary’s office made everyone nervous. Luckily, it was resolved without danger.
Ella Baker had lost an invoice she needed to write off.
Earlier, Evie had used the paper shredder to shred some useless documents Ella had asked her to destroy.
After Ella couldn’t find the invoice on her desk or in her drawer, she panicked and asked Evie, “Evie, did you see the invoice I was about to write off?”
“No,” Evie replied blankly.
“Evie, you just helped Ella shred some papers. You didn’t shred the invoice by mistake, did you?” Maddie Campbell reminded her.
Evie’s face paled. “No. When I shredded them, I checked. I didn’t see any invoice. I only shredded the waste paper Ella gave me.”
“I had it taped to the back of an A4 sheet. I don’t know if I didn’t notice and gave it to you together,” Ella said anxiously.
“Let’s look for it first. Maybe it’s somewhere else. If we can’t find it, we’ll think of something,” Amy Harper said.