Chapter 7
I joked, trying to lighten the mood.
Tori Justice gave me an exasperated look: “Be serious.”
“Alright, Counselor Justice.”
“Leo Sterling asked if you’ve been giving him the cold shoulder these past few days.”
My smile deepened as I watched Tori Justice frown and criticize Leo Sterling’s awful behavior.
“The child was nearly dead, and he only now knows to care? To hell with him.”
“T.J.”
“Hmm?”
I gave her a big bear hug, pouring all my gratitude into it.
“Thank you.”
Thank you for always being by my side.
With you here,
I don’t feel so pitiful after all.
When an unknown number called my work phone, I assumed it was a client.
I never expected it to be Leo Sterling.
Given his coldness, I thought he wouldn’t try to win me back or get entangled with me.
We would naturally drift apart.
But I was wrong.
This time, I had guessed incorrectly.
“Luna, we need to talk,” he said.
“Sure, two hundred per minute,” I replied calmly.
The next moment, five thousand appeared in my PayPal account.
I was silent for a moment, then couldn’t help but laugh sarcastically.
“What do you want to talk about? You have twenty minutes.”
He was silent for a long time.
Just as I was about to hang up impatiently, he spoke, his voice strained.
“Does… does your wisdom tooth still hurt?”
“It’s fine now. The worst pain has passed.”
He fell silent again.
I guessed to myself that he probably found this number in my appointment records.
It must have taken some effort to figure it out.
“I’m sorry. That day, I didn’t know you were really going to the hospital for your tooth.” “Oh, it’s fine.”
Leo’s tone became more cautious and tentative:
“When are you coming back?
“I mean, those plants you grew before, they’re wilting a bit.”
“Then let them all die.”
“Little Moon, you…”
I cut him off: “Leo Sterling, we’ve already broken up.”
His breathing suddenly became heavier on the other end.
“It’s not what you think between Jade and me!”
I thought he wouldn’t bring it up.
Seeing how righteous he had been before, I had wondered several times if I was just being unreasonably jealous. Suspecting even ordinary friendships between colleagues.
So he knew.
Chapter 7
He knew his relationship with Jade had crossed a line.
I chuckled softly, my voice turning completely cold.
“Oh.”
My coldness seemed to provoke Leo.
He started explaining hastily:
“I got close to Jade because her father is the director at the hospital. I wanted to use that connection.
“He’s a big shot at the university, and the lab I’m in is his!”
Jade didn’t have much patience or talent for research; she just needed to coast through to graduation.
Professor Kingsley entrusting Jade to Leo was a sign of his regard for him.
If Leo wanted to establish himself here, he had to flatter Jade, which meant clinging tightly to Professor Kingsley’s influence.
Leo went on explaining.
Strangely, hearing all this didn’t stir much emotion in me.
I could guess why Leo hadn’t explained this to me earlier.
He was both bowing to reality and maintaining a bit of scholarly pride.
Compared to me, who had started working early and been tainted by worldliness, he even considered himself somewhat above it all.
He didn’t want me to know; simply put, he wanted to save face.
But was that all?
Could he swear his heart hadn’t wavered even a little?
Leo was still earnestly professing his feelings for me.
But I was starting to hear a ringing in my ears.
It was annoying.
I glanced at the time.
“Time’s up. If you want to continue, you’ll have to pay more.”
Realizing my coldness, he suddenly fell quiet.
CAPTURED BY THE
PRESIDENT Captured by the President
Lady Hermione
