Chapter 201 Subtle Schemes And Unspoken Confessions
The instant Quinn’s silhouette flashed across Julius’s sharp, amber eyes, all colors drained from his face.
Did she hear everything Harlan just said? Then what is she thinking now? Does she see me as utterly despicable?
Even if every other soul on earth branded him despicable, it would not shake him in the least–yet the thought of seeing disappointment in her gaze terrified him.
At this moment Quinn’s features remained perfectly composed, revealing no discernible shift in emotion.
She stepped forward and said to Harlan, “Let go of him first.”
Harlan’s thin lips moved. “I always listen to you, Quinnie!”
With that, he cheerfully released the fist that had been gripping Julius’s collar.
Quinn asked, “How are things going at your law firm?”
Julius’s body gave a faint shudder; he understood then that she truly had overheard their earlier exchange.
“Everything’s been handled–nothing serious,” Harlan replied, then added, “But Quinnie, some people are experts at laying traps. You’d better keep your guard up.”
Quinn offered a mild smile and, changing the subject, said, “The umbrella you lent me last time–I’m returning it to its rightful owner.”
She extended the umbrella toward Harlan.
Harlan stared at it in silence; back when he left Yarburn, he had lent it to her, telling her to bring it back to him in Jexburgh.
He knew this gesture meant farewell.
That farewell had felt like missing a once–in–a–lifetime chance.
If he had known then that it was Julius’s calculation–had known what he was destined to lose–he would never have left Yarburn, no matter the cost.
He would have stayed by Quinnie’s side, confessed first, and left Julius, not even a sliver of opportunity to
covet her.
Sadly, it was only after he saw the news confirming Quinn was dating Julius that understanding finally dawned.
So he launched a thorough investigation into why his law firm had, so “coincidentally,” run into trouble and why he alone had been summoned back to Jexburgh to resolve it.
Every clue pointed straight at the Whitethorn family.
Thus he realized it had been Julius’s deliberate ploy, executed solely to drive him out of Yarburn.
“Why aren’t you taking it?” Quinn urged.
Only then did Harlan give a wry smile, accept the umbrella, and say, “All right, I’ll head back to the hotel for now. I’ll come see you again tomorrow, Quinnie!”
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Chapter 201 Subtle Schemes And Unspoken Confessions
“Okay, travel safely,” Quinn replied.
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After Harlan had left, Quinn turned to Julius and asked, “Was it you who deliberately meddled with the law firm on Harlan’s mother’s side of the family?”
Julius’s eyelashes trembled; he slowly lowered his gaze, unable, for that moment, to meet her eyes.
“You once told me that whenever I asked, you would never hide anything from me,” she reminded him.
His body went rigid. Yes, he had said that–he had given her his word.
Julius pressed his slender lips together, the hands hanging at his sides bunching into tight knots of tension, and admitted in a voice that almost trembled, “…it was me.”
Quinn asked softly, “Why would you do something like that?”
“I was afraid that as long as Harlan was around, he would stand in the way of my pursuing you,” he answered in a low, muffled tone. “To you he’s different–he’s the comrade you could entrust with your life when things turn deadly, someone you can rely on without hesitation.”
“And so?” she prompted.
“And so I…” He looked up, and at that exact moment, his gaze collided with hers.
Her eyes were clear, upright, bright as the noonday sun; compared with that shimmering candor, he felt himself sunk in shadow, shabby and base.
“So–so compared to me, you’re bound to prefer Harlan,” he forced out painfully.
Quinn held his gaze without flinching and said, “Yes, I do like Harlan, but only the way you like a younger brother, the way a soldier respects the comrade who has had your back. If I truly felt that sort of romantic attraction toward him, then it wouldn’t matter whether he was still in Yarburn or had already returned to the capital–location would make no difference! Do you really think that if I were truly interested in him, his leaving Yarburn would somehow give me permission to turn around and like–much less love- someone else?”
“Julius, do you honestly imagine my feelings are that casual, that easily replaced? If one day you and I were separated for a while, would you assume I’d just look around and pick another man the moment your back was turned?”
Her words were scarcely out when Julius’s expression changed abruptly. “No–Quinnie! Don’t go loving anyone else!”
Quinn pressed her reddened lips together. “Julius, I like you. I chose you. That won’t change easily. But I can’t accept the way you drag the people around me into your schemes.”
“I’m sorry.” The man who always stood atop the world, who never apologized for anything, forced the words out.
Yet in front of her, he resembled a child who had done wrong and feared abandonment, blurting out an apology simply because she asked for it.
Quinn looked at the man before her–head lowered, loneliness written across every line of his face–and her heart gave an involuntary, aching throb.
He’s the one in the wrong, and still, seeing him like this makes me ache for him–how contradictory can feelings get?
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She sighed, lifted her hand, and brushed his cheek with gentle fingers. “Don’t do it again. Not to Harlan, not to any of my friends. I don’t want you using tricks like that on people I care about. If you do, I really will…”
Long, elegant fingers pressed softly against her lips, stopping the words from spilling out.
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