Chapter 47
I shut the chat. My phone buzzed like crazy. Marilyn must’ve been fuming.
But I didn’t care. I blocked her, scrolled through videos on the couch, and dozed off.
Halfway through the night, the noise woke me.
I frowned and heard a familiar voice outside. “Harlan, are you really falling for her?”
1 froze for a second, realizing this voice belonged to Tamara.
The volume of their conversation made it sound like they were right outside my door.
“No, Harlan answered her.
“Then why’d you take her to lunch with your mom?” Tamara’s voice wavered.
“My mom’s a bit sharp…” Harlan trailed off.
The rest was muffled. They seemed to have walked away.
I lay there, wide awake.
I thought Harlan was despicable, using people like tools.
Good thing I didn’t love him.
The next morning, as soon as I got up, I saw the photo Tamara sent me.
It was a cozy shot of her and Harlan eating sushi, grinning like lovebirds. [Charlene, thanks for paving the way.]
It was pure provocation. I fired back. [No problem. I met your future in–law for you already.]
Her “typing…” lingered, but nothing came through. She was probably fuming.
I didn’t mind. My foot was healing. I tested it. I could walk with a limp. Tomorrow, I might not need the wheelchair anymore.
But then an idea came to me. I slumped back into the wheelchair.
Since Harlan was using me, I’d make his life miserable.
Gerald’s birthday party would be crawling with big shots. I’d show them Harlan was dating a cripple.
He would be so embarrassed by then.
The thought cheered me up so much that I didn’t say no when Harlan asked to help me pick a dress.
We’d barely driven a block when his phone rang.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out the call was from Tamara.
After her tearful plea, Harlan pulled over. “Get out,” he barked at me.
I glanced at him. I couldn’t catch what Tamara was saying, but her voice was shaky with tears.
Every time she cried, Harlan got all anxious.
A pang of envy hit me. If Lucas were here, he’d rush to my side, too.
I kept quiet and did what he said, stepping out of the car. As soon as I settled into my wheelchair, Harlan sped off.
I paused for a second and then rolled into the mall calmly.
After browsing, I picked a ruby–red backless gown–sexy as hell, and pricey.
I ordered it delivered to Harlan’s place, COD.
With the dress picked, I headed back.
As soon as I got home, Tamara sent me a photo.
I checked it out. It was a wedding shot of Harlan and her.
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11:45 AM
Chapter 47
They were grinning from ear to ear in that photo.
Harlan rushed off so fast earlier. I thought it must be something urgent. It turned out that he went to take wedding photos with Tamara.
I gave a half–hearted compliment on her photo. [Meh.]
Then I went back to scrolling through videos.
Before long, Harlan’s call came in.
As soon as I got through on the phone, he asked, “Are you home?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Mr. Shannon, anything else?”
He paused and then growled through gritted teeth, “300 thousand dollars for a dress? You’ve got a nerve.”
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