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Chapter 9: Chapter 9: Pfft, As If I Don’t Know You

Mrs. Sterling finished cooking the noodles. Seeing her in the living room, she brought the bowl over and set it in front of her.

Lynn was still staring at the phone number, not even noticing when Mrs. Sterling sat down beside her.

"Lynn, is he worth all this?"

"Yes." Lynn pursed her lips and looked up at Mrs. Sterling, her eyes glistening. "He’s worth it."

Back then, Ian Sterling was the golden boy, a man blessed by fortune. Beyond the advantages of his birth, he was exceptionally capable in his own right. But his proud and defiant nature gave people the first impression that he was arrogant and looked down on everyone.

Yet this man, who had been waited on and praised his entire life, had hand-washed her lingerie when they were together, peeled the fruits and seafood she loved but hated to prepare, and learned from the chefs how to cook her favorite dishes.

He even begged her not to leave when she insisted on breaking up.

That was why she didn’t take his harsh words to heart now, though she couldn’t control the waves of sadness that still surfaced from time to time.

Lynn composed herself, a smile gracing her lips. She leaned closer to the noodles and took a sniff, exclaiming, "Wow, this smells amazing."

Lynn’s praise made Mrs. Sterling beam. Covering her mouth with a hand, she said, "I wonder if other young ladies from wealthy families are like this, actually enjoying such a simple bowl of noodles."

"Because it’s delicious!"

Meanwhile, at Aerie Garden.

Nina Norton rested her head on her hand, leaning against the sofa and rubbing her temples from time to time. She had just taken a nap but was startled awake by a dream about what had happened to her youngest son three years ago, leaving her head throbbing with a dull ache.

Butler Yates watched her with a worried expression. "Mrs. Sterling," he asked, "should I call a doctor?"

"No." Nina Norton knew this was an ailment of the heart. She murmured softly, "Do you think... do you think Lynn Winslow came to Veridia to find Ian?"

Butler Yates, one of the few who knew the whole story from back then, sighed and tried to console her. "Mrs. Sterling, didn’t Connor say? Ian is being very cold toward Miss Winslow. He’s likely moved on and won’t get entangled with her again. You should put your mind at ease."

’Moved on?’ Nina thought, frustrated with her son. ’If he’d really moved on, would he have someone look into where Lynn Winslow is staying? Or check if she has a doctor looking after her?’ She gritted her teeth. "That boy has no backbone! She already dumped him once, and he’s still worried about her!"

"What do you mean, I have no backbone?"

The voice came from the doorway. Nina Norton and Butler Yates turned in unison to see Ian Sterling walking in slowly, his expression weary and detached.

One look at him and Nina knew he hadn’t slept well. She got up and walked over to him, scrutinizing his eyes. Ian turned his head away, looking uncomfortable.

"Hmph. See? You have no backbone."

Ian Sterling stuffed his hands in his pockets, his posture nonchalant. "I knew Butler Hughes would call you," he said coolly. "And sure enough, it wasn’t long before my second brother started looking into me."

He moved past Nina and sank onto the sofa. He rubbed his temples vigorously with a well-defined hand. "Mom, please stop worrying about me," he said, exasperated.

"How can I not worry? Have you forgotten you ended up in the hospital because of her three years ago? Is your stomach all better now? And you still go asking if she has a doctor? Has she ever once shown any concern for you?"

Nina strode over and jabbed a finger at Ian’s forehead, leaving a red mark.

Ian leaned back to dodge her finger. "She called me because she had a fever," he explained. "Of course I had to check on her. If something happened, it would be on me for doing nothing."

"Bullshit! As if I don’t know you," Nina blurted out, unable to stop herself from swearing.

"Mrs. Sterling," the butler reminded her gently, and Nina finally caught herself.

She patted her chest and sat on the sofa next to Ian, glaring at him. Ian had started laughing the moment Nina cursed. Now, he leaned his head back, arm draped over his forehead, his muffled chuckles clearly reaching his mother’s ears.

Embarrassed and annoyed, Nina snapped, "Is that any way to laugh at your own mother?"

Ian’s maternal family, going back generations, were all landlords and nouveau riche. Things only began to change with his grandfather’s generation. Having grown up with her grandparents, Nina had also picked up that nouveau riche air, which she only managed to shed after getting married.

Ian stopped laughing and rubbed his neck wearily. "Mom, I didn’t sleep at all last night, and I’m exhausted. I’m going to head upstairs to get some sleep. We can talk about this tonight."

He had planned to catch up on sleep this morning, but before he could even drift off, his assistant had called to tell him that his second brother was investigating his interactions with Lynn. He immediately guessed his mother was behind it and had his driver bring him back to Halycon Bay.

In the end, Nina’s heart went out to her youngest son. She swallowed the lecture she wanted to give him and said, "Go on, then. I’ll tell the staff not to disturb you."

After Ian left, Nina thought for a long time before turning to Butler Yates.

"Do you think I should go see this Lynn Winslow? Warn her to stop pestering Ian."

Butler Yates was alarmed and quickly tried to dissuade her. "Mrs. Sterling, you mustn’t be impulsive. If Ian still has feelings for Miss Winslow, your interference will only make him angry."

"But I can’t just stand by and watch Ian get his heart broken again," Nina fretted, her brow furrowed with worry.

"The way I see it, Ian probably hasn’t figured things out himself, which is why he’s acting so cold toward Miss Winslow. Why don’t we wait a bit? Perhaps he’ll come to a decision on his own."

"Alright. I suppose that’s for the best."

Meanwhile, Lynn, who had narrowly avoided a confrontation with Nina Norton, was busy plotting how to get close to Ian Sterling.

She had a whiteboard delivered and placed it in her room where it would be the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes. A photo of Ian Sterling was taped to it.

Lynn wrote out a multi-step plan for winning Ian back, then sat on the edge of her bed to study it.

The phone she had tossed aside buzzed with a notification. It was a message from the bodyguard she’d assigned to follow Mia Rhodes.

She tapped it open. There was a photo of Mia Rhodes and Chloe Clayton arm-in-arm, along with a single sentence: Mia Rhodes is inciting Miss Clayton to come after you.

Lynn’s brow furrowed. She tossed the phone aside and stared blankly at Ian’s photo on the whiteboard.

’Chloe Clayton is notoriously arrogant and impulsive in Quartos, not to mention gullible. With Mia Rhodes’s built-in protagonist aura, it probably wouldn’t take more than a few words to turn Chloe against me.’

’The Winslow family is based in Morelia; our roots in Quartos are still shallow. While we aren’t necessarily afraid of the Clayton family, Chloe has Liam Clayton watching her back. He’s fiercely protective. If I hurt Chloe, Liam would stop at nothing to retaliate. Forget winning Ian back—my plans to counter Mia would be dead in the water.’

’I can’t make an enemy of Chloe Clayton. At least, not before my plans are properly in motion. We can’t have a falling-out yet.’

Lynn rubbed the bridge of her nose, which was beginning to ache.

’So annoying,’ she thought. ’There’s so much to do.’

She had always been the type to rely on others rather than think for herself. Now, she had to do everything on her own. Lynn was even tempted to call the man she kept in frequent contact with and ask him to help her strategize. Perhaps that would make things a little easier.

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