Ste nodded furiously, like a bobblehead on rough terrain."Yes, please—I''m begging you to call her. Hurry, please."
In a single swift move, Ronald stepped forward and wrenched Finley out of the way.
It all happened so fast that both Ste and Finley were caught off guard, left to face the stormy look in Ronald''s eyes.
Ste blinked, speechless.
Finley stared, mystified.
For a moment, the whole world seemed to hold its breath.
Finley finally broke the silence, looking at Ronald in disbelief. "Why are you giving me that look?"
Ronald answered with a frosty re, then turned his stern gaze on Ste. Under his intense gaze, Ste felt a lump form in her throat and heat rush to her cheeks.
“...Babe,” she stammered out, the word slipping past her lips before she could remember the proper form of address in her panic.
Ronald''s tone was sharp. "What were you asking him for?"
"Uh... I..." she faltered.
Finley immediately sensed the tension in the air, thick as gunpowder. He wasn''t about to hang around and be coteral damage. “Oh! I just remembered I''ve got something urgent to do-gotta run!"
His time in the Muliba Desert had taught him a thing or two about survival. He knew better than to bother Ronald, especially after all the fuss he''d gone through just yesterday-thering himself in that awful concoction, nearly asphyxiating both Ste and himself. He wasn''t about to let all that suffering go to waste!
He was just about to make a break for it when Ronald''s icy voice sliced through the air. "Wait for me in the study."
Finley froze. Heart sinking, he muttered internally, Anything but the study...
One withering look from Ronald erased all option of protest. Shoulders slumped, Finley trudged upstairs, resigned to his fate.
With Finley gone, only Ronald and Ste remained. She looked up at him, eyes wide with hope. "Babe..."
Do you have to look at me like that? she thought. Your eyes are really scary—I''m starting to panic over here.
Ronald let out a cold huff. "What were you pulling him for?"
He nced at her little hand, giving it a slight squeeze-just enough to show his irritation.
Ste pouted. "I was asking him for a favor."
Learning this only darkened Ronald''s expression. “What could possibly be so difficult that you''d need to beg him instead of me?"
"I... well..."
Ronald raised a brow. "Wouldn''t asking me be faster?"
“Wait, what?” Ste blinked, confused. Ask... you? But... “Since when do I ever need to beg you for anything?"
He leaned in. "You tell me."
Ste paused, then shook her head. No, she really didn''t need to beg him! Why was she even going to Finley in the first ce? Ronald could handle anything-especially with all his resources at her disposal. Her own connections might be useless. In Yornd, but her husband''swork could get things done.
Pregnancy brain really was a thing. And with all these babies, she was getting even dumber by the day.
Taking a breath, she recovered. "So... would you call Skye for me?"
Ronald frowned slightly. "Why? What for?"
"To ask her to keep an eye on Tegan! The Horner family has been after her for years —always scheming, always ying dirty. Back in Portis City, Uriah could protect her.
But now Tegan''s on her own, and I need someone to watch her back!"
r
Just mentioning Uriah made Ste''s blood pressure spike. Mrs. Horner had spent years plotting against Tegan everyone knew it. And if Uriah was such a big protector, he had to know that all those people were his mother''sckeys ording to Tegan, Leslie was always sabotaging her, too.
And now they''d dragged in a distant rtive, Helena-no blood rtion, just brought in for extra trouble. The fact that Helena was living with the Horners meant Uriah must have given his approval. Otherwise
Helena would never have been
allowed to set foot inside?
No wonder Tegan lost faith in Uriah. Even just hearing about it, Ste was angry
enough on her friend''s behalf.
“Babe.....” she started, her voice trembling with emotion.