?Chapter 144:


    Not wanting to worry Laura and Averi, Sadie whispered to Carol, “Carol, please take Averi and my grandma back. I’ll handle this.”


    Carol gave Sadie a worried look but nodded, gently carrying Averi and assisting Laura back into the apartment.


    Sadie turned to face K, who regarded her with a mocking smile. After three years, K still radiated mour but now carried a more assertive air, stripped of her previous innocence.


    “Well, if it isn’t the great designer Sadie? I thought you were dead!” K said, her arms crossed, her voice dripping with sarcasm.


    Sadie responded with a faint smile, her voice steady, “Sorry to disappoint you, Miss Wade. I’m very much alive.”


    Three years had changed much. Gone was the timid Sadie of the past. Now, she stood with firm confidence, her gaze steady.


    K felt a twinge of unease seeing Sadie’s transformation. Was this really the same Sadie she once manipted so easily? The woman before her now wasposed and unflinching, her eyes reflecting a depth K found unnerving.


    However, K’s unease quickly morphed into smug superiority.


    Sadie dropped her calm facade, her eyes turning icy as she looked into K’s eyes. “It’s quitete. Why are you here?”


    K replied, “I saw you at the hospital today and thought I’d drop by. Didn’t expect you’d have a child with you…”


    She paused, her hand lingering over her t stomach, her smile loaded with implication.


    Sadie’s expression hardened, her hands balling into fists—a reaction K noted with vindictive satisfaction.


    “The child is adorable. He looks just like you,” K said, continuing her provocation.


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    “If you’vee just to see the child, you’ve seen him. Please leave. I don’t want any trouble,” Sadie said, her voice icy, her anger barely contained.


    “Trouble? Get this straight, Sadie. You’re the one causing trouble. Three years, and you’re still here in Jazmah. Don’t tell me it’s not because you’re still hung up on Noah.” K’s voice was cutting. “Take my advice and move on. He’s with me now, and we’re getting married soon.”


    Sadie took a deep breath, striving to keep her emotions in check. “I returned solely to care for my grandmother. This has nothing to do with you or Noah.”


    K scoffed coldly. “Really? You expect me to believe that? You abandoned Noah for money three years ago. Now, you’re back, trying to rekindle old mes, aren’t you?”


    “What are you talking about?” Sadie’s voice rang out, every syble dripping with anger. “I never nned to cross paths with Noah ever again!”


    “Really?” K retorted, her toneced with skepticism. “It’s been three years, and not once has he tried to reach out to you, Sadie.” A glint of malice sparked in her eyes as she leaned in closer. “Do you know what Noah said after your car ident three years ago? ‘It’d be simpler if she just disappeared.''”


    Sadie felt the sting of those words as if a de had sliced through her soul. Her entire body shook, herplexion turning ghostly, her jaw locked tight.


    “Get out of my sight!” Sadie seethed, her fists tightening. “I don’t care about Noah, and I don’t want you near me! I swear, I’ll never see him again!”


    With those final words, she pivoted on her heel and strode away, her steps faltering but filled with fierce determination.


    K’s eyes narrowed as she watched Sadie retreat. A shadow of doubt flickered across her face. She wasn’t convinced Sadie had truly moved on.


    “Keep watch over her,” she murmured icily to the empty space before turning to leave.


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