?Chapter 247:


    When he looked at Ste again, her face was unreadable. She didn’t say a word. He turned without another word and stalked out of the institute, each step echoing louder than thest.


    Once he was gone, William quietly lifted his hand from Ste’s shoulder.


    “Ms. Russell, you have terrible taste in men,” he said dryly.


    Ste let out a sigh.


    It wasn’t the first time he’d thrown shade at her for her past, and probably wouldn’t be thest. She knew she’d made mistakes. But who hadn’t loved the wrong person once? There was nothing to be ashamed of.


    She didn’t fire back. Not this time. His tone hadn’t been cruel—just teasing.


    “Everyone has regrets,” she said. “Mine just happened toe with a very loud, persistent ego. But I’ve moved on. My standards are a lot higher now. That won’t happen again.”


    William gave a small nod, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. “d to hear it.”


    He’d been watching carefully, making sure Marc’s words didn’t leave a dent. But she’d handled it just fine. In fact, the more he got to know her, the more intrigued he became.


    The elevator came to a quiet stop on the designated floor, and William stepped out, pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind. It was better to let things y out on their own.


    His phone buzzed in his pocket.


    William’s screen lit up—Steven’s name shed across the disy. He answered, only to hear Steven’s sharp voice on the line. “Where the hell are you? You’re half an hourte!”


    Steven needed him to iron out project details but had deliberately avoided looping Sylvia in. He knew all too well how much William had invested in finding her all these years.


    “I’m on my way,” William replied briskly, cutting the call and finally striding out of the institute.


    Fresh chapters are live at gα?ησv???s


    Inside a private dining room, Steven nced up as William entered, one brow arching in mild disbelief. “Since when are you everte? This is a first.” William had always been the clockwork type—unfailingly precise, never so much as a minute behind. That record shattered tonight.


    William shrugged off his coat and offered an apologetic half-smile. “Got caught up at theb with Sylvia. We had a few things to hash out. Sorry for keeping you waiting.”


    A surge of jealousy red in Steven’s chest the moment Sylvia’s name came up, lending a bite to his words. “So you two are working side by side now?” he asked, his voice tight with barely concealed resentment.


    Wasn’t William supposed to be the low-profile owner of the institute? Since when did he start showing up every day, hanging around the staff like one of them?


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