?Chapter 269:


    As Ste made her way over, Sharon’s face broke into a bright, slightly apologetic smile. “Stel, you made it!”


    Sliding into the seat across from her, Ste fixed Sharon with a level look. “Where did you disappear tost night?”


    Memories of the bar flickered in Ste’s mind—Sharon vanishing without a word, leaving her tipsy and alone. If she hadn’t been drunk, she never would’ve gotten into Shaun’s car.


    Sharon let out a nervous littleugh, twisting a napkin between her fingers. “Oh, I didn’t really go anywhere…”


    But Ste cut her off, her tone sharper. “Are you actually going to tell me what happened?”


    Sharon’s joking demeanor crumbled under Ste’s stare. She let out a sigh, her shoulders slumping. “Honestly? It wasn’t a big deal. I just ended up talking to some guy for a while.”


    That caught Ste off guard. Sharon had always avoided guys ever since—well, after what happened back then.


    Sensing Ste’s surprise, Sharon quickly changed the subject. “Enough about me. How about you? Shaun took you home, right? He didn’t pull anything, did he?”


    Sharon’s eyes were full of worry, and Ste rolled hers in response. “Seriously? You’re only just now asking? If something had actually happened, asking now would be useless.”


    Sharon rubbed the back of her neck. “Come on, Stel. You’re single now—divorced and free. Don’t you want to start dating again?”


    A few months ago, Ste would’ve shut that down without a second thought. Buttely, with all those dreams about William haunting her sleep, she hesitated.


    “Do you think I’m actually missing a man in my life?” she asked, her voice low. She and Sharon told each other everything. There weren’t many secrets between them.


    As soon as Sharon heard that, she smacked her thigh and grinned. “You’ve been single for over six months now! Girl, your hormones are probably screaming. I’m telling you—”


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    She leaned over and whispered something sneaky into Ste’s ear.


    Ste’s face changed immediately. Her expression froze, and then her cheeks slowly turned red.


    “You think that trick would really work?” she asked, clearly unsure.


    Sharon pulled back with a smirk. “Why wouldn’t it? Sometimes it’s nice just having someone around to take the edge off. You don’t need a full-on rtionship. Just find someone to… you know, reset the system a little.”


    In Sharon’s mind, it wasn’t just guys who got to have no-strings-attached fun. Women could do it too. If both people knew what they were getting into, what was there to be embarrassed about?


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