?Chapter 439:


    From the very first time she met Ste, Willow had looked into her background. The only reason she hadn’t brought it up before was to keep things civil. But clearly, that courtesy was no longer necessary.


    Ste exhaled quietly, trying not to roll her eyes. “Miss Lawson, he was injured and couldn’t move. I only helped because I had no choice. Nothing inappropriate happened.”


    Willow let out a sharp snort. “I’m running out of patience. I’m warning you—stay away from William.” She stepped closer, her voiceced with smugness. “Do you know why he’s stayed single all these years? Because he’s been waiting for me. I saved his life. He owes me everything. So if you’re still holding out hope, let me save you the embarrassment. You’re wasting your time.”


    Ste was taken aback by this revtion. She’d honestly believed William just wasn’t interested in women at all. But now Willow was saying he’d been waiting for her this entire time?


    Before Ste could even process it, Willow went on, practically shaking with conviction. “We’ve been looking for each other for years, and now that we’re finally back together, I won’t let you ruin it. He’s mine—he’s always been mine. Don’t even try.”


    Willow’s possessiveness over William was clear.


    Ste’s brows drew together.


    “I’m not trying to take him from you,” she said calmly. “I don’t care who he’s looking for. And as for me? I don’t have feelings for him. At all.” Then she leaned in, her voice low and steady. “But… I did hear that William’s not into women. Are you sure you’ve got the right guy?”


    That stopped Willow cold. For a moment, she just stared at Ste, mouth parted, speechless.


    Because there was no sarcasm in Ste’s eyes. No malice. Just honesty.


    Willow opened her mouth to say something—but nothing came out. For the first time, her sharp confidence wavered. The fight she’de in with suddenly felt petty and ridiculous. Could Ste really have no interest in William at all?


    Willow pressed her lips into a tight line, gave Ste onest icy re, and turned without a word, her heels clicking as she headed straight for the treatment room.


    Don’t miss out gα?ησν??ls?c?m


    Ste gave a small shake of her head.


    Forget it, she told herself. It wasn’t her ce to be discussing William’s personal life with Willow in the first ce. She realized she’d already crossed a line and had no intention of getting further involved in whatever was going on between the two of them.


    With that, she turned to head toward the treatment room, only to find it empty. William and Luca were both gone.


    For a second, she was puzzled but then just shrugged it off. Not her problem, after all.


    She reached for her phone and headed to the door, but as luck would have it, she ran right into William as he came in.


    Her eyes met his, and for a split second, she felt that all-too-familiar guilt creeping in.


    She’d told him she wouldn’t say a word about it, and yet, she had. The guilt weighed on her.


    “I’ve got something to do, so I’ll just head out,” she mumbled, keeping her eyes low as she tried to get around him.


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