?Chapter 700:


    Steven figured Josie already didn’t like him, so he’d rather take the heat than drag William down too. As long as Ste didn’t hate William, that was good enough for him.


    Ste blinked, surprised to hear William had gone out of his way to get her scar cream. The doctor hadn’t mentioned anything about scarring—just told her to rest and be careful. She hadn’t even considered getting cream for it. Scars didn’t bother her that much.


    So when had William managed to do that for her?


    Her grip tightened around her te and fork. After a pause, she said quietly, “I appreciate the thought, Mr. Briggs, but I don’t need the cream.”


    William’s heart sank. Another rejection. “It’s just a tube of cream. It’s not like I bought you a car,” he muttered.


    He couldn’t help but think back to how she’d turned him down when he offered to take her to the hospital. Now she didn’t even want his help with something as small as this. Why did everything he did seem to push her further away?


    Steven’s words from earlier echoed in his mind—about how Ste didn’t like being smothered, about knowing her own mind—but William still couldn’t figure it out. When had things shifted between them?


    Was it because he confessed how he felt? Had that been a mistake?


    The fondue pot in front of him bubbled gently, the savory steam filling the air, but William couldn’t taste a thing. Appetite gone, he set down his fork. “Thanks for dinner, Ms. Gilbert. I’m going to head out. I’ll send Rita overter to help clean up.”


    He stood and left without giving Steven a chance to stop him.<fnb8f3> Original content can be found at find?novel</fnb8f3>


    Steven watched him make it to the door, sighed, and finally set down his own fork. “William, wait for me!”


    But William was already gone. Steven had barely gotten any time with Josie, and the meal hadn’t even wrapped up properly. Now, with the mood wrecked, there wasn’t much left to salvage.


    After they left, the warm steam from the fondue pot clung to the air around Ste and Josie. Josie nced at her, voice low. “What’s going on with you and William?”


    Ste froze, then tried to downy the question. “What do you mean?”


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    Josie gave her a long look, then set her te down. “Come on, Stel. You two have always had this tension—like, flirty tension. Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed. It’s obvious to everyone. But tonight, you were ice cold to him. Something’s definitely going on.”


    Ste didn’t know what to say.


    Her silence stretched before she quietly asked, “Is it really that obvious?”


    Josie nodded without hesitation. “Crystal clear.”


    Josie wasn’t the type to pry—she usually stayed out of people’s business unless she had to. So for her to bring this up now… it must have been painfully obvious to everyone.


    Sharon already knew the backstory. Josie didn’t.


    As they cleared the table, Ste finally filled her in—everything Sharon had dug up.


    By the time Ste finished, Josie was holding her breath without realizing it. She stared at Ste in disbelief. “You’re saying… your adoptive parents’ ident… had something to do with William’s family?”


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