Chapter 1944
“No worries.” The boy said, turning to leave.
Ivy quickly called out to him, “Hey, what’s your name? I need to repay you for these.”
“Nolan, but forget about the money; it wasn’t much,” Nolan said, leaving behind a bright, sunny smile before walking away.
Ivy looked down at the pack of sanitary pads in her hands, a warm feeling coursing through her heart as she silently repeated the boy’s name, “Nolan.”
The boy from her memories had grown into a handsome, suave man, now walking towards Ivy with a drink in his hand. “Here, have some juice.”
Just like years ago, Nolan placed a drink before Ivy. “I don’t know your preference, so I just grabbed one at random.”
“Thank you.” Eighteen-year-old Ivy and the present Ivy said the same words, but it felt as though everything had changed.
Sometimes she wondered, if she had been braver back then, maybe things with Nolan wouldn’t have ended up like this.
Too bad, it was all too late now.
“You still haven’t told me,” Nolan sat down and asked her again, “what’s your relationship with the host of this party?”
Ivy snapped back from her reverie, still unsure how to answer his question.
She didn’t want Nolan to know about her current ‘married’ status, selfishly wanting to preserve the better image he had of her.
“Why are you still so quiet, just like in the past?”
A hand lightly tapped her forehead, and Ivy looked up at Nolan, her cheeks flushing red.
“I remember back in high school you were always so silent,” Nolan said, swirling his glass elegantly. “You’d get picked on, but you never said anything, as if it was all just water off a duck’s back.”
Remembering her high school days, Ivy managed a wry smile. “It’s not that I disliked talking; I just knew talking wouldn’t change anything, so I spared my words.”
“Ivy, sometimes speaking up can really make a difference.” Nolan looked at her meaningfully, his eyes seemingly filled with tender emotions.
Ivy turned her head away, avoiding his gaze. “Nolan, what have you been up to all these years? Are you doing well?”
“Pretty good, graduated from college, stayed in graduate school for three years. Post-graduation, I joined the family business. But my mom’s on my case now, setting me up on blind dates left and right.”
Nolan made a face of mock despair. “You have no idea. Whenever I’m around her, she relentlessly brings up the same topic and won’t quit until she gets what she wants.”
Following his lead, Ivy thought of Nolan’s mother whom she had seen from a distance back in high school-a formidable businesswoman.
Back then, Nolan was always at his mom’s side, nodding along as she lectured him.
With this in mind, Ivy forced a chuckle. “Nolan, she’s just looking out for you. You know how elders are, always eager to see the younger generation settled down.”
“Yeah, she means well,” Nolan sighed, his gaze on Ivy deepening.
As they reminisced, the conversation flowed easily.
T
Ivy hadn’t even noticed she was being watched from nearby by a pair of handsome eyes.
Balfour had intended to wait at the door for Ivy so they could enter together but got caught up talking with a friend in the VIP room upstairs.
Coming down to find his meticulously dressed fiancée, Balfour saw her chatting and laughing with another man on a couch, her smile radiant and warm.
The sight made Balfour’s eyes narrow. She had never smiled like that around him.
“Mr. Howard, about the land deal we discussed earlier…”
A middle-aged man at his side cautiously handed him a glass of wine, careful not to upset him and risk the partnership with the Howard Group
