Chapter 2415
“Look, you’ve already burned your bridges back there! Why don’t you take a semester off and come stay with me? It’ll give you a chance to lay low for a bit, and you can lend me a hand. What do you say?”
Olivia was taken aback, “Really? But where would I stay? You know, back home, I don’t have a sugar daddy like you do. I’m all alone. You’re pretty much the only friend I’ve got.”
Hearing this, how could Mara not understand what she meant?
“Come straight to my place when you get here. Do you actually think I’d let you waste money on a hotel? But let me be clear upfront, you’ll have to play by my rules. None of that wild behavior you got away with overseas, okay?”
Once Olivia returned, she would inevitably have to deal with the Howards. The old-timers already had a poor impression of her. If Olivia continued her reckless ways, it would only further tarnish Mara’s own image.
Olivia had been looking for a safe haven to lay low for a while. Mara’s offer was precisely what she needed; she would agree to anything at this point.
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“Sure, sure, don’t worry, I’ll be on my best behavior. Just don’t kick me out, and I’ll do whatever you need,” Olivia promised eagerly.
Mara didn’t care for more chatter; she was anxious to speak with Balfour.
“Alright, that settles it then. Keep your nose clean these next few days, and stop causing trouble abroad. I’ll buy you a plane ticket to come back.”
Without waiting for a response from Olivia, Mara hung up the phone.
Despite being irked by Mara’s tone, Olivia breathed a sigh of relief after the call. At least now she had a destination and could stop looking over her shoulder, knowing she would leave that place eventually.
Mara called out softly a few times before Balfour finally pushed open the hospital room
door and entered.
Seeing that Mara’s condition had improved, he felt somewhat relieved.
“Was that your friend from overseas?”
Balfour inquired, causing Mara to raise an eyebrow. Since when had he taken an interest in her international social life? Could it be that previous events had made him suspicious?
“Ah
yes,
Olivia’s one of the few friends I have there. She’s ran into some trouble and took leave to come back and stay with me. Balfour, she’ll be staying with me. That shouldn’t be too much of an inconvenience, right?”
08:30
Chapter 2415
He simply looked up at her impassively.
Mara found it increasingly difficult to read this man.
“Your friend staying with you is no trouble of mine,” he said indifferently.
“Balfour, what’s wrong? Is there something bothering you at work?”
Mara probed cautiously, but Balfour looked at her with a face masked in confusion and
remained silent.
“You seem down. You can talk to me about it, you know. Back when I was overseas, you’d always call to talk about things. Why do we communicate less now that we’re both here?”
Balfour knew very well that he had never initiated calls to Mara. She always found reasons to contact him. In his mind, he had placed himself in the role of a protective older brother, as he had promised her father he would look after her.
Mara lay in her hospital bed, her spirit improved but her complexion still pale, and her weak smile only accentuated her frailty.
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