He Waited She Wilted (Ottilie and Yorath) novel Chapter 74

"You're only telling me this because you want to use me as your attack dog to go after whoever is at The Empyrean," Ottilie said flatly. "I'm not going to fight your battles for you, Ms. Tarrant."

With that, she retreated to her bedroom, locked the door, and didn't emerge for the rest of the night.

Nyssa turned to Soren. "Soren, she's always had a temper. I hope you don't take it personally."

Soren merely smiled politely, offering no comment.

He operated very differently from Jevon.

Jevon was Yorath's childhood best friend and his closest business associate.

He had the privilege of freely criticizing Yorath's personal life.

Soren, however, earned an astronomical salary by executing his duties flawlessly and keeping his mouth shut.

But in Nyssa's eyes, he was the gatekeeper to the king—an essential piece on the chessboard that needed to be bought.

She slid a blinding diamond bracelet off her wrist and held it out to him.

"It's been quite a while since I last saw your mother. Take this back and give it to her as a gift."

Soren accepted it with both hands. "Thank you, Ms. Tarrant."

Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, she smiled radiantly.

"Don't be silly. You've been by Yorath's side for years; you deserve it. I have some errands to run, so I'll be going now. Please take good care of Ms. Sewell. Don't let Yorath get distracted by petty drama, and absolutely make sure she doesn't end up clashing with whoever is living at The Empyrean."

She played the role of the benevolent, undisputed matriarch to perfection.

Gracious, forgiving, and orchestrating peace within the household.

Maintaining his enigmatic smile, Soren escorted her to the door.

From the second-floor landing, Jevon observed the entire exchange.

He recorded a quick video and fired it off to Yorath.

Then, he hit dial. "Yorath, your girl isn't jealous anymore. Do you think she's finally fallen out of love with you?"

Silence stretched across the line before Yorath finally replied.

"Are you at my house again?"

"Yeah. My bathtub is broken, the replacement hasn't arrived, and I had nowhere else to crash."

Jevon kicked lazily at the banister, sounding entirely unbothered.

"So you're just spying on her?"

"Who's spying on her? I came to see Nyssa. Honestly, if she wasn't so completely obsessed with you, I would've made a move on her years ago. Whether she wanted it or not, I would've knocked her out, claimed her, and dealt with the fallout later."

"That's illegal."

"Illegal? If you aren't willing to break the law for the woman you love, is it even love?"

They were all high-profile corporate litigation documents—massive, convoluted, and completely over her head.

The only thing she could determine for sure was that every single file looked completely legitimate and legally pristine.

She carefully placed everything back and locked the safe.

She sat there, staring blankly at the wall.

In his line of work, navigating the absolute heights of power and wealth, she refused to believe he hadn't crossed the line into illegal territory.

She just couldn't find the evidence.

What a shame.

Later, her phone buzzed. Lachlan Schmidt texted her, agreeing to her demand for a strict five-year contract and asking her to meet him.

Over dinner, Ottilie casually asked Soren, "Has my contract termination gone into effect yet?"

Soren stood near the table, professionally plating her meal.

"Are you planning to re-sign with our agency, Ms. Sewell?"

"Give me a couple more days. There are still a few things I need to think over."

"Understood." He smoothly served her a piece of Glazed Salmon.

"Mr. Fordham said the termination would be finalized in about seven days. Is there a delay?"