Queen of Wild Cards novel Chapter 227

As soon as Julius and Stella got into the car, her fragile, victimized facade vanished entirely, though she still didn't look particularly thrilled.

"Stella, who was that woman? And why does she keep calling you a country bumpkin?"

From the lobby all the way up to the ninth-floor event hall, he had heard the woman insult her multiple times.

Stella waved it off dismissively. "She's Chloe's friend, Rhoda Ford. Chloe probably told her I grew up in the country, so she takes every possible opportunity to broadcast it to the world. The irony is, she's an illegitimate daughter herself. Her standing is even lower than mine."

She only knew Rhoda's name because Sylvie Jennings had mentioned it at her birthday party.

"She seems to have a serious grudge against you."

"Yeah, well, she crossed me once and paid the price. But she clearly lacks a functioning brain because she keeps coming back for more."

Julius chuckled, affectionately ruffling her hair before leaning over to buckle her seatbelt. He put the car in gear and drove them to dinner.

It wasn't until they were full and relaxed that he finally asked, "Do you want to talk about the third perfume now?"

She had looked like she wanted to say something back at the venue. If Rhoda hadn't interrupted them, she likely would have told him right then and there.

Stella sighed heavily. "I just ate. Can we hold off on this? I'm worried it might literally make you throw up."

Julius accommodated her immediately. "Alright. Do you want to go home, or come with me to the office?"

"Drop me off at home. I'd have nothing to do at the office anyway."

"Why don't you come work for me? I'll set up a position for you. You can be my personal secretary. How does that sound?"

That way, they could commute together, and he would have her in his sights all day long.

"No thanks. I hate corporate life." She was plenty busy on her own and had no desire to be tied down by a 9-to-5 schedule.

"Won't you get bored at home by yourself?" He was worried she'd feel isolated.

"Nope." She had to track down her grandfather's whereabouts and investigate the swapping of her mother's ashes. So far, she had zero leads. Why on earth would she want a desk job?

She had called in several favors, but no one could find a single trace of her grandfather. Was he even still alive?

[Done.]

Stella scrolled through the new document. It detailed Steve's movements after abruptly dropping out of his martial arts tournaments in Mistralia Country.

It turned out he was currently taking orders from a man named Wilson. But who the hell was Wilson?

This whole situation was starting to feel like a massive ball of tangled yarn, the threads crossing and knotting in ways she couldn't yet unravel.

Deciding not to overthink it for now, she took a hot shower and settled in for a long, luxurious nap.

When she woke up, she was just trying to come up with a believable excuse for sneaking out that night when Julius texted her, saying he was swamped and had to work late.

Perfect. She didn't even have to lie.

Not wanting to cook just for herself, she got her tactical gear ready and then headed over to Carter Coleman's auto repair shop to kill some time. She ordered a mountain of her favorite takeout and started knocking back drinks with Carter.

The mechanics at the shop reaped the benefits of her generosity, happily joining in to devour the food and chug the alcohol.