Second Marriage The Billionaire's Planned Love (Quinn and Julian) novel Chapter 142

Chapter 142 One Condition

Julian shook his head

“There’s no rush,” he said. “If you really feel bad about it, then promise me one thing.”

Quinn looked up.

“What kind of thing?”

Finished

“If you agree,” Julian said, “then we forget everything that happened before. No more apologies, no more awkwardness. Can you do that?”

Forget?

For Quinn, that sounded like a relief.

The only problem was she had no idea what he was about to ask.

Julian added calmly, “Like I said, I’m a conservative person. What happened last night… I definitely came out on the losing side. But situations like that aren’t exactly something I can ask you to return.”

Return?

Return what?

A second later Quinn understood. If someone touched you, you could technically touch them back.

That kind of “fair exchange.” Absolutely not.

Quinn hurried to say, “I’m really sorry. Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it.”

At this point she felt like she would accept almost anything. Julian raised an eyebrow.

“You’re sure?”

Quinn nodded. “As long as it doesn’t cross any moral boundaries or break the law, if it’s something I’m capable of doing, I’ll agree.”

Julian smiled faintly. “You’re definitely capable of this.”

“What is it?”

“My condition is simple,” he said. “Stop avoiding me.”

Quinn froze. That request sounded simple. But inside, she instinctively resisted it.

The truth was she wanted distance from Julian. She didn’t want their lives to keep intersecting.

Julian continued, “If you’re not avoiding me anymore, then the first step is moving back. Go back to living with Lucy.”

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PPP

Chapter 142 One Condition

Quinn bit her lip.

“I’m sorry,” she said slowly, “I might not be able to do that.”

“Not able to?”

Julian took one step forward. Quinn started and instinctively stepped back.

Julian said calmly, “Look at me.”

Finished

His presence carried the quiet authority of someone used to being obeyed. Quinn had no choice but to raise her head and meet his gaze, though she looked a little nervous.

Julian sighed quietly.

“I’m the one who took the loss here,” he said. “All I asked for is one small thing. You can’t even agree to that? Unless you’d rather make things fair and let me touch you back.”

Quinn’s face immediately flushed. Of course that wasn’t possible.

She had touched Julian’s abs.

Is he supposed to touch me the same way?

Even if she had abs, she would never agree to something like that.

“So,” Julian said softly, lowering his voice, “which option/do you choose? My request, or letting me return the favor?”

Quinn’s ears were burning. Her cheeks turned bright red.

She gripped the strap of her backpack so tightly that her knuckles turned pale. She was clearly struggling.

Seeing that expression on her face, Julian softened almost immediately.

“Forget it,” he said quietly.

At the exact same moment, Quinn spoke, “I’ll do it.”

Julian’s voice had been too quiet, so she didn’t hear him clearly. “What did you say, Mr. Sterling?”

Julian smiled faintly. “I said you should keep your word,” he replied. “Since you agreed, you have to follow through.”

Quinn nodded.

“I’ll tell Lucy and pack my things. I’ll move back.”

She sounded so obedient that Julian had to restrain the sudden urge to reach out and ruffle her hair.

He simply nodded. Quinn, meanwhile, comforted herself silently.

Living with Lucy again doesn’t mean I’ll actually see Julian.

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Chapter 142 One Condition

Finished

Julian was extremely busy. Sometimes Lucy didn’t see him for weeks.

Even if she didn’t avoid him deliberately, they might never run into each other.

“Come on,” Julian said.

Quinn blinked. “Where are we going?”

“To check on Jess,” Julian said. “Aren’t you going?”

“Yes,” Quinn answered immediately.

She had been worried about Jess anyway. Originally she had planned to slip away quietly and call Lucy

later.

Instead she ended up being questioned by Julian and agreeing to his condition. Now that everything was out in the open, she couldn’t hide anymore.

The two of them walked toward the bar, one after the other. Julian deliberately kept a polite distance.

He knew she wasn’t comfortable with physical contact. Behind him, Quinn let out a quiet breath of relief.

Even though Julian said everything was settled, she still couldn’t forget what happened.

She had hugged him, touched him, and even kissed him, How could something like that simply be forgotten?

When they entered the bar, Lucy spotted them immediately.

“Quinn!” she called, waving her over. “Perfect timing. I need to ask you something!”

Quinn walked over. “What’s going on?”

Lucy pointed across the room.

“That guy over there says Jess hit him, so he had people hold Jess here. We checked the security footage, and you were there too. What actually happened?”

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Because of the camera angle, the footage didn’t show the man grabbing Quinn.

Instead, it only captured the moment Jess threw the punch. The overweight man happened to be friends with the bar owner.

He had people lure Jess back here and keep him inside, saying they were going to teach him a lesson.

Jess knew those people were wealthy and well connected. He didn’t want Quinn dragged into the mess, so from the beginning he never mentioned her.

The drunk guy, meanwhile, could barely explain anything clearly.

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Ditched the Cheater, Pregnant by My Mr Right

Chapter 148 Trouble at the Bar

Jess had stepped in because of Quinn.

Finished

But when people asked what happened, Jess never mentioned her name. Without that context, it looked like Jess had simply started a fight for no reason.

Lucy was the one who showed up and asked to see the security footage.

The moment the video played, she recognized Quinn instantly.

Even though the camera only caught a side angle.

“That guy was harassing me,” Quinn explained. “He kept trying to grab me. Jess stepped in to stop him, and that’s when the fight started.”

Lucy’s eyes widened in alarm.

“He tried to grab you?” she asked. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“He didn’t actually touch me,” Quinn said quickly. “But that’s how Jess and I met.”

By that point Zeke had already arrived.

The bar owner knew he had to show some respect.

Still, the overweight man who got punched was a regular customer and a friend of his. The owner could not pretend nothing happened when someone got hit inside his bar.

Even with Zeke standing there, he still expected an explanation.

Once Quinn told the full story, however, the situation changed completely.

Now the drunk guy was clearly in the wrong.

The owner cleared his throat.

“Well, if that’s what happened,” he said carefully, “then my friend here owes you an apology. How about this. He apologizes, and I’ll send over a round of drinks for everyone.”

Lucy had no patience for that.

“Where’s Jess?” she said. “Bring Jess out first.”

The owner gave a quick signal. Someone immediately went to get Jess.

A moment later Jess walked out.

Tonight Jess was dressed in men’s clothes, a crisp white shirt and a pair of jeans. The look was clean and effortless, making Jess appear sharp and confident.

“Jess!”

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Chapter 148 Trouble at the Bar

Finished

Lucy and Quinn both rushed over.

“You okay?” Lucy asked. “Did anyone hit you?”

Quinn looked Jess over carefully. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

Jess smiled. “I’m fine,” Jess said. “Good thing you showed up though. Otherwise I probably would’ve gotten jumped.”

Lucy snorted. “Not happening.”

She turned toward the bar owner, clearly annoyed. “Tell that idiot to apologize.”

With Julian standing there, the owner did not dare argue. Even if Julian had not been present, Zeke alone was someone he would think twice about offending.

Earlier he thought Jess had thrown the first punch and was clearly in the wrong.

Now that he knew the whole story, no one dared act arrogant anymore. The apology was handled quickly.

Afterward the owner tried to smooth things over. “Why don’t you all stay,” he said politely. “Dinner and drinks are on the house.”

Lucy waved him off immediately. “No thanks. We’re leaving.”

She grabbed Quinn with one hand and Jess with the other, dragging them toward the door.

Julian gave the bar owner a calm look before walking/out.

Zeke lifted a finger in the air, pointing casually toward the owner as a quiet warning, then followed behind.

Once they were gone, the overweight man started complaining.

“I was drunk,” he muttered. “Besides, that girl really is gorgeous…”

The owner smacked him across the face.

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“Are you blind or just stupid?” he snapped. “If you ever see that woman again, turn around and walk the other way.”

The man still looked unhappy.

“What’s the big deal? She’s just Lucy’s friend…”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” the owner said, kicking his chair. “Do you know who Julian is Over something this small he stood there the entire time backing her up. When someone mentioned you tried to grab her, the look in his eyes could’ve frozen the whole room.”

Cold sweat instantly broke out across the man’s back. “You’re serious?”

“So stop running your mouth,” the owner said. “And keep your head down.”

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