She Was the Treasure All Along novel Chapter 361

Loyce put her phone away and scanned the area, finally spotting the vehicle parked on a slope with a commanding view. She stood up and began a leisurely stroll toward it.

Before she was even halfway there, a group of students blocked her path.

“Loyce, can’t you just behave for once? You have everything, so why can’t you leave something for Cyrilla?” The girl in the lead was Marnie Windsor, Cyrilla’s number one follower, who’d had a brief run-in with Loyce during their tutoring sessions.

Marnie knew Loyce was an heiress who also lived in Serenity Manor, but she figured her family was nothing compared to the Shapiros.

Loyce raised an eyebrow. “Leave what for her?”

“Mr. Shapiro is only getting close to you to force Cyrilla to accept his proposal,” Marnie declared. “I’m telling you, if you know what’s good for you, stay away from him. He doesn’t love you at all.”

Loyce remained impassive. “Oh. Are you finished?”

Seeing Loyce so calm and composed, Marnie gritted her teeth. “In any case, you’d better take my words to heart. Even if you’re some rich little heiress, Cyrilla could bankrupt your family in a heartbeat.”

“Bankrupt me?” Loyce’s eyebrow quirked up again, a playful smirk touching her lips. “She’s that powerful, is she?”

She tilted her head slightly, her gaze calm as she looked at the group of students who had been brainwashed by Cyrilla’s lies and were now eager to fight her battles. To Loyce, they were just making noise.

“That’s right!” Seeing Loyce’s apparent “hesitation,” Marnie puffed out her chest and raised her voice. “Cyrilla is practically the Shapiro family’s chosen daughter-in-law! She’s not someone you can aspire to reach! If you’re smart, you’ll stay far away from Mr. Shapiro and stop looking for trouble!”

Loyce let out a soft, mocking scoff. “Then please do me a favor. Go back and tell her I’ll be waiting for her to bankrupt my family with a single word.”

Watching Loyce walk away, Marnie felt an inexplicable frustration and kicked at the grass. “What’s she so arrogant about! And Cyrilla, too! Why does she keep doing such stupid things, like rejecting Mr. Shapiro’s proposal? She must be out of her mind!”

Another girl beside Marnie chimed in, “Come on, calm down. We still need Cyrilla’s mother’s help to get into the business district. Our families are all relying on Cyrilla to get in good with the Shapiros. We just have to put up with it if we want to make it big.”

Loyce didn’t move immediately, simply meeting his gaze. “You called me up here just to watch you sleep?”

Lucian chuckled, his chest vibrating as the sound echoed in the night air, tinged with amusement. “Sleep? What a waste. Aren’t we supposed to be following the blind date protocol? After exchanging numbers, the next step is a date.”

He extended a hand toward her, palm up, in a gesture that was both an invitation and an undeniable command. “Come on up. I have something to show you.”

His gaze was so piercing that Loyce hesitated for only a moment before placing her hand in his.

With a slight tug of his arm, Lucian effortlessly pulled her into the truck bed. She lost her footing for a second, stumbling and nearly falling into his arms. An intoxicating scent of cedar, faint antiseptic, and his own unique, sharp essence enveloped her instantly.

Lucian steadied her by the waist, his palm burning hot through the thin fabric of her clothes. He didn’t let go immediately. Instead, he leaned in closer, his breath ghosting over her ear as he murmured, “Careful.”