Still You Still Me Still Falling novel Chapter 145

"As long as it doesn't involve being with you, I can agree to anything else."

"Not being with me?" Edmond scoffed. "What, are you trying to avoid suspicion? Worrying about Cecil's feelings, so you need to keep your distance from me?"

Sheila didn't respond.

She didn't want to engage with such a pointless question.

Even if she did explain herself, he would just have some vicious comeback ready for her anyway.

It was easier to just shut up.

He pressed on, "Speaking of which, I actually have a question. When you needed help, why didn't you go to Cecil?"

She froze.

She genuinely hadn't thought of that.

Subconsciously, Cecil was still just the boy next door to her.

The guy who had grown up with her, who made her laugh, and who cooked ravioli for her.

She remembered all those simple things.

What she always forgot to consider was that Cecil was now the head of the Rhodes family, sitting on billions in assets.

Honestly, she had no real concept of how wealthy he actually was.

But if he could go toe-to-toe with Edmond, and if people referred to them as rival kings who avoided each other, his wealth had to be staggering.

"Why?" he demanded. "You didn't call Cecil, you called your ex-boyfriend instead. Answer my question, Sheila."

"Because the person Clarence and Mr. Ladd were trying to reach was you," she finally answered.

"Even if they were looking for me, I wasn't the only way to solve the problem," he pointed out. "You could have gone to Cecil. He could have fixed it just as easily."

"At the time, I..." She didn't know how to articulate it.

She couldn't exactly admit that she hadn't even thought of Cecil at all.

Saying that would definitely make Edmond get the wrong idea.

"You have a condition?" He eyed her with a half-smile. "Do you honestly think I'll agree?"

"Living together... is ultimately inappropriate," she reasoned. "Whenever you go to bed at night, I'll leave after you're asleep. And I promise to be back the next morning before you even wake up."

"Working from dawn to dusk, aren't you worried you'll exhaust yourself?"

"It's just for one month," she replied. "I survived three years of high school doing the same thing."

Not to mention, her current job often required her to work day and night anyway.

"Relax. We'll be under the same roof, yes, but just like the bodyguards and the driver, you'll have your own room. What are you so afraid of? Worried I'm going to come knocking on your door in the middle of the night?"

Before she could answer, he added the final blow.

"You're overthinking it. I've had enough of you," he said coldly. "I don't want to say too much and hurt your pride, but you can put your heart entirely at ease. Understood?"

She still had some lingering reservations.

He frowned. "What, you still need to think about it?"