The Contracted Ever After (Cordelia and Ronan) novel Chapter 626

"Relax, there's no way she wouldn't know..." Victoria paused dramatically, her eyes locked onto Harold's face like she was reading his thoughts. Sure enough, she saw the tension in his eyes ease up a bit. She continued, "This is about your future, I had to run it by her. We're best friends, after all. And about that senator's daughter chasing after you, I’m in the loop, buddy. You better set things straight with her soon, 'cause I'm seriously pissed!"

Victoria spoke with the confidence of someone who knew exactly where she stood in Harold's life.

Harold glared at her, frustration bubbling over. "Are you out of your damn mind?"

But Victoria wasn’t fazed. She wore her smugness like a badge of honor.

Harold got up to get dressed, his chiseled, Adonis-like physique making Victoria's heart race.

She playfully nudged him with her foot. "Did you hear me?"

Harold was seething inside. He'd always thought of Victoria as the calm, composed woman behind the mask, not this shameless person standing before him now. If she could play dirty, so could he.

"What do you want?" Harold snapped, any trace of chivalry long gone.

"Oh, someone's got a temper. I thought we put that fire out already, or is there still some burning?" Victoria teased, her eyes dancing with mischief.

Ignoring her, Harold grabbed his clothes and stormed out.

He even left behind the hoodie Victoria had bought for him. To him, it was a symbol of disgrace, a memento of a night he wished to forget.

Victoria lay back down for a while, chuckling to herself, "Tough cookie, that one."

She eventually got up again, ordered room service for dinner, and after freshening up, went to bed. But as she pulled back the covers, she noticed a red stain on the sheets. Pausing momentarily, she snapped a photo with her phone and sent it to Harold with a teasing message: "What now?"

She called up Cordelia for lunch.

Cordelia was in good spirits too, having put the Edith Hills incident with Ronan behind her. He hadn't mentioned it again, and it seemed that without Peter’s involvement, it wouldn’t have mattered to him at all. Since he'd let it go, Cordelia felt relieved as well.

So when Victoria invited her out, Cordelia didn’t hesitate.

They met for a barbecue, a meal Victoria had chosen carefully, considering the private nature of their conversation. Plus, with Brooklyn now married and juggling two kids, she probably couldn't relate to the whims and woes of the dating world anymore.

"What? You slept with him?" Cordelia gasped in the bustling barbecue joint.

"Can you keep it down, please?" Victoria hissed, glancing around nervously.