The Rose He Showed Off Is Putting Down Roots in a Garden of Her Own novel Chapter 76

Julian remained completely silent. Vanessa knew exactly how to push his buttons. "I even bought a leather collar. Don't you want to come over and try it out?" Julian hung up the phone without a word. He hesitated for a moment, then pulled a fresh set of clothes from his closet, dressed quietly, and headed downstairs. His parents had given him a strict ultimatum: he had to cut off all his outside affairs. He hadn't been to see Vanessa since the night of his explosive argument with Elara.

Julian drove his car into the underground parking garage of Vanessa's upscale apartment building. When he stepped out of the elevator, she wasn't at the door to greet him. He stepped quietly into the entryway and realized she was in the bedroom, talking on the phone.

"Wait, who did you say?" Vanessa's voice drifted through the open door, loud and clear. "The eldest Vance daughter? Elara? You can't just make up rumors like that! You even know who the guy is? Caleb Mercer? The guy who owns all those retail malls? But Caleb and his wife are so perfectly in love. If you're going to spread gossip, at least make it believable."

Vanessa gasped dramatically. "What? Caleb said she wasn't tight enough and wasn't wild enough? Oh my god, stop talking. That's the eldest Vance daughter! That's Mrs. Sterling! Even if she was going to cheat, she should have at least picked someone young and handsome." She let out a soft laugh. "Oh, she was trying to get Caleb to invest in that failing commercial project of hers? That makes sense. Is this common knowledge in our circle now? That's so humiliating. Doesn't she care about the Sterling family's reputation? People are going to tear them apart behind their backs."

With a loud slam, the front door shut. Vanessa lowered her phone, a triumphant smirk curling on her lips. The screen was completely black. She hadn't been on a call at all; the entire performance had been orchestrated purely for Julian's benefit. Since Julian was dragging his feet on the divorce, she was terrified they would just stay in their loveless marriage forever. What would happen to her then? Now, she wanted to see exactly how the golden couple would survive this scandal.

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