The Scorned Heiress's Hidden Empire (by Jade Quinn) novel Chapter 226

Chapter 226

The coach from Harbor City pod on the sidelines, his eyes glued to the court, but his peripheral vision kept drifting toward Natalic.

He didn’t know her, but now he was seriously curious about her.

How did she manage to turn the whole game around with just a few words in a matter of minutes?

And that was even with a clear gap in strength between the teams. Anyone could’ve guessed the outcome just from the opening minutes, but now the game was wide open, no one could say for sure who’d win.

How did she see that?‘ he wondered.

He’d been standing on the sidelines for ages, spending every day studying the other team, rurning data analysis with fr crew, watching game tapes, and drawing up plays on the whiteboard.

And yet, he still couldn’t spot a single weakness in the strategy Natalie just pulled off.

The coach from Harbor City was itching with curiosity. He couldn’t resist shifting his gaze from the court to Natalie

She looked totally unbothered, like nothing had happened at all.

He remembered how Luis had treated her earlier, not the way an elder treats a younger person, but more äke he was dealing with someone he genuinely respected.

He’d been coaching for years, moving up from the grassroots to the provincial team, then to the university level. He considered himself a big shot in Harbor City’s basketball scene.

Luis was polite, but it was always just a handshake and a nod. He’d never go as far as bending down to hand him a bottle of

water.

The Redvale University coach sidled up next to Natalie. She noticed him but didn’t bother to look his way, her face giving nothing away as she watched the game.

Seeing how focused she was, the coach let out a small cough and took a seat beside her, his eyes still on the court, rubbing his hands together awkwardly.

When Evan scored, he clenched his fist in excitement, then relaxed his grip. Out of the corner of his eye, he stole a glance at Natalie, but she didn’t react at all.

‘Uh… Natalie, how did you spot that just now?” the coach asked, still sounding a bit unsure.

Natalie raised an eyebrow, genuinely puzzled by the question. “I just looked with my eyes.”

The coach just stared, speechless.

“I mean…” After hesitating for a while, he started, carefully picking his words.

“How did you catch it so quickly? Number four is slow moving sideways, and number five hangs back around the free throw line. Even when we’re reviewing footage, we have to rewind it a bunch of times before we spot it

Natalie shot him a look, like it was the most obvious thing in the world “After a few plays, number tour just can’t keep up when he’s guarding the pick–and–roll.”

Her tone was so casual, like she was talking about the weather. “Number five drops to the same spot every time after a puck-

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Chapter 294 —

and roll, les enthera habit of something their coach drilled into them

The coach suddenly got it, and honestly, he

Was

floored by how sharp Natahe was

After a moment, he leaned in, looking curious. “So you know Coacfr Luis?”

Natalie turned her head and replied, just to be polite, “Yeah, I know him”

‘So, how’d you two meet?” the coach pressed, his curiosity practically spilling over

Before Natalie could reply, the arena exploded with thunderous cheers, drowning out the coach’s question

He instinctively turned to the court. Blondie had just nailed a three–pointer, and the Redvale University side went word fam practically jumping out of their seats.

Blondie waved to the stands, his golden hair shining under the lights, flashing that signature grin, his teeth so white he could be the face of a toothpaste commercial.

On the scoreboard, Redvale University had just taken a three–point lead.

Oh my god, he’s so hot!”

Blondie! Blondie! Blondie!”

Oh my god! He waved at us!”

The coaches from Redvale University and Harbor City had their attention pulled right back to the action on the court.

Their minds wandered in completely different directions.

The whistle blew to end the second quarter, and the scoreboard showed 42-36.

Redvale University was up by six.

yan walked off the court, wiping the sweat from his face with his jersey. He grabbed the water bottle from a teammate. ook a couple of big gulps, and headed to the bench, his steps way lighter than they were in the first quarter.

Ivan followed behind him, his face finally relaxed after being so tense in the first quarter.

Blondie brought up the rear, waving to the stands as he walked, which set off another round of screams from the crowd Rosie grabbed a bottle of water and headed over. Blondie, grinning and ready to take it, reaches out, but Rosie walked right past him and went straight to Eamon.

Blondie paused, looking a little annoyed. Without hesitating, he snatched the bottle right out of Rosie’s hand.

Rosie was left standing there, her hand still out, totally caught off guard as Blondie made off with the water

Eamon glanced at his empty hand, then at Blondie holding the bottle. He didn’t react, just turned and grabbed another g

from the table.

Rosie came back to her senses, her cheeks burning red. She stood there, not knowing what to say.

Blondie twisted open the bottle he’d just snatched, chugged a huge gulp, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and shot Rosie a playful grin.

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Chapter 226 –

banks, he sart

Rosic pouted and huffed, “Why’d you steal rey water? There’s plenty on the table”

Blondie replied. “Oh, didn’t see it‘

When the third quarter kicked off. Harbor City looked like a whole new teara

Their defense wasn’t full of holes like it was in the first half Number four was subbed out, and the new guy number was way quicker on his feet. Redvale University’s pick–and–roll plays just weren’t working anymore

On offense, they finally found their rhythm, driving hard to the basket and scoring twice in the paint. The ur–point gap shrank to two, then they tied it up.

The cheering section from the sports academy came back to life, their chants even louder than at the start of the game

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