The Years Between Signing and Seeing novel Chapter 34

A cold sweat broke out on Aaron's back. He quickly jumped out of the car to gather the scattered documents. “Mr. Baylor, it’s hot out here. Why don’t you get back in the car?”

Jamie’s gaze remained fixed on the direction Suzie had disappeared. “You said she needed money,” he murmured. “So why didn’t she take it?”

Aaron wiped the sweat from his forehead, hesitating for a moment. “Mr. Baylor, Miss Sterling is probably just angry. Once she cools down, I can try delivering it to her again.”

Seeing no reaction from Jamie, Aaron’s curiosity got the better of him. “Mr. Baylor… if you give her all this… aren’t you afraid she’ll just spend it on that other man?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Aaron felt like he was courting death, but his feet seemed glued to the pavement.

“Do you have a death wish?”

Aaron fell silent.

Jamie’s voice was so cold that even on this sweltering day, Aaron felt a chill run down his spine. He quickly scurried over to open the car door for him.

He was completely baffled. He used to think Jamie was heartless and felt sorry for Suzie. But that all changed a while ago when he and Jamie saw Suzie walking with another man. It was then that he had a sudden realization: Jamie must have been determined to divorce her because he thought she was cheating on him. A woman who was both a gold-digger and unfaithful—what man could tolerate that? Then again, the timing of Chloe’s return was also suspiciously convenient.

Aaron felt he was overthinking things and being nosy. With a shake of his head and a quiet sigh, he got into the driver’s seat.

***

After leaving City Hall, Suzie returned to Stella’s apartment. Holding her divorce certificate, she sat in the living room in a daze until evening.

She was pulled from her reverie by a frantic knocking at the door.

“I tried to stop you from signing the agreement that day, and you had someone take me to the police station! What, you think you’re so tough now? Trying to send your own mother to jail? Don’t you know I was doing it for your own good?”

After her outburst, Margaret’s face twitched. Her expression softened from rage to self-pity, and she collapsed onto the floor, sobbing. “Oh, my life is so miserable! My husband is useless, and my children are useless. What have I worked so hard for all these years?”

Listening to her mother’s theatrical wails, Suzie felt a headache coming on.

Was Margaret really crying over her own fate? Of course not. She was crying because her “long-term meal ticket” was gone, and she had no one left to exploit.

Suzie sighed softly and sat down on the sofa.

The next moment, Margaret shuffled across the floor on her knees, grabbing the hem of Suzie’s clothes. “Suzie, my dear, don’t be foolish,” she cried. “Forget about your brother and sister for a moment. You have to think about your own future!”