Chapter 53
With a small yawn, Valerie waved at Lucius and Keane before saying, “You two continue your discussions. I’m going to bed.”
She left without saying a word to Lucius the whole time.
After taking the shortest shower possible, she dried her hair while dialing Everett’s number.
Lucifer had been waiting on her bed. The moment she stepped out, it swiftly slithered over like a mischievous child and wrapped itself around her leg before climbing up to her arm.
Valerie could never resist its clinginess, so she let it do whatever it wanted on her arm.
When the call connected, she asked, “Are you free tomorrow? I need you as my lawyer at standard market rates.”
There was noise in the background on Everett’s end. “Let me find somewhere quiet before we
talk.
Within a minute, the noise faded, and he asked, “What’s going on?”
Without hiding anything, Valerie told him about the outcome of her negotiation with Skyler, which left him shocked. “Did your scumbag dad actually agree to transfer White Manor, that old mansion, to your name?”
“Plus two billion dollars,” she added.
Everett sounded more excited than she was. “Your negotiation skills deserve some worship, Val.”
But she wasn’t as optimistic as he was. “Nothing’s certain until the title transfer is complete. To avoid surprises, I need you there as my lawyer to keep the Woodwards from pulling any tricks.”
He asked, “Do they know anything about White Manor’s secret?”
“It looks like they don’t for now, or they wouldn’t have agreed so easily.”
Hearing that, he promised, “Leave it to me. I’ll make sure it’s perfectly handled.”
Just as Valerie hung up, a message from an unknown number popped up on her screen. “I thought you were dead.”
She smiled and texted back, “How could I die when you’re alive?”
“Cut the crap. Send me your address,” the sender replied.
“Shouldn’t you be with Mr. Foster right now, Lucinda?”
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Chapter 53
“After hiding for a year, how could you still have the nerve to joke with me?”
Valerie was about to type her reply when the door opened, and Lucius entered the room. He found her leaning against the headboard with Lucifer coiled around her leg–a perfect scene of
odd harmony.
She quickly sent a short reply. “I’m busy. We’ll talk later.”
After tossing her phone aside, her gaze involuntarily drifted to Lucius‘ lips. The bite mark she’d left earlier was still there, and it was almost an amusing sight on his flawless face.
Sensing his unfriendly demeanor, she spoke up. “Do you have something to tell me?”
He didn’t answer immediately.
Valerie seemed to have a clear preference for black. From what he saw, all her nightgowns were different in style but always black in color.
With damp hair, pale skin, and bare feet sinking into the plush blanket, she looked almost like an elf who’d accidentally wandered into the human world.
As Lucius stepped closer, Valerie instinctively retreated to the foot of the bed. In the process, she accidentally pressed on Lucifer’s tail.
Not wanting to hurt it, she had to sacrifice herself and tilt herself backward, all the while holding her balance.
Just before she fell, Lucius lunged forward and caught her by the waist, but the sudden motion sent both of them tumbling down together. Her head knocked hard against his jaw and added a new wound to his already bitten lip.
Lucius, who’d never felt so hopeless, covered his bleeding lip and demanded, “Was that on purpose?”
Chapter 54
