Chapter 54
She didn’t raise her voice. She didn’t scold. She didn’t even sound surprised. She sounded like someone who had opened a door expecting peace, only to find noise on the other side.
Samuel, standing in his sharp suit with his hair slicked back like he owned the night, gave her his best charming grin, as if that would ease her mood.
"It’s such a surprise to see you," he said, sliding both hands casually into his pockets. "Honestly, I didn’t expect you to be here all by yourself. I thought you’d be out of town or maybe at a business event. What’s going on? Is this a business dinner or... something more personal?"
Cora blinked at him, unimpressed. Her voice came out flat, like she didn’t even want to waste energy forming her words.
"Whatever I’m here for is none of your business, Samuel," she said, folding her arms. "And I’m not alone. I came here with someone."
That made something flicker across Samuel’s face—surprise, irritation, maybe even jealousy. But he smoothed it over almost instantly. His smile didn’t drop, but his eyes tightened slightly. He had expected Cora to be irritated, sure. But not this detached.
Still, he didn’t care. Not really. He wasn’t here to win a polite conversation.
Because in truth, Samuel wasn’t at this place by accident. Not even close.
He had someone trailing Cora—an employee he paid generously to feed him small but useful details about her movements. So the moment he received word that Cora had been spotted at this particular restaurant, he had rushed over without hesitation.
Because his plan was in motion, Samuel had already tipped off a local gossip blogger and a photographer to "coincidentally" show up outside the lounge and snap pictures of him standing beside Cora. He wanted the press to start circulating a rumor: Samuel and Cora spotted alone together at night—are they dating again?