Moira Sloan’s reply was brazen and flippant.
She did it on purpose.
She wanted to put him off.
After she sent the ssage, the chat screen remained silent for a long ti.
Moira Sloan let out a scornful little laugh, guessing she had probably scared him off.
Not that she cared.
She hadn’t expected anything to co of it anyway.
After finishing a can of beer, Moira Sloan belatedly rembered an unread ssage. She unlocked her phone and replied to the person who had texted her first: "There’s nothing wrong with a small town."
He replied instantly: "Are you really content with that?"
Moira Sloan: "I am."
The other person: "This is because... Shane Jennings hurt you, isn’t it?"
’Was she hurt?’
’Of course she was hurt.’
’They had been together for seven years. How many seven-year stretches does a person get in a lifeti?’
’She had it all planned out—two kids within three years of marriage. But he turned around and got engaged to soone else.’
’That rotten bastard.’
Moira Sloan didn’t read or reply to whatever else the person texted her. She kicked off her high heels. Her fair, delicate toes touched the bare floor as she walked into the bathroom without putting on slippers.
The next ti Moira Sloan saw Connor Quinn was a month later.
Moira Sloan was leaning against the wall outside her new little shop, eating a popsicle and talking to her ntor’s wife on the phone. Just then, at the mouth of the breezy alley, Connor Quinn was slapped across the face by a young woman in her early twenties.
Seeing this, Moira Sloan’s eyes crinkled in amusent. She wasn’t particularly curious, but she could sll drama a mile away.
"Moira, are you even listening to ?"
When she didn’t respond for a long mont, her ntor’s wife’s tone grew stern.
Moira Sloan humd in acknowledgnt. The flirtatious charm from the blind date was gone, replaced by a reserved, cool deanor. "I heard you, ma’am."
"So, what are your thoughts? Are you really not going to enter the competition?"
Moira Sloan said, "It’s not prestigious enough. There’s no point in entering."
"This isn’t about how prestigious it is! Don’t you understand what I’m trying to tell you? Your reputation in the industry is ruined. If you want to make a coback, you have to achieve sothing. This competition might not be the most prestigious, but..."
Moira Sloan said, "Ma’am, I’m not in the mood right now."
After a pause, Moira Sloan added, "Besides, I never planned on going back."
Hearing Moira Sloan’s finality, the woman on the other end of the line sighed, her voice full of sorrow. "If only your ntor were still alive... You wouldn’t have to go through this."
The ntion of the dead cast a pall over the conversation.
Moira Sloan took a shallow breath, wanting to change the subject. "Ma’am, I’ll co see you when I’m back in Atheria."
Moira Sloan hung up, but before she could pull herself from the conversation, a slender figure in white suddenly appeared in front of her.
Then, Moira Sloan got a clear look at the person.
It was the young woman who had just slapped Connor Quinn at the mouth of the alley.
With tears welling in her eyes, the young woman pointed at Moira Sloan and demanded of Connor Quinn, who stood a short distance away, "Is it her?"
Moira Sloan: ??
Connor Quinn’s face was devoid of expression, his cold aura warning everyone to keep their distance.
When Connor Quinn remained silent, the young woman grew even more furious. "Do you think I can’t recognize her just because you won’t say anything? The picture on your phone is clearly her."
Moira Sloan asked, "What picture?"
The young woman’s head snapped toward Moira Sloan. Upon seeing her beautiful face and curvaceous figure, her eyes reddened even more.
Moira Sloan raised an eyebrow. Realizing she wouldn’t get any answers from the girl, she turned her gaze to Connor Quinn and once again said sothing shocking.
"What picture?"
"Connor Quinn, have you been secretly keeping a picture of to get off on?"
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