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Chapter 63: Chapter 63: Don’t Ignore Him

By bedtime, Ian Sterling still hadn’t seen a trace of Lynn Winslow. The master bedroom was locked from the inside. Lynn’s reason was: ”This photo makes me uncomfortable, and seeing you just reminds me of the photo. So I don’t want to see you tonight.”

Imagining Ian’s frustrated yet helpless expression, Lynn leaned against the door, pressing her lips together to stifle a giggle.

Her phone, which Lynn had tossed onto the bed, rang a few times. It was a video call from Chloe Clayton.

Lynn answered, placed the phone on her vanity, and asked while doing her nightly skincare routine, ”What’s up?”

Chloe asked with concern, ”Are you okay? That Finn from the Sterling family, he didn’t bully you, did he?”

Lynn chuckled at her words. Leaning closer to the phone, she saw Chloe’s anxious face and said with a smile, ”Even if he did bully me, could you stand up for me?”

Chloe actually gave it serious thought, her conflicted expression making Lynn laugh out loud. ”Don’t worry, he didn’t bully me,” Lynn reassured her.

Chloe studied her carefully through the screen, and seeing no sign of strain on her face, she let out a sigh of relief.

The main thing was, she was helpless against Ian Sterling. The Clayton family was not yet in a position to challenge the Sterling Family.

She suddenly remembered the reason for her call and proposed, ”Lynn, are you free tomorrow afternoon? I want to introduce you to a friend.”

Lynn raised an eyebrow. ”Why?”

”None of your friends are around, and you don’t know many people in Quartos, so I just thought I’d introduce you to someone.” Chloe giggled, her eyes curving into adorable crescents.

Although Lynn didn’t particularly care whether she made new friends or not, she didn’t refuse Chloe’s kind gesture and agreed at once.

Chloe said excitedly, ”Okay, I’ll send you the location! You have to come!”

Lynn agreed. After Chloe hung up, she quickly sent the location. Lynn took a moment to pick up her phone and glance at it.

It was that quiet little bar. Lynn had thought Chloe would pick a livelier place; after all, a quiet bar didn’t seem to fit Chloe’s personality.

Kiki was sprawled out on his back on the bed, his soft little belly exposed. Lynn turned off the main lights, leaving only the bedside lamp on. She went over, gave his belly a rub, then slipped under the covers.

Kiki instinctively snuggled up to Lynn, letting her pet him.

Lynn squinted, her eyes fixed on the chandelier that glinted faintly in the dark. Suddenly, she spoke. ”Kiki, do you like Ian Sterling a lot?”

Kiki didn’t understand, but he knew Lynn was talking to him. He let out a lazy MEOW and flicked his tail a couple of times.

”Didn’t we have a deal? You were supposed to give him a good, hard scratch when you saw him.” Lynn sat up, leaning against the headboard. She scratched Kiki’s chin with her fingertips, but he was too busy enjoying it to pay any mind to her questioning, letting out a contented PURR PURR.

Lynn sighed and lay back down. ”Next time, don’t be so friendly with him, you hear?” she said softly.

Kiki shifted positions, licked his fur a few times, and settled down to sleep.

Just as he was drifting off into a hazy sleep, he heard Lynn say, ”Actually, maybe be a little friendly with him. Don’t ignore him.”

”...” Kiki was very fond of his human mom who took care of him, but even he was getting a little impatient now. His tail thwacked against the duvet. THWAP. THWAP. Lynn felt that if Kiki could talk, he would definitely have a few choice words for her.

Lynn lay awake for a long time. She ended up playing on her phone until the early hours of the morning and didn’t wake up until it was nearly noon.

She looked at her haggard reflection in the mirror and sighed. ’Last night’s skincare routine was a complete waste.’

She put on some light makeup, chose a pale blue dress, and was about to head downstairs when she saw Kiki waiting for her by the elevator door. She rolled her eyes and took the stairs instead.

Kiki had no choice but to scamper after her.

Unexpectedly, Ian Sterling still hadn’t left for work. Lynn frowned slightly, asking in confusion, ”Why haven’t you gone to the office yet?”

Ian was lounging on the sofa, playing a game on his phone. When he saw her come down, he first looked pleasantly surprised, but then his expression turned to one of confusion at her words.

”I’m the boss, not some drone. Why should I have to go to work at a set time? Besides, with so many people at the company, if I still had to show up every day, what would I be paying them for?”

”...” A wry smile touched Lynn’s lips. ”How much do you pay your lowest-level employees?”

Ian thought for a moment and named a number.

Lynn just said, ”Oh.” ’In that case, a boss really could think that way.’

She paid him no more mind and walked straight to the entryway to change her shoes. Ian didn’t care whether his game was over or not; he locked his screen and followed her.

”Where are you going?”

Lynn didn’t hide it from him. ”Out to eat, and then to meet Chloe.”

”Can’t you not go?” Ian pressed his lips together. ’I don’t like the Clayton siblings. At Chloe’s birthday party, it was obvious that Liam had his eye on Lynn. What if Chloe praises her brother in front of Lynn while putting me down, and Lynn actually listens?’

Lynn finished changing her shoes, stood up, and washed her hands in the nearby powder room sink.

Barefoot, she was more than a head shorter than Ian. Now, in high heels, she still wasn’t as tall as him, but the distance had certainly closed a bit.

Lynn slowly walked a few steps toward Ian and raised her slender, pale arms. She hooked one around his neck and used the other to scratch his sharp jawline, just like she would scratch Kiki’s chin.

She lowered her voice, asking softly, ”What’s wrong? Are you that petty? Getting jealous of a woman?”

Ian didn’t mind her saying that at all. He hummed a serious ”mm-hmm,” wrapped his arms around her slender waist, and lowered his head, planting a kiss on the delicate skin of her neck as if he were a whining child seeking attention.

Three years ago, his possessiveness over Lynn had been intense—so intense that whenever she went anywhere, he demanded she send him videos and photos as proof that there were no other men around.

Three years later, after being hurt by her, his possessiveness had only grown, not lessened, and was developing in a paranoid, unhealthy direction. He was becoming hypersensitive to anyone and everyone around Lynn.

The ends of his red hair tickled Lynn’s skin, but she didn’t push him away. Instead, she raised a hand and sank her fingers into his hair. ”Your hair is in such good condition,” she said, curious. ”Even after all the things you must do to it.”

Ian ignored her comment, focused only on his own request. ”Can I go with you?”

’If I go, Chloe definitely won’t dare say anything bad about me to my face.’

Lynn shook her head and gently patted the back of his head like he was a puppy. ”Sorry, no,” she said softly.

Ian lifted his head, about to open his mouth to argue, but then Lynn continued, ”But you can come have lunch with me, and then you can drop me off at the place where Chloe and I are meeting.”

”Want to go?” Lynn tilted her head, a smile playing on her lips as she looked at him.

”Yes, I’ll go.” Ian nodded eagerly, sitting on the bench to change his shoes. After he was done and had washed his hands, he reached out to hug Lynn again, but she ruthlessly pushed him away.

”Let’s go.”

Ian pouted, a little disappointed that he couldn’t get his hug, but he still hummed an obedient ”Okay.”