Chapter 9

If Morgan really were involved with Eloise in any way, how could Cherise even be in the picture?

Those words cut Cherise deeply. Still, she'd already decided she no longer wanted him. Why did she still have to bear with his nonsense?

She snorted and said, "As if that makes your relationship with her innocuous. Nothing happened between you two because Eloise abandoned you to go abroad, right?"

She'd loved Morgan for two years. How could she not know about the beginning and end of his story with Eloise?

"Cherise Rhode!" Morgan glared at her, seemingly telling her off for being impudent.

Eloise's past abandonment of him had always been a thorn in his side. Now that she was back, he didn't want to think about it or let it bother him. He didn't want to remind himself that he was the choice she'd forgone for someone or something else.

Cherise smirked. "Did I step on your tail? Are you mad?"

It was possible for men and women to be no more than platonic friends, but there was no way that was how things between Morgan and Eloise were.

"Don't take this too far." Morgan forced himself to keep his anger at bay. He still needed Cherise to do him a favor, after all. "I don't know what you heard about us, but I'm not lying when I say I only consider Eloise a sister. You and I are married now, so there's no way I'd do anything so filthy."

Oh? Cherise knew he probably had a ton of filthy thoughts about Eloise, though.

Before she could say anything, he continued, "I just need you to help her this once. She's just returned to Dalea and isn't familiar with the way things are here, and it doesn't help that she has a bit of a reputation. The paparazzi are—"

"And I told you earlier that she used to be a reporter herself. There's no way she doesn't know how to handle a situation like this," Cherise said curtly.

She turned to get out of the stopped ambulance, but Morgan grabbed her wrist. His palm was slightly coarse, and the warmth it emitted was once something she had desired.

Now, however, it only made her heart freeze over.

She said, "Let me go. Deal with this yourself if you're so capable. Of course, you can go ahead and do whatever you want if you're not afraid of the paparazzi catching you two together and plastering your names all over the trending searches. Think about what that will do to the Sterling family's reputation."

Cherise shook him off and got out, striding off in her heels. She'd only hurried to the scene after learning what had happened to help uphold the Sterling family's reputation. As long as Philip was around, she wouldn't officially fall out with Morgan. There was also the fact that she'd yet to get back what was hers.

But if Morgan expected her to clean up after Eloise…

She could rot, for all Cherise cared.

Morgan slowly lowered his hand as he watched Cherise walk away, frustration settling in his brow.

She was right about something—not only did he need to go to the hospital to have his wounds treated, but there was also no way he could return to the scene of the fight. It was probably being swarmed by paparazzi.

He still remembered the stern warning Philip had given him the last time he'd seen the latter. Philip had growled, "She would never have left the country in the first place if she genuinely had feelings for you! Now that you're married, you have to remember your place and make sure you figure out who actually means well for you!"

That made Morgan's frustration deepen. In the end, he pulled out his phone and called Colin Groban, his special assistant. "I need you to handle something for me now…"

He couldn't show his face, but he would still do his best to help Eloise.

…

After leaving, Cherise received a call from Philip. For a second, she felt diffident when she saw his name flash on her screen. He would be devastated if he knew she'd decided to divorce Morgan, wouldn't he?

She calmed down and answered the phone. "Hi, Philip."

"Cher, where are you now?" Philip asked.

She couldn't discern anything from his tone and was confused. "I'm on my way to the company to deal with something. What's wrong?"

"What about Morgan?"

Cherise stopped in her tracks when she heard how hesitant he sounded. She tightened her hold on her phone, feeling it dig into her palm. "He's busy with something, too. I'm not with him right now."

She couldn't tell him what had just happened. His body wouldn't be able to handle the aggravation.

Philip paused briefly before saying, "Oh, okay. Cher, you don't have to be too bothered by that woman, even though she's back now. I'm on your side, and I'll be the first to defend you if Morgan dares to pull anything funny."

Cherise's nose prickled. "I know, Philip."

He was the only one in the Sterling family who'd shown her some warmth since she'd married Morgan.

"I'm glad you know. Oh, right. There's a formal family dinner in three days, and I'll be making an important announcement then. Remember to be there, alright?"

Cherise bit her lip. "Alright."

After hanging up, she straightened her windswept bangs as her expression turned grim. By right, news of a family dinner should've gone to Morgan first. The Sterling family had had several of these dinners, formal and informal, over the years. Half the time, Philip had told Morgan to bring her along.

This was one of the rare times that Philip spoke directly to her about it. What could that important announcement be about?

Feeling uneasy, she ultimately still texted Morgan to see whether he knew more. However, as expected, he didn't reply.

He didn't even return home that night.

Cherise opened Twitter and found a burner account that was only a string of numbers. It had suddenly appeared on her list of followers on the day Eloise had returned to Dalea, and its first tweet was a photo of a bouquet given to them at the airport. In the bottom right corner of the image was a man's wrist, seemingly captured by accident.

The Patek Philippe he wore was particularly eyecatching.

Cherise had gotten it for Morgan to celebrate the first time they'd secured a major deal for the company, so there was no way she could mistake it for anything else.

She took a deep breath and clicked on the burner account's profile. Sure enough, she saw that the owner had a new tweet. It was another photo, this time showing an apartment. A man's suit jacket had been tossed over one end of the couch, and there were some pastries and tea on the table. A dog lay in the corner.

It had been captioned, "You're always here whenever things go wrong. Makes me feel so secure."

Cherise abruptly locked her phone screen and shut her eyes.

…

Morgan didn't return home that night or the next two.

Cherise, however, received a WhatsApp message from a number she didn't recognize. It was short and straight to the point. "Camden."

She guessed the number belonged to Lucien. She sent him something to show that she'd seen his message, to which he quickly replied, "I'm starting. You sure you won't regret this?"

He didn't mince words. That seemed to be his style—blunt and decisive.

She tapped the screen softly, typing out a reply. "Never."

Lucien didn't say anything else after that. Maybe he was already neck-deep in work.

Cherise exhaled in relief and texted, "Thanks."

She didn't stick around to see whether he replied. Instead, she headed to the walk-in closet to select her outfit for that night. The Sterling family dinner was that night, and she was still Morgan's legal wife. She couldn't let herself be outshone.

She put on a smoky pink dress with a pair of cream heels, making her look graceful without being too ostentatious.

When Morgan returned, he found Cherise standing before a full-length mirror. His gaze landed on the line of her slender waist, and a hint of genuine admiration flickered in his eyes. The dress' fitted cut had been designed perfectly, and it showed off her waist.

His gaze softened as he asked, "Are you ready? The car's waiting outside."

Cherise only turned around when she heard his voice, and her tone was mocking when she spoke. "I can't believe you're actually here to pick me up today."

Then again, it made sense. A Sterling family dinner wasn't the same as Philip's birthday celebration. Eloise had no right to walk past Sterling Manor's doors that night, even if she were on Morgan's arm.