Semua Bab Leaving You Bereft: Bab 761 - Bab 770

Thalia woke up close to noon. Her body ached all over, and there was a lingering sting of embarrassment.She lay there for a while before getting up and noticing a business card, a bank card, and a note on the small dining table. The note had the name "Leslie Falkner" and a phone number. She guessed he was Landon's assistant.Just then, her phone rang.Landon had just texted her on WhatsApp. They'd already slept together, yet they didn't even have each other's numbers.She bit her lip as she tapped open the chat and read his message."Leslie will come by later to help you move. Just bring your ID. Everything else can be purchased later. Can you drive? I'll buy you a car."She replied, "It's fine. I can take the bus or grab a cab."Landon didn't push it. He was probably busy.She set her phone down just as a knock sounded at the door. She slipped on a jacket and went to open it.A very refined-looking young man, looking like Landon's assistant, was standing there.As expected,

Thalia froze for a moment. Then, she gently wrapped her arms around Landon.There was a deep sadness in her chest that she couldn't put into words. In just two months, Selena would be gone, and she'd have no family left in this world. Landon, who had essentially bought her through a transaction, might actually be the closest person to her now.But it wouldn't last.She knew that. The two of them were worlds apart, like heaven and earth.These short months would have to count as one of the rare warm moments in her life.Holding her, Landon called Leslie and told him to order a meal from a certain five-star hotel and have it delivered within 30 minutes. After hanging up, he gave her a thorough once-over.He hadn't noticed just how thin she was when he touched her last night, because she'd had all the right curves. Now that he took a closer look, he thought she needed to be well taken care of.Gabriella was about his age, so that didn't count, but Evelyn was different. He and Gabri

After sending the text, Thalia found Landon, who'd been in the middle of a meeting, walking out of the study.After a long day and an intense cross-country video conference full of heated debate, he rubbed his brow wearily and asked if the food had arrived.Pulling out of her thoughts from Matthias' text, she checked and answered softly, "It's here."He glanced at her and noticed that her hair had been blown dry, looking fresh and clean.Her face was pale and delicate. Every feature seemed soft and fine.At 30, she still looked like a 22-year-old, and he couldn't help but feel his heart soften. Pulling her into his arms, he wanted to kiss her—to steal a moment before the food arrived. As he lowered his head to meet her lips, he murmured, "Shall we?"She could guess what he meant and answered with flushed cheeks, "After we eat."He chuckled at that and happily went to eat, though the food didn't taste great.A takeout meal was something he'd never had before. The food was greasy

Under the dazzling crystal chandelier, Landon and Thalia stared at each other in silence.After a long moment, Landon said softly, "Give me your phone."Thalia was confused and handed it over like she was on autopilot.He took it and used his long fingers to swipe it a few times until he found Matthias's number, saved in her contacts as "Ford the Meathead". He glanced at her, then deleted it.When he handed the phone back, he simply said, "Don't contact him again."She understood that she belonged to him now. It felt like another hard slap across her face.All the trust and closeness she thought they had built, the little home she longed for, was shattered in a single move.She and Landon were worlds apart. But she didn't have the courage or the right to leave him. Not after she had taken Matthias' 100 thousand dollars to save her life, not after accepting the place he gave her and the job he arranged.Now, she was just like his kept woman—his caged songbird.She just stood th

Thalia nodded and sat down.Her fingers brushed across the clean desk as she took in the bright, spacious office. It was nothing like the club. Everything felt open and full of light here. She cherished the chance to be in a place like this.She lightly tapped the company-issued laptop in front of her. She knew her way around a laptop, but she wasn't exactly skilled, so before being given any tasks, she opened it and began clumsily practicing her typing. She had no idea how many eyes were on her, nor did she realize just how much malice could hide between women in the workplace.At 10:00 am, it was the company's scheduled break time.Some colleagues called her over to join them in the small lounge. The women all seemed friendly, and she couldn't help but feel grateful. Holding a small pastry, she listened to them talk about office gossip. Everything felt so new to her.Landon had brought her into an entirely new world, and she thought that with hard work, she could become an excel