Free Web NovelChapter 63: Chapter 63: Are You Free? I’d Like to Ask You Out
She had waited over three hours for his call, and their conversation hadn’t even lasted ten sentences.
He’d always been distant with her, but never this cold.
Justin Sullivan seemed different somehow since returning home.
She didn’t know how or why, but she could feel it.
’Could it be because he saw the person he’s been longing for all this time?’
Selena’s voice didn’t sound very upbeat, so Justin added, "Let’s go out for dinner tomorrow night!"
"Okay!"
Just one sentence, and Selena was instantly re-energized.
She immediately changed the subject. "What should we eat?"
"I’m fine with whatever. Just remember to invite Georgia, too!"
"Okay!"
The dynamic between Selena and Justin usually consisted of Selena doing all the talking while Justin remained silent.
Of course, there were times it was the other way around. Justin would say something, and Selena would agree without a second thought.
It took Selena a moment to process what he’d said. "Wait, why do we have to invite Georgia?"
Back when they were in Breccon, Selena had plenty of female friends.
Justin didn’t really like dining with her friends. He said it made him feel uncomfortable.
But today, he’d suddenly broken character and taken the initiative to invite her best friend.
Selena grew even more confused. It sounded like Justin had just used the same nickname she did—Georgia?
And his tone had been so familiar, as if they’d known each other for ages.
Before Selena had time to speculate, Justin gave her the answer over the phone.
"Selena, Hayley Sullivan is my older sister."
Hayley Sullivan is Justin’s sister, and Hayley is also Georgia Thorne’s stepmother, which makes Justin Georgia’s nominal uncle. frёewebηovel.cѳm
It took Selena a good while to connect the dots and figure out the relationship between Justin and Georgia.
’If they were uncle and niece, why hadn’t Justin told her at the airport that day?’
’She remembered how she’d foolishly introduced them to each other.’
Before she could ask, Justin had already hung up.
Staring at the ended call on her phone, Selena sighed, rolling over and burying her face in her pillow.
She stayed that way until she couldn’t breathe, then rolled onto her back to face the ceiling.
’She’d never heard Georgia mention having a young uncle before.’
’Hayley Sullivan was awful to Georgia. If she hadn’t been there to protect her, who knows how Hayley might have mistreated her.’
’Georgia wasn’t Hayley’s biological daughter, so she had no contact with the Sullivan family. Maybe Georgia didn’t even know she had a young uncle!’
’Besides, Justin had been abroad for so many years. Back then, Georgia didn’t even know him.’
’The more she thought about it, the more it made sense.’
’It was very likely they had only just found out their relationship to each other—that he was her senior.’
She sorted through her thoughts. Justin was Georgia’s elder, so it wasn’t out of line for him to call her affectionately by her nickname, Georgia.
With that thought, Selena felt much more at ease.
To be honest, it had felt a little strange hearing Justin call her Georgia so familiarly.
’She didn’t like Justin calling any other woman by an affectionate nickname, and that included his relatives.’
’Like Georgia.’
Selena rolled over and pulled her phone out from under her pillow.
She found Justin’s contact, typed out a message, hit send, and then went to sleep, feeling at peace.
Meanwhile, Justin was driving when he received Selena’s text message.
He glanced at it. The message read: Your voice sounded a little hoarse on the phone just now. If you’re coming down with a cold, make sure to drink plenty of hot water.
’Selena... there was a time she was a pampered young lady who’d never had to lift a finger, but now she’d learned to care for others.’
「Back at Georgia’s apartment」
Georgia was tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.
With her eyes closed, her mind was in turmoil as she recalled all the details of her past with Justin.
Suddenly, her phone chimed. She quickly picked it up and saw it was a text message.
It was a text from Elliot Sheridan.
Even though she’d deleted his number from her phone, her brain still remembered it clearly.
She didn’t want to read it, but she was worried it might be something important, so she hesitated for a moment before opening the message.
You have one week to sort out your feelings.
The message was concise and to the point—just like Elliot’s style.
He didn’t mention any names, but Georgia knew exactly whose feelings he was telling her to sort out.
She was already in the process of sorting them out.
’But it might take more than a week.’
Georgia turned her phone off completely, tossed it aside, and tried to sleep. ƒreewebɳovel.com
「The next morning」
Georgia took an early bus to work. The moment she arrived, Nicole Kane called her into her office.
Nicole handed her Zane Lennox’s business card. "Do you understand what I’m saying?"
Georgia bit her lip, her fingers gripping the corner of the card tightly.
She squeezed so hard that the sharp corner dug into her palm, a faint sting of pain.
"Manager, I don’t understand what you mean." She clenched the card in her hand, slowly crumpling it.
"Georgia, you’ve been out of school for almost three months. Haven’t you figured out how the world really works yet? In this day and age, everyone has to suck up to the powerful. Even if you don’t like Zane Lennox, you need to swallow that feeling—at least until this contract is signed!" Nicole’s expression was severe as she laid into her. "You might have Elliot Sheridan watching your back, but have you ever thought about anyone else in this company? Do you want all of us to starve?"
"No!" Georgia shook her head instinctively.
"Good." Having made her point, Nicole’s tone softened. "Take this card, go back to your desk, and call Zane Lennox. I trust you know what to do from there."
"I understand."
Nicole had already chewed her out once before for leaving the private room in the middle of a meeting.
Exhausted, she returned to her desk and threw the crumpled business card onto it.
’Every single time they met, things ended stiffly and on bad terms. How was she supposed to call him now?’
Georgia stared at the card for a long time before reluctantly pulling out her phone.
’Just treat Zane Lennox like any other client. Ask him out for a meal, apologize, and start talking about the collaboration again.’
’It’s just that this "normal" client, Zane Lennox, was the most difficult one she’d ever had!’
She had just dialed the first digit when a call from Selena came in.
Her finger twitched, and she accidentally answered. The call connected instantly.
"Georgia!"
"I’m at the office. Hold on."
Georgia quickly stood up, stuffed Zane Lennox’s business card into her pocket, and hurried toward the breakroom.
The breakroom was empty. Georgia closed the door before speaking into the phone. "What’s up?"
"Georgia, you don’t love me anymore, do you!" Selena whined playfully from the other end of the line.
"What makes you say that?"
"Then why haven’t you come out to eat with me? I’ve been back for so long and I’ve asked you so many times! You have no idea how heartbroken I am every time you say no!"
"It’s not that, I’ve just been really busy."
"I get it, you’re a big shot, even busier than my second uncle!" Selena pouted, sounding displeased.
Hearing the words "second uncle," Georgia’s nerves tensed.
’Elliot... Don’t tell me he’s right there with her, listening to this call!’
"Selena, are you with your second uncle right now?" she asked, deliberately lowering her voice.
