Chapter 40
“No problem, I’ll take the contract to Mr. Etheridge,” Luther said.
“Great, I was actually waiting for someone to pick up the contract. Now that you’re here, I’ll head out too,” Mr. Horace replied. The two of them left the private room together.
Suzan searched the area but couldn’t find Effie anywhere. When she asked a colleague, she learned that Effie had already gone home.
Suzan’s brows furrowed in annoyance.
That spiteful woman-Effie just left? She wasn’t even going to discuss the partnership with Mr. Horace?
Hmph! Suzan was determined to report this to Mitchell.
Effie wasn’t getting away with the money that easily.
She glanced discreetly into the private room and saw that Mr. Horace was gone, presumably having left already.
Suzan let out a cold laugh.
Effie had clearly annoyed Mr. Horace, so the deal must have fallen through.
Suzan couldn’t wait to see how Effie would handle the fallout.
She was ready to sit back and enjoy the show.
Without wasting another moment, Suzan grabbed her phone and dialed Mitchell to report what had happened.
…
Meanwhile, Lyman and Effie headed home together.
As soon as they got back, Lyman fetched a burn ointment and carefully applied it to Effie’s skin.
Effie honestly didn’t think it was a big deal, but seeing how cautious and gentle Lyman was, a wave of warmth spread through her chest.
Not long after, Luther arrived with the signed contract from Mr. Horace.
Effie was overjoyed-finally, the problem was resolved.
Mr. Horace had clearly been trying to give them a hard time, but it was nothing
that a single phone call from Lyman couldn’t fix.
No wonder he was the head of the Etheridge Group.
Effie snuck a glance at Lyman, her heart skipping a beat.
After settling in, Lyman went to the kitchen and made her a cup of hot milk.
“Here, have some warm milk. It’ll help you sleep,” he said.
Effie had always liked a glass of milk before bed, but she hadn’t had any since moving in.
To her surprise, it was her favorite brand.
How did Lyman know?
Her heart fluttered at the thought, though she didn’t dare read too much into it. Maybe Lyman liked it too, she told herself.
After all that wine tonight, a cup of warm milk felt good and settled her stomach.
When she finished, Effie headed to the shower.
Lyman watched her retreating figure and couldn’t help but smile.
The house felt so much warmer with Effie around. It finally felt like a home.
He found himself looking forward to this kind of life more and more.
Suddenly, his phone rang-Vinson Elliott was calling.
“Lyman, where the hell did you go? Weren’t you the one who set up tonight’s get- together? You disappeared on us. Are you messing with us?” Vinson’s words were slightly slurred from drinking, but he still sounded sharp as ever.
He lounged back in his chair, cigarette in hand, phone pressed to his ear.
Everyone was waiting for Lyman. He’d said he’d be right outside, but after all this time, he was nowhere to be seen.
“I’m home,” Lyman replied mildly.
Vinson’s voice rose in disbelief. “Home? We don’t see you anywhere! Did you go to the wrong place or what?”
“I went home,” Lyman repeated, rubbing his brow, his tone apologetic. “Sorry, something came up and I forgot to tell you guys.”
“For crying out loud!” Vinson swore. “I’m sending you the bill. If I didn’t know you better, I’d swear some woman dragged you off.”
Lyman didn’t argue.
Because, honestly, he had been dragged home by a woman.
“No way, you’re actually with a woman?” Vinson shot upright in his chair, sounding shocked.
“Yeah.” Lyman ended the call before Vinson could start grilling him for details.
He wasn’t about to give him the chance to gossip.