Chapter 432 - 428: If I Don’t Keep Her, Where Can She Go?

As evening fell, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky, bringing a touch of cool dampness to the sweltering day.

At the director’s request, Lily Sterling had gone to the film set to shoot two additional solo scenes. But on her way back to the hotel, she encountered the exact same scene in the hallway as she had the other day.

The only difference was that last time, it was Hope Miller who had come out of the room.

And this time, it was Susan Mason!

Lily was completely unprepared for this. She stared blankly at Susan Mason as Heather’s words flashed through her mind.

’If I were you, I wouldn’t get involved in this.’

She hadn’t even decided whether to help, yet Susan Mason had already gone into George Lowe’s room that very day—less than five hours after Lily had learned about the situation!

It wasn’t even dark out!

"Lily."

Susan Mason, however, looked completely unfazed when she saw Lily. It was hard to tell if she genuinely didn’t care or was simply shameless. "Have you eaten yet?"

Lily snapped back to her senses and replied woodenly, "I have."

Susan Mason nodded. "Well, I’m going to get something to eat. See you later."

Just as Susan Mason was about to leave, the door to George Lowe’s room suddenly swung open.

"Susan, you forgot your purse!"

George Lowe poked his head out. He was wearing shiny, silver silk pajamas, and the half-open collar faintly revealed a patch of curly, graying chest hair. The sight made Lily’s stomach churn.

Upon seeing Lily outside, George Lowe was surprisingly nonchalant, greeting her in a casual tone. "Oh, Lily, you’re here."

"Teacher Lowe," Lily replied automatically, though inwardly she felt completely out of place and just wanted to get away as fast as possible.

Susan Mason took her purse from George Lowe’s hand. A flicker of unease crossed her face, but she quickly composed herself. "Thank you, Teacher Lowe. I’ll be going now."

With a magnanimous smile, George Lowe waved. "Don’t mention it. Next time you have any trouble with your lines, don’t hesitate to come and find me."

Susan Mason nodded, then gave Lily another smile before hurrying toward the elevators.

Suddenly, only Lily and George Lowe were left in the narrow hallway.

Lily stared at the half-open door, terrified he would grab her and pull her inside as she walked past.

But for now, all she could do was force herself to speak. "You should get some rest, Teacher Lowe. I have to get back and video call Connie."

Using Connie’s name to steel her nerves, Lily started to walk forward, her pace instinctively quickening as she passed his doorway.

"Lily!"

She had just passed his door and was about to breathe a sigh of relief when George Lowe’s voice suddenly called out from behind her.

Lily’s back went rigid. She froze and turned around. "Is there something else, Teacher Lowe?"

A wide smile was plastered on George Lowe’s face, his eyes crinkling into slits. He stared at Lily’s fair, delicate face for a long moment before speaking. "It’s nothing. I just wanted to tell you, if you run into any difficulties with your acting, just let me know. I can help you."

The words hit her like an invisible laser, sending a paralyzing jolt through her entire body.

She averted his gaze, lowered her head, and nodded quickly. Then, ignoring the peculiar stare she could feel on her back, she fled to her room.

The moment the door shut, Lily leaned against it, clapping a hand over her mouth. Her chest heaved violently, and tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks.

She didn’t know if she was crying out of fear.

Or because of Susan Mason.

*

Cecilia Sterling arrived at the Kartel Go-Kart Club at the appointed time.

She hadn’t come alone this time; Estelle Goodman, Blair, and Jane Sterling were all with her.

When her best friends heard Cecilia had gotten a membership, they all insisted on coming along to learn so they could race together in the future.

"Miss Sterling, you’re here!"

Coach Warner came out to greet her. When he saw three other stunning women with her, he couldn’t hide his surprise. "Brought some friends today?"

Cecilia Sterling smiled and nodded, then called out to Coach Warner, "A few of my best friends want to try it out, too. Can you find a few more instructors to teach them? And make them handsome!"

"No problem!" Coach Warner clapped his hands. "If you’ll all wait here a moment, I’ll be right back."

Estelle Goodman looked around the club with curiosity, finding it novel. "I didn’t even know a place like this existed."

Jane Sterling decided to poke a sore spot. "Did you ever get your driver’s license?"

Estelle Goodman shot her a glare. "What do go-karts have to do with a driver’s license? This is just for fun!"

Estelle Goodman had spent a few months over winter break learning to drive, but her quest for a license had ultimately ended in failure.

Cecilia Sterling stepped forward and explained with a laugh, "You need a license for go-karting, too, and each level is harder than the last. Good luck, sweetie!"

"Huh?" Estelle Goodman’s eyes widened in shock. "Why didn’t you tell me sooner?"

Just then, Coach Warner returned with three other handsome instructors. One of them was fair-skinned with a lean, muscular build. The moment Estelle Goodman saw him, her eyes lit up, and all her previous frustration vanished. "Well, since we’re already here, we might as well learn."

They divvied up the instructors. Jane Sterling picked a more serious-looking one, leaving a handsome, muscular guy with well-defined pecs for Blair.

Cecilia told her friends to go have a spin on the track first, as she had business to attend to.

But just as she was about to head upstairs, Coach Warner stopped her. "Miss Sterling, Mr. Sullivan isn’t here today."

"He’s not? I thought he came here every day." Cecilia asked, confused. She remembered Secretary Grant telling her as much.

Coach Warner nodded. "Mr. Sullivan has been breaking in a new kart lately, so he has been coming every day. But he’s not here today. Why don’t you give him a call and see what’s up?"

Cecilia’s expression soured. Their meeting had been scheduled in advance. She felt that even if Julian Summers was a bit of a playboy, as the head of a major company, he should at least take business matters seriously.

If something else came up and he couldn’t make it, he should have called to let her know, not just leave her hanging.

She walked over to a sofa in the lobby, sat down, and called Julian Summers. Luckily, he picked up after just one ring.

"You’re in the hospital?"

As Cecilia listened to Julian’s explanation over the phone, her anger instantly dissipated.

Julian had a habit of listening to music in the shower. He’d gotten caught up in the beat and tried a couple of dance moves, which resulted in him slipping and injuring himself.

It sounded absurd, but somehow, for Julian Summers, it was perfectly plausible.

「In the hospital」

Julian hung up and looked at Secretary Grant, who was standing beside him. "Didn’t I tell you to call Miss Sterling and change the meeting location to the hospital?" he reprimanded her coldly. "Did you forget again?"

Secretary Grant covered her mouth in belated realization. "Oh, boss! I was so busy arranging your transfer to the VIP ward!"

Julian let out a long, helpless sigh. Just then, his mother, who was sitting nearby, shot Grant a cold glare. "How can you forget something your boss explicitly tells you to do? If this deal falls through because of you, can you bear that responsibility?"

Seeing his mother interject, Julian quickly sent Grant away before she could receive a full lecture. "Go get some hot water."

Grant nodded, grabbed Julian’s personal thermos from the table, and scurried out of the room.

Seeing Grant’s foolish scurrying infuriated Mrs. Sullivan. She looked at her son and complained, "She’s clumsy and dim-witted. Aside from being pretty, she’s utterly useless. Tell me, why do you keep her around?"

"Oh, Mom," Julian cut her off impatiently, lowering his voice. "You said it yourself, she’s clumsy and dim-witted. If I don’t keep her on, where is she supposed to go?"