Chapter 504 A Fresh Start in Los Angeles

Chapter 504: Chapter 504 A Fresh Start in Los Angeles

Rose didn’t go to see Liam.

Even if she had, any reconciliation between them would have been nothing more than a performance. There was no point pretending otherwise.

It wasn’t until Liam was hospitalized for the second time that Rose finally went to see him. Diana had never intended for him to actually take his own life. Rose had to make sure he understood that Diana’s final wish was for him to stay alive.

She warned him repeatedly.

He had to live. That was what Diana wanted.

In a way, it was a form of emotional coercion, but Liam had no choice except to accept it.

As for Sophie...

Rose had heard a few scattered details about her, too.

There was practically no trace of Sophie left in the entertainment industry. It seemed she’d disappeared completely.

Ryan was the one who told Rose that Sophie really had been pregnant. However, she’d deliberately used certain means to become pregnant without Liam’s knowledge.

Ryan later handed Rose a report containing information about Sophie’s visit to a private hospital.

The pregnancy had ended in an abortion.

Rose wasn’t particularly surprised.

She could practically guess how things would turn out for Sophie. By provoking Diana and spreading lies about her, Sophie had made herself thoroughly unwelcome in Liam’s eyes. Whatever future she’d imagined for herself with him was now all but impossible.

Rose never told Diana anything about what had happened in New York.

Diana, for her part, remained out of contact for nearly six months.

It wasn’t until Rose flew to Los Angeles that the two of them finally saw each other again.

Diana came to pick her up at the airport.

The moment Rose stepped outside, she spotted an inconspicuous BMW parked along the curb.

The horn sounded twice.

Rose hurried over.

As soon as she climbed into the passenger seat, she found herself staring at a woman who looked almost like a stranger.

Diana had changed completely.

She’d cut off the long hair she’d once loved, and she’d lost a considerable amount of weight. Yet her smile was brighter than ever.

Leaning across the center console, Diana pulled Rose into a tight hug.

"I’ve missed you so much! Come here and give me a proper hug!"

Rose felt her throat tighten, but she swallowed back her emotions and looked Diana over from head to toe.

"Where have you been? You’ve lost so much weight!"

Diana pressed her lips together in a smile.

"I was filming a documentary. I even went to Africa to cover the Great Migration! All that traveling back and forth nearly wore me out, but it was incredible."

Rose already knew about the documentary.

"What have you been doing lately?"

Diana started the car, then suddenly scrunched up her nose as though she’d just remembered something.

"I picked up a side gig. The client pays really well, but the hours are all over the place. I’m paid by the hour."

Rose raised an eyebrow.

"A side gig in filmmaking? What kind of work pays by the hour? Don’t tell me you’re making adult films."

Diana shot her an incredulous look.

"What is wrong with you? I work in mainstream entertainment!"

"It’s a legitimate job, then?"

"Of course it is!"

Diana continued explaining.

"I’m working with a wealthy family whose six-year-old has autism. They want him to have more opportunities to interact with other people, and they want to document his development. They’re exploring different ways to support him, so they hired me to help."

"Oh, so it’s a proper job. That’s great."

Diana narrowed her eyes at her.

"Was that disappointment I heard in your voice? Did you actually want to see me make a porn movie?"

"I wouldn’t say I wouldn’t support you."

"Rose! You’re getting more and more shameless!"

The two burst out laughing.

For a moment, it felt as though nothing had changed between them.

On the drive back to Diana’s apartment, Rose leaned against the window and quietly studied her friend’s profile.

Diana seemed calmer and more composed than before. Even when she smiled, however, a faint sadness lingered in her eyes whenever her expression relaxed.

Six months had passed.

But some kinds of pain couldn’t simply disappear with time.

Still, Diana was doing well now.

She was free from the people and circumstances that had once trapped her. She finally had the space to step back, sort through her feelings, and decide what she wanted from life.

She’d escaped Liam’s control and begun building a future of her own. She’d also distanced herself from the family that had repeatedly let her down.

For the first time in a long while, she could live for herself.

And that was enough for Rose to feel relieved.

Diana’s apartment wasn’t particularly large, but it was spotless. Her refrigerator was stocked with fresh fruit and vegetables, and everything in the place was neatly arranged.

It was obvious that she’d been taking good care of herself.

After looking around, Rose finally let out a long breath.

At least Diana was moving forward.

Time was a powerful healer. It might not erase the past, but it could make the pain easier to carry.

As for Liam, whatever happened to him was no longer Diana’s responsibility.

While Diana busied herself preparing dinner, her phone rang.

With both hands occupied, she nodded toward it.

"Rose, would you put it on speaker for me?"

Rose glanced at the caller ID.

Sebastian Ellington.

She looked at the name a second time before answering.

A relaxed, casual male voice came through the speaker.

"Miss Sinclair, would you be able to come in a little earlier tomorrow?"

Hearing him address Diana as Miss Sinclair, Rose reminded herself that she needed to get used to her friend’s new identity.

Diana was now Aurora Sinclair.

She’d chosen Sinclair because it was her grandmother’s surname. Her grandmother had been the one person who’d shown her consistent kindness, and after she’d passed away, Diana had been left to fend for herself among people who took advantage of her.

Taking her grandmother’s surname had been Diana’s way of holding on to the one person who had truly loved her.

Diana continued chopping vegetables without looking up.

"Sure. Would nine in the morning work?"

"That works perfectly. See you tomorrow."

Sebastian ended the call.

Rose leaned closer.

"Who’s he?"

Diana answered casually, never pausing her work.

"My employer’s uncle. He’s the boy’s guardian."

She continued explaining.

"It’s actually a sad story. His nephew is six now. The boy lost his mother when he was four, and he’d been showing signs of autism since early childhood. The family believes the trauma surrounding his mother’s fatal car accident may have affected him as well. Mr. Ellington has been looking after him ever since."

"Doesn’t the boy have a father?"

Diana thought about it.

"I’m not sure. I haven’t been working with them long enough to know all the details. I’ve only known them for about two weeks."

"How old is Mr. Ellington?"

Rose propped her chin in her hand, her curiosity growing.

"Twenty-nine. Pretty young, right? His sister left him responsible for her son, so he ended up taking on the role of a father before he was probably ready for it."

Rose nodded thoughtfully.

"Is the boy easy to get along with?"

She’d heard that autistic children could have different communication and support needs, and she worried that Diana might find the work challenging.

Diana considered the question before answering.

"He’s actually pretty easy to work with. Quiet, well-behaved, and rarely causes any trouble. Maybe it’s because I’m more of a handful than he is. Somehow, I’ve managed to keep him in line."

She lifted her chin proudly.

"That boy is completely under my thumb."

Rose couldn’t help laughing at her smug expression.

"You’re awfully proud of yourself."

"Of course I am! I have a talent for taming little troublemakers!"

That night, Rose and Diana talked well past midnight.

They had six months of stories to catch up on, and neither seemed particularly interested in ending the conversation.

Eventually, though, Diana had to admit defeat. With work waiting for her the next morning, she forced herself to close her eyes at three in the morning.

Throughout the evening, neither woman mentioned Liam.

Diana didn’t ask a single question about him.

And Rose, understanding that her friend had no desire to revisit the past, didn’t bring him up either.

******

Early the next morning, Diana arrived at the Ellington residence at eight.

The Ellingtons were an old-money family with extensive international connections. Their wealth had been passed down through generations, and they lived in one of Los Angeles’s most exclusive neighborhoods.

Los Angeles was sprawling, but the divide between its wealthy enclaves and the rest of the city was hard to miss.

Diana made her way to the family’s reception room without hesitation.

The moment she entered, she spotted a man sitting on the sofa, watching the morning news.

He wore a crisp white shirt beneath a black suit vest, his clothes immaculate and his posture effortlessly elegant.

His features were strikingly sharp, his appearance undeniably handsome.

He even smiled when he noticed her.

Yet there was something about that smile that made it difficult to feel at ease. It never quite reached his eyes.

The sort of man who smiled pleasantly while keeping his true thoughts to himself.

A smiling tiger.

Rose had always instinctively disliked men like him—men who presented themselves as cultured and courteous but carried an unmistakable air of superiority beneath the polished exterior.

In her experience, those were often the hardest people to deal with.

Still, Diana had a job to do. There was no reason to let her personal impressions interfere with it.

She put on a professional smile.

"Good morning, Mr. Ellington."

Sebastian looked up at her.

"Good morning, Miss Sinclair."

And then silence fell.

Neither of them said another word.

Diana had come early to begin work before the young boy came downstairs, but she and Sebastian barely knew each other. They had no reason to make conversation, and she wasn’t about to force one.

Sebastian, for his part, seemed entirely comfortable with the silence.

He made no attempt to strike up a conversation or ask her anything about herself. After exchanging greetings, he simply returned to watching the news, perfectly content to carry on as though Diana weren’t sitting in the same room.

He seemed completely at ease with himself.

And Diana, having no particular desire to make small talk with her new employer, was content to wait