"You're the only one who can stop Lorraine now!"
"Just delete that post you put up, then say you sent it by mistake. That's all!"
I pushed him away.
Not hard, but enough to make my position clear.
Lorraine, watching it all, let the tears fall. "Ms. Coleman, I've wronged you!"
"It's my fault. I lost my head for a moment and stole your credit."
"But there's nothing I can do about it now."
"All that's left is to atone with my life!"
She made as if to jump, and Quinn went out of his mind. He suddenly snatched a craft knife from the table beside him and pressed it to his own throat.
"Miriam, are you really going to drive me to my death before you'll forgive Lorraine?"
Looking at his tear-streaked face, my mind reeled for a moment.
Seven years ago, when we made it official, the Swansons flatly refused. They wanted to force us apart.
In the end it was Quinn who held a fruit knife to himself and threatened to die, and only then did the Swansons back down.
The resolve on his face back then was exactly the same as it was now.
Except what he was protecting was no longer our love. It was Lorraine.
In that second, my heart went to ash. I took out my phone, and in front of everyone, I deleted the post.
"Quinn, I agree."
"Satisfied now?"
The instant she saw me issue the statement, Lorraine climbed down off the windowsill.
When her feet touched solid ground, her legs were still trembling.
Quinn paid me no more mind. He rushed over and pulled her tight into his arms.
"Lorraine, are you all right?"
"You were too reckless. If you'd really jumped just now, do you have any idea how much it would have destroyed me…"
Watching the two of them clinging to each other, I laughed at myself, turned, and walked away.
On the way home, I called a friend and asked him to look into a few things.
He agreed readily, and he was efficient too. In under an hour he messaged back and sent me a file.
The file confirmed my suspicion.
That whole tragic little act Lorraine had put on really did have a purpose behind it…
The next day was Valentine's Day. The Swansons, who could afford anything, booked out the only six-star hotel in Harborview City and threw a lavish banquet.
Rufus and Yvette were in high spirits.
Because after the market opened, Swanson Group's stock kept surging.
That statement I'd released had done its work after all.
Quinn today looked more striking than he ever had.
In a bespoke tuxedo, flowers and an engagement ring in hand, he stood on the stage, waiting for the thrilling moment.
The guests were looking forward to it too.
But what none of them knew was that by now I had already boarded the cruise ship, carrying my mother's urn.
And I had blocked every last one of Quinn's ways to reach me.
