After Betrayal - I Married a Handsome Tycoon-Chapter 120: Playing with Heart
When Connor Quinn spoke, his voice was deep and his tone was perfectly calm.
But paired with the subtle, well-hidden disappointment in his eyes, the atmosphere instantly soured.
Seeing his expression, Moira Sloan couldn’t help but furrow her brow.
The first time she’d mentioned Shane Jennings to him flashed through her mind.
That had also been at Jean Hale’s place.
He had been poised and indifferent.
But now...
’Is it because he’s developed feelings for me? Is that why he’s thinking this way?’
Moira Sloan felt a twist in her heart. She pressed her lips together, then pressed them again. Finally, leaning her slender waist against the kitchen cabinets, she said, "Don’t sell yourself short. He’s a piece of garbage. Comparing yourself to him would only sully you."
Connor Quinn’s Adam’s apple bobbed. "Mm."
Connor Quinn’s expression remained unchanged, but Moira Sloan could see the delight in his eyes.
’Tsk,’ Moira Sloan thought.
’He’s so easy to please.’
As they were leaving Jean Hale’s place that night, Jean Hale pulled Moira Sloan aside and earnestly lectured her, insisting she had to hold on tight to a ’good man’ like Connor Quinn.
Moira Sloan teased, "I seem to recall you telling me never to marry a poor man, that a life of poverty is a life of sorrow."
Jean Hale retorted, "I was talking about the dirt-poor kind."
Moira Sloan quipped, "And Connor Quinn isn’t dirt-poor enough for you?"
Jean Hale knew she was just being difficult and gave her arm a light pinch. "If you don’t listen to your elders, you’ll be the one to suffer."
Moira Sloan grinned. "Well, the saying these days is, ’Ignore your elders, live happy for years.’"
After leaving Jean Hale’s apartment complex, Moira Sloan naturally slipped into the passenger seat of Connor Quinn’s car.
Once in the car, Moira Sloan casually asked, "Didn’t you say you were going to your shop today? How come you suddenly went to the hospital instead?"
’If I’d known he was going to the hospital too, I wouldn’t have bothered with a taxi.’
Connor Quinn turned the steering wheel. "Jade Quinn’s medical bills are overdue. The hospital called to chase me for the payment."
"Oh," Moira Sloan said.
After her short reply, Moira Sloan had wanted to add that for small things like this, he could just call her directly. But the words died on her lips.
’Better to not get involved.’
The topic died there, and for the next stretch of the drive, neither of them spoke.
Moira Sloan leaned back in her seat, watching the scenery pass by. It lacked the dazzling decadence of a big city; here, there were only the dim, yellow glows of streetlights.
A few shop signs glowed here and there, a jumble of red and green. They weren’t high-end, imposing, or stylish—nothing that screamed ’keep out.’ They were just... real. Down-to-earth.
’This must be the nice thing about a small town,’ she thought. ’It’s comfortable.’
The very air felt saturated with a sense of leisurely contentment.
Moira Sloan was lost in thought when the phone in her purse suddenly buzzed twice.
It was the WeChat notification sound.
She pulled her gaze back from the window, glanced down, and took the phone from her purse. A mocking smile touched her lips as she read the message on the screen.
[Flora Rhodes: Your Senior Uncle was going to fire Rachel Yates, but Shane Jennings went to bat for her.]
[Flora Rhodes: I’d crown them king and queen of scumbags.]
Moira Sloan’s fingertip slid across the screen, opening her chat with Flora Rhodes. [When did this happen?]
[Flora Rhodes: Just two hours ago. The tea is piping hot.]
[Moira Sloan: Ha.]
[Flora Rhodes: Even as an outsider, I feel bad for Cassie Blanchett. I mean, she’s the heir to the Blanchett Family, president of The Blanchett Clan... she could have any man she wants. And she marries a scumbag like Shane Jennings? Tsk, tsk.]
[Moira Sloan: To each their own fate.]
’Just as Flora Rhodes said,’ Moira thought, ’a woman with Cassie Blanchett’s status could have any man she wanted.’
The reason she married Shane Jennings was partly for the alliance, and partly because she was genuinely in love with him.
It wasn’t the kind of marriage an outsider could judge, let alone interfere in.
[Flora Rhodes: Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. I started the new job! The benefits are great, same position, but they doubled my base salary and commission.]
[Moira Sloan: Congrats.]
[Flora Rhodes: But one thing... I don’t think your Fourth Senior Brother is all there.]
[Moira Sloan: Still waters run deep.]
Just as she finished texting with Flora Rhodes, the car arrived at her apartment complex.
Connor Quinn brought the car to a stop. Moira Sloan pushed her door open and got out, but after only two steps, she turned and came back.
Connor Quinn was still in the driver’s seat, reaching for the purse she’d tossed in the back. Seeing her return, he raised an eyebrow. "What’s wrong?" he asked, his voice deep.
Moira Sloan didn’t answer. Her gaze fell on the passenger seat.
Sure enough, the seat was now fitted with a cover and a cushion.
She hadn’t noticed while she was in the car, only realizing after she got out that she hadn’t felt the slightest discomfort during the entire drive.
Moira Sloan lifted her gaze to Connor Quinn, a slow smile spreading across her red lips.
Then, she leaned back into the car, half-kneeling on the passenger seat. The position highlighted her slender waist and shapely hips as she moved in to press a light kiss on his thin lips. "Connor Quinn," she said with a bright smile, "if I’d met a man like you seven years ago, I definitely would have fallen for you."
She then added, "You’re an outstanding man. A good man. My not liking you isn’t your fault, and it has nothing to do with your financial situation. It’s my issue."
"Can’t we at least try?" Connor Quinn asked, his voice hoarse.
Moira Sloan gave him a playful, wicked smile, her inner vixen on full display. "Dating and marriage are probably off the table. But if you don’t mind... I could play around with you for a bit. And I’ll even put my heart into it."
