Chapter 354: Did Carter Massage Them For You?

Zoey elegantly followed Carter and me away. Sitting in the passenger seat, she glanced back. "If it weren't for your bad leg, I'd make you sit in the back."

Carter's Adam's apple bobbed. He said, "I can carry her."

"Fine, then. Pull over."

The car stopped. Harlan strode up quickly, his steps purposeful. "I knew it. Your return implies we can put the past behind us."

Zoey rolled her eyes and chided, "You're crazy." This time, she slammed the car door even harder as she climbed in and sat next to me. I leaned against Carter, his arm wrapping protectively around me.

Zoey clicked her tongue in mock disapproval. "Seriously, I can't even look at you two. Just a few months, and you're this sweet? Do you really like him that much?"

Blushing, I buried my face deeper into Carter's chest. "Mm-hmm. I'm completely smitten. We're happy together."

Zoey rested her chin on her hand, her expression teasing. "Carter, shouldn't you thank me for setting you up with such a great match?"

"Thank you," he replied simply.

"Wow, I heard about your reputation—ruthless in business, a merciless devil, even lost the use of your leg. I figured you'd be some twisted psycho. Who knew you'd be this agreeable?"

Carter tightened his arm around my waist, his eyes narrowing as he figured out who she was.

"I'm grateful for… sending her back to me," he said softly. "Without your sacrifices, she wouldn't have been able to start over."

She raised a hand, cutting him off. "Stop right there. You make it sound like I'm some war hero who died for the greater good."

"Zoey, how have you been?" I asked, my curiosity about her life overwhelming me. I never thought we'd meet again, especially not like this.

"To be honest, starting over again, I think it's fine to just let everything go."

"Huh?" I didn't quite get what she meant.

"My timeline of coming back is different from yours," she explained. "I came back about a month ago, and I woke up in Janice's body. She was in love with Harlan, but as you've probably noticed, that Nina girl—his so-called childhood sweetheart—was always there to stir up trouble. This marriage was arranged by Harlan's grandpa, and Harlan resented it. He was cold toward the original Janice, never even looking her in the eye during their three years of marriage. Instead, he defended Nina at every turn. One day, after yet another confrontation, Janice snapped and jumped into the lake."

Her voice turned wry. "You have no idea what it was like. The day I woke up in this body, I opened my eyes underwater, staring straight at a massive black fish. Scared me so badly, I nearly died all over again. Luckily, I can swim, so I dragged myself out. After dealing with scumbags like Ashley, I figured, screw it. If Harlan hates me, fine. We can just get divorced."

Chapter 355: Did Carter Massage Them For You?