Chapter 173: A New Season, A New Status

Ellis didn’t think she was biased against Morty. And even if she was, it was entirely his fault for acting like a menace. “Busy,” she said, ignoring his outstretched hand and turning to leave.

“No matter how busy you are, you can spare a few seconds to like a picture of your goddaughter. I’ve got tons of Maya’s best shots on my feed,” Morty called loudly behind her, and she couldn’t help but glance back. Did she just get assigned a goddaughter? Maybe it was his volume that made her do it, but she ended up pulling out her phone and logging into WeChat.

Just as Morty said, his feed was flooded with pictures of Maya. He had no privacy settings on; everything was public. She scrolled a few times and casually liked the first post she saw. Before exiting his page, her eyes caught a glimpse of his status: “Cats and dogs are a perfect match. Don’t like it? Too bad.” So this guy had both a cat and a dog and spent his free time playing with them? Were his pets his true love?

Shaking her head, Ellis stepped through Casey’s front door and pushed away the useless thoughts, refocusing on work. Meanwhile, still standing by the road, Morty glanced down at Maya in his arms. A faint smile crossed his face as he whispered, “Maya, you’ve got a godmother now. Happy?” Maya, as if understanding, licked the back of his hand in response.

The scorching summer finally ended, making way for the cool breeze of autumn. During work hours, Ellis was busy focusing on her tasks when someone suddenly tapped her on the shoulder. She looked up to see Amelia, grinning shamelessly. “Ms. Harper, are you heading out with Madam Lois this afternoon?”

Amelia wasn’t clueless—Ellis had made it clear multiple times that she had no interest in any social interactions beyond work. Since Amelia wanted to keep her job at Goliath Group, she had learned to recognize the boundaries and stopped pushing. That meant she had given up on introducing Ellis to wealthy heirs as a way to cash in on connections. She also stopped trying to use Ellis as a bridge to get closer to Morty. Now, she treated Ellis like a regular colleague.

Since Amelia had finally gotten the message, Ellis didn’t make things hard for her. “Yes,” she replied. “Will you be out the whole afternoon?” Amelia asked. “That depends on Madam Lois.” Lois’s schedule included a client meeting at a golf course, where they’d talk business while playing. Ellis wasn’t sure when it would end. As her secretary, her job was to handle the logistics—nothing more, nothing less.

“Got it. Thanks, Ms. Harper.” Amelia smiled and returned to her desk. Finishing up her work ahead of time, Ellis accompanied Lois out just before noon.

Inside the car, as Lois flipped through the client’s file, she asked, “Ms. Harper, do you know how to play golf?” “I do,” Ellis nodded. Golf was a must-have social skill for people in high society. After her adoptive mother brought her into this world, she had arranged for her to learn all sorts of skills—golf included.

“Good.” Lois didn’t necessarily need Ellis to play, but it was always better to have a capable assistant, especially one she was paying well above market rate. They arrived at the golf course ahead of their client. After changing into sports attire in the locker room, they planned to…

On the way, Lois ran into some acquaintances and didn’t need Ellis to tag along. That left Ellis with some rare free time, so she headed to the restaurant alone. But before she could step inside, she ran into a group of familiar faces.

“Mrs. Hudson!” “No, wait—Ms. Ellis?” “Ellis?” Three different ways of addressing her. The last one, calling her by her full name, was the one that truly reflected her status drop. But Ellis didn’t care.

It had been over a month since she and Easton finalized their divorce. That was more than enough time for people to spread the news that she was no longer Mrs. Hudson. As long as people addressed her politely, she wasn’t particular about what they called her. She gave them a neutral smile in return. The group exchanged glances before focusing back on her. One of them finally spoke up.

“Mr. Easton is here too. Did you two come together for a game?” The upper-class social scene was ridiculously small. The same people frequented the same places, so it wasn’t shocking that she and Easton had ended up at the same location. She simply said, “No.”

There was a brief silence as the group hesitated, debating whether to bring up the hot topic of gossip. The rumors had spread, and even Emma had confirmed them—Ellis and Easton were divorced, and Victoria had taken her place as the new Mrs. Hudson. But here’s where things got interesting: no one had ever heard Easton confirm it himself. And recently, a new rumor had popped up—one that defied all logic. The claim? Ellis dumped Easton. Not the other way around. That was hard for anyone to believe. Easton Hudson, a man who could do whatever he pleased, got dumped? That was beyond comprehension. The group stared at Ellis, curiosity burning in their eyes like wild animals circling fresh gossip.