Chapter 47

Grace pursed her lips, finding Sean's offer absurd. He wanted to assuage his guilt by getting her a job? It was his fault she was unemployable elsewhere in the city.

She started to walk away.

"Don't walk away," Sean said angrily. "I'm still talking to you. Seriously, Grace, I'm already taking a risk by offering to help you!"

"Did anyone ever ask you to take that risk?" Grace asked flatly. "Did you ever hear of 'too little, too late,' Sean? When I needed you most, you abandoned me." She shook her head. "There's no need for this. Moreover, aren't you afraid your fiancée will hear?"

"Hear about what?" a sharp voice asked. Sean's eyes widened. "What are you keeping from me?"

Sean froze, releasing his grip on Grace's arm and turning to Lily, who was approaching.

"It's nothing," he said quietly.

Lily arched a brow. "Hmm." She swept up to Sean and linked her arm through his. "Sean, darling, why were you talking to this person? Aren't you afraid Jason Reed will hear about it? You know my sister was the only woman Jason ever loved. Although she's been dead for three years, he's never had another woman…"

Although Lily didn't finish her sentence, everyone understood.

Sean's face paled, remembering the retracted projection ads and Jason Reed's refusal to attend their engagement banquet. Angering Mr. Reed had far-reaching consequences, ones neither he nor Stevens Corporation could afford. His family believed Grace was responsible for Jason's refusal to meet them, but now, he was unsure.

"Grace, you're only fit to be a sanitation worker," Lily said cruelly, smiling. "And you're so good at it!"

Grace's eyes narrowed. She was furious. Lily's recent actions weren't helping, and for once, Sean wished she'd just shut up instead of being so spiteful.

"Do you think Mr. Reed knows you're out of prison?" Lily tapped her chin. "He made your life a living hell in there, didn't he?"

Grace shuddered.

"Funny, if he doesn't know already, he might recognize you on the news from our interviews today. Maybe you should think about relocating. I believe you won't be able to survive in this city for long," Lily said. With that, she walked away with Sean, arm in arm.

Grace watched them leave. She took her tools and headed toward a section of the highway on the bicycle provided by the Sanitation Service Center. She had buried her feelings for Sean long ago. Seeing him again, while surprising, stirred nothing in her heart. He was dead to her. Seeing Sean and Lily together only confirmed they deserved each other.

Grace went to work, oblivious to a figure observing from a corner.

At the news agency, reporter Brian was watching a news segment about Lily's visit to the Sanitation Service Center to apologize to the sanitation workers. It wasn't the kind of story he wanted to cover, but she was the city's darling, and his boss had assigned it to him.

When a dark-haired woman appeared on screen, he frowned. She looked familiar, but he couldn't place her.

"Who is this woman? Why does she look so familiar?"

Brian replayed the footage, noticing several details. First, Lily's hands clenched the gift box, and her smile faltered when the woman left the center and approached the press conference. Second, the woman showed none of the excitement of her coworkers; she looked resentful. This was odd, considering every employee involved in the "Atkinson Dumpster Fire"—he chuckled at his own pun regarding Lily's social media debacle—had been thrilled with the compensation and luxury apparel. Not this woman. Then he noticed Sean visibly pale and become uneasy the moment the woman appeared.

"Sean…" Brian thought of something and began searching the internet. He soon found a three-year-old news article with a picture of the woman receiving a gift from Lily. The woman in the picture was beautiful and vibrant—shockingly different from the woman on the news.

"This is too much of a coincidence!" Brian exclaimed. Three years ago, that woman had been Sean's girlfriend. Now, the successful attorney was sweeping streets? What a fall. And she was receiving an apology gift from Sean's current girlfriend?

Brian rubbed his hands together. He laughed, his excitement growing. This was a story—a juicy one. Where others missed this detail, he saw it, and he was going to capitalize on it.

He started working on his story. Though he could have sensationalized it, he stuck to the facts; with a story like this, it wouldn't matter. He'd let the public speculate—it would only increase readership.

When he submitted his work, the editor rejected it, demanding a rewrite.

"Why rewrite it?" Brian asked, offended. "I did a damn good job. This is headline-worthy!"