Chapter 29
After answering with a quick “Alright,” Seren hung up the phone, only to find Quentin watching her with a spark of curiosity in his eyes.
Clearly, Quentin had picked up on something.
People always said Seren was hopelessly in love with Sheridan. He had believed
it himself until now. Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure.
In fact, Quentin was beginning to wonder if Seren had ever truly loved Sheridan at all.
He’d seen the two of them together before. Not once had he noticed those telltale signs of a woman in love—the flushed cheeks, the bashful smiles, the heartbeat quickening at the slightest glance. If anything, Seren always seemed cautious, treading carefully around Sheridan as if she were walking on thin ice.
Just then, Quentin’s assistant emerged from the lounge, reminding him it was time to sign the contract.
Quentin never once mentioned to Seren that Sheridan seemed to be taking her more seriously these days. Instead, as they parted ways, he offered her a simple, honest remark.
“Even though I’m one of Sheridan’s closest friends,” he said, “I still think he’s a fool for letting a woman like you slip through his fingers. It’s his loss p>
Seren accepted the compliment without false modesty or embarrassment. “Thank you,” she replied, her tone steady.
Once Quentin had signed the contract and left, Seren spent a little more time with Seth, wandering the halls of The Antiquarian’s Gallery to get a feel for the place.
As for the painting Quentin had requested, Seren wasn’t about to start work on it now-especially since the workday was already over. She said her goodbyes to Seth and left the gallery early.
She loved painting, but that didn’t mean she loved working late. If something could wait until tomorrow, there was no reason to cram it all into today.
Seren preferred taking things slow and steady over rushing around in a panic. Besides, three days was more than enough time to get the painting done. After driving home, Seren dropped her bag by the door and collapsed onto the couch.
It wasn’t until she was stretching out that she suddenly remembered-after hanging up on Lennon earlier, Quentin’s interruption had made her completely forget to add Lennon on WhatsApp.
She pulled out her phone and logged into the app. Sure enough, there was Lennon’s friend request waiting for her.
He must have gotten her number from Shirley.
Without thinking much, Seren tapped the “Accept” button.
Lennon’s display
name was simply his real name-easy enough to recognize. His profile picture caught her attention: a photo of bright green leaves, sunlight filtering through the branches like scattered diamonds dazzling and radiant. If you looked closely, you could even make out a shadowy figure standing some distance away, half-hidden by light and leaves, mysterious and indistinct.
An odd sense of familiarity tugged at Seren’s mind. Had she seen this scene somewhere before?
Before she could think about it further, her phone buzzed again—Lennon had sent her a message.
She opened the chat, and the first thing she saw was a picture.
It was a pair of wedding rings. Calling them “beautiful” didn’t do them justice- they were simply stunning.
Tiny diamonds sparkled along the bands, catching the light, while inside the metal, delicate blue swirls seemed to dance, clear and deep as a summer night sky. At the center, a single diamond shone like the brightest star.
Seren couldn’t tear her eyes away. If the photo looked this breathtaking, she
couldn’t imagine how gorgeous the rings must be in real life.
The phone buzzed again—another message from Lennon.
“What do you think of these wedding rings? If you’re not a fan, I can pick out a different style p>
Seren replied almost without hesitation. “No need. These are perfect. I love them p>
“Great. Then this is the set p>
After that, Lennon didn’t reply, and Seren didn’t message him again. A man like Lennon was probably always busy-just choosing these rings for her was already taking time out of a packed schedule.
As she was about to close the chat, her gaze drifted back to Lennon’s profile picture. She stared at it for a moment, lost thought there was something uncannily familiar about the scene in the photo.
“Seren!” Someone tapped her shoulder.
Seren turned to see Nadine, who must have just come out of her room. Nadine was still in pajamas, a loose T-shirt and sweatpants, with a face mask covering all but her lively dark eyes.
She flopped down next to Seren on the couch, glancing at her phone. “Who are you texting? Is it your Lennon p>
Seren answered truthfully, “Yeah. He just sent me a photo of some wedding rings to see if I like the style p>
Nadine’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, let me see! What do they look like p>
Wedding rings weren’t exactly a state secret, so Seren enlarged the photo and handed over her phone without hesitation.
Propping her chin in her palm, Nadine examined the image thoughtfully. “Huh, these rings look oddly familiar p>