Chapter 7

In the car, James told Wesley to call Lakeview Residence and ask if I had left yet.

I was curious too. I hadn't been back to Lakeview Residence in almost two months.

Did no one at Lakeview Residence mention to James that I was gone? And when Wesley dropped things off, did he really not notice I wasn't there? I couldn't help but wonder.

James didn't like having people around, so there was usually one housekeeper at Lakeview Residence, and she only came during the day, never at night.

Wesley called the housekeeper at Lakeview Residence and put her on speaker. I listened closely, curious to hear what she'd say.

I doubt she'll say anything nice, I thought. The housekeeper was from the Manor, so she wasn't exactly fond of me.

But I didn't care. At least she did her job, never gave me any attitude, and she only showed up during the day.

I didn't like having people around either, so I only had her come twice a week.

James had no idea about any of this. The housekeeper was always gone before he got back.

He had no clue that the housekeeper wasn't there every day to clean or cook.

The call connected quickly, and the housekeeper lied.

She said I was all set and had already left.

If I hadn't been sitting right there in the car, I might've actually believed her.

Hearing that I'd already left, James didn't say anything else.

After hanging up, Wesley kept sneaking glances at James through the rearview mirror.

James said coldly, "Spit it out."

Wesley finally spoke up. "Mr. Bennett, I really think Mrs. Bennett is upset. Maybe you should call her yourself and see what's up?"

I gave Wesley a curious look. 'It's been months since we last saw each other. How could he possibly know I'm upset?' I wondered.

James glanced at Wesley in the driver's seat, but stayed silent.

Feeling the weight of James' stare, Wesley went on.

"Every time I've sent something to Mrs. Bennett before, she'd always text me to say she got it. But this time, she didn't."

Honestly, I always texted Wesley to thank him. I knew he was the one who had things sent over, and even though it was his job, I still wanted to be polite.

This time, there was no way I could thank him. I had no idea who signed for the delivery, most likely the housekeeper.

James' face darkened. "You really want to hear from her, huh?"

Hearing that, Wesley's grip slipped on the wheel and the car jerked hard to the side.

Luckily, he managed to steady the wheel in time and got the car under control again.

Even as a ghost, I nearly tumbled right into James' lap.

Even if I was looking for trouble, I couldn't have come up with something as brutal as what James said.

"No, that's not what I meant at all," Wesley stammered.

Wesley, who was usually so quick with words, suddenly found himself speechless.

He wanted James to try and make up to his wife.

James leaned back, his tone icy. "I know. I don't need your advice."

Wesley fell silent and didn't say another word.

I shot Wesley a sympathetic look. Even being the boss' right-hand man isn't as easy as it sounds, I thought.

Money's hard to earn, and sometimes you have to swallow a lot of crap.

Turns out, no matter how high your position is, as long as you're working for someone else, you're bound to suffer.

The car pulled up to Bennett Manor, and there were already plenty of guests there.

The Bennett Family was the top dog in Riverside City, so of course everyone wanted to get in their good graces.

Everyone here was either loaded or had serious clout. This was a free-for-all for the rich and powerful.

Even the big shots you could never meet no matter how much you paid were here, so people were showing up early to make connections.