Chapter 5
My mom called non-stop, but I just declined every call, not picking up, not even once.
After dinner, I found a nearby hotel and figured I'd just make do for the night.
Heading home now would only mean getting an earful from my mom—and that was the last thing I wanted.
After checking in, I headed to the elevator.
Just as the doors were about to close, a man and a woman stepped in.
I didn't recognize the woman, but the guy was all too familiar.
It was Jordyn, Daisy's boyfriend.
He was completely focused on the woman next to him and didn't even notice me standing quietly off to the side.
Jordyn kept stealing kisses from the woman's cheek, his hands all over her waist, barely behaving themselves.
The woman twisted her hips, playing hard to get but totally loving every second of it.
"What's the rush? Can't you wait till we're in the room?" she teased, flashing him a flirty grin.
"With you acting so damn hot, how could I possibly wait?" Jordyn shot back.
"Mmm, you're such a bad boy," she giggled.
"Isn't that exactly why you love me?" Jordyn teased.
"Ugh, you're so bad," she giggled, a playful pout on her lips.
Their cringeworthy flirting made me want to gag.
Luckily, their stop came before mine, and I watched Jordyn swagger out with the woman.
I couldn't help but wonder.
What would Daisy do if she ever found out the guy she's been all hung up on, the one she expects to be rolling in money someday, was sneaking off to a hotel with another woman?
I had zero intention of telling Daisy. This was her choice, and no matter how things played out, she'd have to swallow the consequences herself.
Honestly, there had always been one thing I'd wondered about.
How did Jordyn go from being just another guy to a billionaire?
Thanks to Daisy constantly sharing every little thing about Jordyn, I knew a fair bit about him and his family.
Jordyn didn't have any achievements to speak of, and he was no academic star. All he ever had going for him was a decent face.
His family was regular folks, and if we were talking about talent, he had none. In my last life, I heard he barely managed to get his college diploma.
How did a guy like that end up rolling in cash?
Alone in my room, my mind kept wandering back to it all—especially to how ruthless Daisy was when she got me killed in my last life.
If Daisy realized she threw her whole future at Jordyn and wound up with nothing in the end, what would she do?
I went online, found a private investigator, hashed out the price, then sent him Jordyn's info and asked him to look into what kind of family he actually came from.
Once I'd set that all up, I just left it at that and went on with my life.
The next day, I checked out of the hotel and jumped right back into my money-making hustle.
Whenever I had some free time, I'd swing by Jordyn's neighborhood to see what I could dig up.
Jordyn's mom was a single mother, always on the move—never settling in one city for more than two years.
They only settled in Avlesaville around three years ago, mostly because Jordyn started high school and she was tired of always moving from place to place.
Jordyn never had a father, and honestly, nobody had a clue who his dad was.
His mom always told people his dad was a sailor who died in a shipwreck not long after Jordyn was born.
But it wasn't until I got the private investigator's report that I finally found out the truth.
Jordyn was actually an illegitimate child, and his real dad was none other than Bridger Roberson, the richest man in Avlesaville.
Word was, Bridger's wife only ever gave him a daughter—no son to carry on the family name.
Once I put all the pieces together, it suddenly made sense how Jordyn ended up a billionaire.
In my last life, Jordyn must've finally been acknowledged by Bridger and ended up inheriting the whole family fortune.
Once I'd figured out the real reason, I had a quick chat with the travel gear shop owner, threw my things together, and headed off to Avlesaville.
Avlesaville had got culture; it had got history, and when it came to tourists, this place was always buzzing.
I came partly to shoot some videos, but honestly, I was mostly here to chase down the truth that had been nagging at me.
Bridger was the richest man in Avlesaville, and one of his many businesses was a hotel chain.
I checked in at one of their hotels, and when I was reading the info at the front desk, I saw the founder's name.
It wasn't Bridger, but his wife, Corinne James.
Now that was interesting.
My gut told me there was definitely a story behind all this.
I went online to look up some info on Corinne, but there wasn't much to find. Turns out, her dad made his fortune in the furniture business and was known as the furniture mogul of Avlesaville.
He caught the wave as the times changed and started investing in the construction and hotel business too.
Just in Avlesaville alone, the James family owned a whopping five five-star hotels—and that was not even counting all their other chains.
Corinne was their only daughter. Her parents had set up an arranged marriage for her, but when she was in college, she fell hard for Bridger instead.
Her dad didn't think Bridger was good enough for her, but Corinne was determined to marry him.
In the end, Tristen James couldn't stand up to his daughter's determination, so he let her go ahead and marry Bridger. To make sure she was set for life, Tristen even handed her a massive chunk of cash for her wedding.
That was pretty much everything I could dig up online.
Bridger and Corinne had shown up in public together plenty of times over the years.
Online, Bridge was the kind of guy who started with nothing and ended up way above his league.
Everyone said he was a total family guy, always spoiling Corinne and their daughter, and that the two of them were crazy in love—the kind of couple everyone envied.