She stood frozen, torn between disbelief and fury. The date was already set, and now he was pushing it back—without giving her a real reason.

Ernest left Lion Bay and headed straight for the company.

With his departure from Srixby looming and no definite return in sight, he had to put things in order first. Everything demanded his attention; there wasn’t even time to take a proper breath.

“Mr. Quentin returned from a call and set a fresh cup of black coffee on the table.”

Then he leaned in, lowering his voice. “Kira called. Miss Harris wants to see you.”

Ernest raised an eyebrow. “What exactly did she say?”

Quentin hesitated. “She threw a fit. Broke a few things. Almost tore up her wedding dress.”

Kira had been the one to call Quentin—she didn’t know how to calm Linda down anymore.

“Maybe you should talk to her,” Quentin suggested.

“Let her do what she wants,” Ernest said. “It’s just a dress. If she wants to tear it, let her. We won’t be needing it anytime soon anyway.” The wedding could wait.

With that, he waved his hand toward the meeting room.

Looking at the executive who had paused mid-report, Ernest said calmly, “Go on.”

“Yes, Mr. Flynn.”

The meeting resumed while Quentin quietly stepped out to pass along Ernest’s message to Kira.

“He’s not coming?” Linda asked at once, seated beside Kira, eyes locked on her face.

“Well…” Kira hesitated. She couldn’t bring herself to speak bluntly, so she offered a vague smile. “Mr. Flynn’s swamped. Ever since Mr. Scott returned to the Scott family, he’s been handling everything on his own…”

Hearing that, Linda let out a sneer and shook her head. “Swamped?” Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “He just can’t stand the sight of me. If that’s the case…”

gσv.c?m – check it out!

Turning toward Jane, she commanded, “Bring me the scissors.”

“Miss Harris…” Jane hesitated, glancing nervously at Kira.

“The wedding’s off. What’s the point of keeping that dress? Go get them!”

Still unsure, Jane looked to Kira for direction. Kira exhaled, then gave a small nod.

“Yes, ma’am.” Jane rushed off and quickly returned. “Here, Miss Harris.”

“Give them to me!” Linda snatched the scissors from her, tears streaking down her cheeks as she laughed coldly. She raised the scissors to the delicate fabric, ready to cut. “Useless. It’s all useless!”

Kira and Jane both froze. Something was off.

Jane discreetly tapped her temple and whispered, “Miss Harris might be having another episode.”

Kira gave a tight nod. “Get the meds. Give her the injection.” Ernest had left her in charge for a reason.

A ruined dress was one thing; self-harm was another.

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