Chapter 582:
Once the call ended, Freya and Ethel sat down to eat together.
All throughout dinner, Ethel kept sneaking glances at Freya, her lips parting now and then like she wanted to say something, but always holding back at the last second.
Freya noticed. “Go on, what’s been eating at you all day?”
Ethel’s eyes widened in surprise. “How did you know?”
“You kept staring at me over breakfast—and again while we were watching TV this morning,” Freya said, familiar with her every little quirk. “So, what’s going on?”
“It’s not that big of a deal. I just…” Ethel fumbled for words, her cheeks turning pink.
Freya gave her a look and made a wild guess. “Is it about your boyfriend?”
Ethel blinked like she’d just seen a ghost. How did Freya always know?
“Yeah… it’s about him,” she admitted at last, deciding to just say it. “He wants to meet you.”
Freya lifted an eyebrow. “Meet me? What for?”
“He’s still too nervous to face Dad,” Ethel confessed, sheepish. “He figured it’d be better to meet you first—then talk to Dad after graduation.”
“When?” Freya asked without missing a beat.
“You’ll meet him?” Ethel’s whole face lit up with joy.
“Yes.”
“Thank you!” Ethel beamed.
If Freya agreed, talking Hugh into it would be a thousand times easier. She was sharp, that one.
“Don’t thank me just yet,” Freya said, lifting a hand. “If it’s on the sixth, I might not be able to make it. I’ve got something to take care of.”
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“It’s not the sixth,” Ethel said quickly, grinning. “It’s on the seventh.”
Freya’s chopsticks froze halfway to her mouth.
The seventh?
Wasn’t that the day her captain was supposed to come back?
Ethel caught the shift in her expression. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Freya said smoothly. She didn’t want to ruin Ethel’s excitement. “Just let me know where it’ll be once you’ve decided.” She was already planning it all out—on the evening of the sixth, she’d tell Trent she had to take a business trip, meet up with Ethel and her boyfriend on the seventh, and then go straight to the airport afterward. Alerith was a massive place. The odds of running into her captain were slim to none.
With the plan set, Freya felt more at ease.
By noon the next day, Hugh was back. Neither of them brought up Cheryl—not even in passing. They just slipped back into their routine like nothing had happened.
Time didn’t wait for anyone. Before long, the sixth had arrived.
Freya was up early, packing up some documents and a gift she’d prepared for Josiah.
This time, she didn’t bother calling the driver—she decided to drive herself.
She texted Josiah with her license plate number and took the familiar route toward his house.
.
.
.