Cross My Tigress Face the Wrath (Stella) novel Chapter 649

Lola noticed Stella wasn’t answering, so she changed the subject.

“So, do you want it or not?”

“Want what?”

“Money, Stella. The Larkin family’s money. I can split it with you.”

Stella stared at her for a second.

Was this really happening?

She took a deep breath. “Do I look like I need money right now?”

Lola shrugged. “No, but Larkin money is different. Think of it as payback from them. You’ve earned it.”

Back when Stella worked at Nocturne Hues, she’d heard Jaxon defending Ursula nonstop, always calling her his precious little sister. Stella had wondered then—what kind of people was she dealing with?

She asked, “So tell me, what made you ever like Jaxon in the first place?”

“Like him?” Lola’s face twisted like she’d just bitten into a lemon.

Stella paused. “You had his kid. Didn’t you like him?”

Lola rolled her eyes. “You actually believed those rumors?”

Rumor had it Lola tried to marry her way up the ladder, using her kid as leverage—and failed. Cloudia had confronted her more than once, fuming every time.

Lola smirked. “Please. Like I ever liked him. If anything, it was his money that caught my eye.”

“Money?” Stella echoed.

“Yeah. I was broke. The baby just happened, but once he existed, I had to step up.”

“…”

“But, hey—Jaxon should step up, too. I’m not raising his kid for free.”

Stella’s jaw dropped.

This girl was brutally honest.

She never wanted Jaxon, just his cash. Most people would never admit that.

Stella stayed silent.

Lola gave a little laugh. “What? You think I’m trash? I get it. People like us, scraping by, you sky-high princesses could never understand.”

Stella shook her head. “I don’t look down on you.”

People’s lives are just… different.

If she hadn’t met the Quinns, who knows where she’d be.

Lola snorted. “Nope.”

Stella frowned. “Then why?”

“Dandy’s got a good job, a nice house, plenty of money. What’s not to like?”

Stella gave her a look. “So, it’s about money again?”

Lola fell silent. She rummaged in her purse, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and lit one up.

Stella watched her. In the lighter’s glow, Lola looked… sad, just for a second.

Lola took a drag and said quietly, “Love’s for you princess types. People like me—we don’t have time for romance.”

She exhaled. “All we can afford is money. That’s just how it goes.”

She paused, then looked Stella in the eye.

“We’ve been broke for too long.”

Stella went quiet, feeling something shift inside her. She’d never really understood that kind of desperation, but she could hear it in Lola’s voice.

Lola finished her cigarette, then reached into her bag and pulled out a card, holding it out to Stella.

Stella blinked. “What’s this?”