Love's Cunning Ruse novel Chapter 122

Julie made two plates of spaghetti, and after finished, she grabbed a blanket from the closet, ready to crash on the couch.

But Kieran stopped her. "You take the bed," he said, taking the blanket from her and heading for the sofa instead.

Julie was exhausted, so she didn't argue. She closed the door to the suite and hit the sack.

For the first time, they spent a peaceful night under the same roof.

At 4-ish the next morning, before the crack of dawn, Julie slipped out of the hotel and hailed a cab straight to Noblewood Retreat. After packing her stuff, she cast a glance at Ivan's room. She still had mixed feelings, but in the end, she didn't go upstairs. Instead, she moved all her stuff from the second floor. She'd thought the doorman would ask her some questions, but surprisingly, no one stopped her.

After moving all her stuff into her place, she turned on her laptop and drafted two resignation letters—one for Accolade Law Firm and another for Kieran. After setting up the emails to send later, she finally shut down her computer.

She bought a new SIM card and tucked it into her pocket, then dialed Dr. Brice.

It was Saturday, not Dr. Brice's usual shift, so Julie and Dr. Brice agreed to meet at a coffee shop not far from the hospital.

After waiting for a bit, Dr. Brice finally showed up around 7.

"Instead of resting you called me out, what can I do for you?" Dr. Brice was quite surprised by Julie's invitation. They hadn't seen each other since that dinner where Kieran publicly called Julie his wife. When Julie visited Sansa Abraham at the hospital, she always came at night, conveniently when Dr. Brice was off.

Dr. Brice had considered the possibility that he might have misunderstood Julie and Kieran's relationship. After all, Julie only had one sister who’s in a vegetative stage. She hadn't mentioned any relatives other than Daphne, so she shouldn't have any ties with a big shot like Kieran, the CEO of Simpo Co.

Dr. Brice had a thing for Julie. Initially, it was sympathy for her lonely life caring for her vegetative sister. But as they spent more time together, he found himself drawn to her. But before he could express his feelings, that incident at the restaurant happened.

Lately, the media had been buzzing with rumors about Julie and Kieran. If Julie hadn't reached out today, Dr. Brice thought, he might have taken the initiative to find her.

For Julie though, she did have something to discuss with Dr. Brice. She gave an awkward smile and said, "Actually, I'm here to ask for your help, Dr. Brice."

Dr. Brice seemed to have expected what Julie was about to say, so before she began, he said, "You want me to help move Sansa to Oakhurst, right? I'll do my best. But there's something I want to tell you."

Julie nodded and respectfully looked at Dr. Brice. "Go ahead."

Dr. Brice said. "I saw all the news about you and Mr. Hernandez. Are you two a thing?"

Julie shook her head, looking at Dr. Brice with a smile. "I didn't realize you were into gossip, Dr. Brice!"

She thought Dr. Brice was just making small talk, so she joked around. But she didn't expect his next words: "Julie, if you and Mr. Hernandez aren't a thing, what do you think about me?"

Taken aback, Julie was dumbfounded for a moment. Across from her, Dr. Brice said with a grin, "I know I might not stack up against Mr. Hernandez, and I don't know about your past, but I really like you. If you're up for it, I'd love to get to know you better. I want to be someone you can lean on..."

"Kieran's my ex-husband," Julie interrupted, her tone cool.

Her words hit Dr. Brice like a depth charge, leaving him speechless. After a few minutes of stunned silence, he looked at Julie in astonishment. "Ex-husband?"

Julie nodded. "My name used to be Joyce. Kieran's publicly acknowledged a past marriage. I'm that ex-wife."

"But...aren't you his lawyer?" Dr. Brice couldn't believe it. He'd always thought there’s no romantic relationship between Julie and Kieran.

With a bitter laugh, Julie said, "Yeah, lawyer. Kieran had the nerve to hire his ex-wife as his lawyer. Let me tell you, Dr. Brice, the reason I want to take my sister to Oakhurst is to avoid any contact with him. He was the man I loved the most, but he also hurt me the most..."

Dr. Brice seemed to understand some things. Given Julie's character, she wouldn't have chosen divorce unless Kieran had hurt her to the extreme.

Seeing Dr. Brice's silence, Julie clutched her bag and said, "I'm sorry, Dr. Brice. I seem to have put you in an awkward spot."

She prepared to leave to find other solutions. But Dr. Brice grabbed her arm. "I'll help with Sansa's transfer. When are you planning to leave?"

Julie was surprised to find out that the low-profile Dr. Brice's father was actually a deputy mayor.

She called Daphne, who was still sleeping at home. Upon hearing Julie's voice, she lazily rolled over and said, "Sweetie, just come over, I'm at home!"

When Julie arrived at Daphne's apartment, she was still sleeping. Julie gave a helpless smile and tapped her shoulder, "Daphne, I'm heading to Oakhurst. Do you want to get up and see me off?"

"No, I was with Lionel last night... Wait, where are you going?" Daphne suddenly sat up in bed, rubbing her sleepy eyes, looking horrified at Julie.

Julie did not answer Daphne's question, but looked surprised at Daphne, "You were with Lionel last night? How so?"

Daphne rolled her eyes at Julie, "I was with Lionel trying on clothes last night, I was almost dead tired. Why are you so worked up all of a sudden? There was supposed to be a charity gala tonight, but it got postponed to next week. I promised Lionel that I would accompany him to the gala in exchange for an interview opportunity. I must be crazy! Do you know he's more picky about his clothes than those flashy women out there!"

Julie couldn't help laughing. If Lionel knew that he was being compared to the flashy women out there by Daphne, he would probably rip her apart.

Daphne glared at Julie, "What are you laughing at? Where did you say you were going? Oakhurst? Are you serious?"

Julie took out a bus ticket from her wallet and nodded, "I'm really going. I'm planning to check the hospital there first, then transfer Sansa over. It might take a few days, and I've entrusted Sansa to Dr. Brice during this time. But I hope you can go and check on her when you have time."

Daphne reached out and touched Julie's head, "Are you insane?”

Julie pushed Daphne's hand away, "I've come to my senses."

"You've come to your senses and you're still going to Oakhurst? I think you've lost your mind!" Daphne glared at Julie. After learning the truth from Julien, she decided to support Mr. Hernandez fully. So when she heard that Julie was going to Oakhurst, she immediately felt uneasy.

She looked at Julie seriously and said, "Don't you owe Mr. Hernandez a lot of money? You also signed a contract, and if you breach it, you have to pay a penalty. How can you just leave?"