He Made a Decision

Now Julian Sterling had gone upstairs again to meet Claire Bennett, so of course he was worried that old feelings would rekindle between Claire Bennett and him.

What if Julian Sterling lost his head again in a little while and kept defying him?

"Oh, come on, they're about to separate. What's wrong with seeing each other once before parting?" Old Mrs. Sterling wasn't that heartless. Seeing how furious Old Mr. Sterling looked, she couldn't help trying to persuade him. "That only proves Julian is a man with loyalty and feeling. Would you only be satisfied if he had no feelings at all?"

Old Mr. Sterling was choked by that for quite a while before finally forcing out a sentence: "I think he's got too much loyalty and feeling—he actually dared to join forces with another woman to deceive people!"

"Didn't Julian say it? Claire didn't know about this."

Old Mr. Sterling shot Old Mrs. Sterling an irritated glare. "You're just taking that woman's side!"

The two of them started arguing again over Claire Bennett.

Every time Claire Bennett was brought up, they ended up arguing over it. Old Mr. Sterling blamed Old Mrs. Sterling for favoring Claire Bennett, while Old Mrs. Sterling felt Old Mr. Sterling was far too heartless.

But this time, Old Mrs. Sterling won.

Old Mrs. Sterling rolled her eyes at Old Mr. Sterling and gave a cold snort. "Whose birthday is it today, exactly?"

The birthday person was the one who mattered most, and he still dared talk back to her!

Old Mr. Sterling had originally wanted to say more, but that one sentence from Old Mrs. Sterling made him obediently shut his mouth.

Claire Bennett left the Sterling family home alone, pulling her suitcase behind her.

When she reached the entrance, she ran into someone she didn't want to see. Ethan Sterling blocked Claire Bennett's path, his eyes dark as he looked at her and asked, "Claire, where are you going? Let me give you a ride."

"No need."

Claire Bennett no longer had any feelings for this ex-boyfriend, nor did she plan to have any further entanglements with him.

In fact, aside from Ruby Sterling, she didn't want any more contact with anyone else in the Sterling family either. There was no need for it.

Seeing Claire Bennett's cold attitude, a flash of darkness passed through Ethan Sterling's eyes. He let out a cold laugh and said, "Claire, Julian Sterling chose the Sterling family in front of everyone just now. Haven't you seen clearly yet? To Julian Sterling, the Sterling family matters way more than you do. He wants power, not you anymore!"

Claire Bennett listened quietly to Ethan Sterling's words.

The words were a little harsh, but to outsiders, that really was how it looked. Just now, Julian Sterling had chosen the Sterling family without hesitation and separated from her.

Only after quite a while did she smile.

She lifted her eyes to Ethan Sterling and said, "Ethan Sterling, what's between us has long been over. What's the point of saying all this to me now? Are you trying to provoke me? Or make me hate Julian Sterling even more?"

Claire Bennett paused. "No matter what, you and I can never go back to the way things were."

After saying that, she didn't linger any longer and left, dragging her suitcase behind her.

As Ethan Sterling watched Claire Bennett's departing figure, he had the reckless urge to chase after her and hide her away.

He realized he could no longer see through Claire Bennett.

He had originally thought that with things developing to this point, Claire Bennett would be utterly heartbroken. At that moment, as long as he showed the proper tenderness, Claire Bennett would fall back into his love once again.

Or perhaps Claire Bennett would have nowhere to go, and he could let her stay in one of the properties under his name, and they could naturally end up together.

But Claire Bennett was extremely calm, and she looked down on him with disdain.

If he stood at the very top of the Sterling family and held all the power in his hands, would Claire Bennett finally see him then?

...

After Claire Bennett left the Sterling family home, she felt a moment of confusion.

For a while, she didn't know where to go.

When she had refused Julian Sterling's offer to take her and said she had somewhere to go, she had actually been lying.

She didn't have anywhere at all to go, the Bennett family...

At the thought of her stepmother and Ava Bennett, she didn't want to go back and let them laugh at her, so once again she had been reduced to having nowhere to belong.

Originally, she had rented a place in New York, but after she returned to the Bennett family last time, that rental had already been given up.

As for her uncle's side of the Shaw family...

If they found out about her current situation, they would definitely rush to the Sterling family without hesitation to demand justice for her. Now that things had ended peacefully between them, she didn't want to stir up any more trouble.

So she couldn't go to the Shaw family either. Then where else could she go?

Claire Bennett let out a faint sigh. It seemed Chicago no longer had any place for her to stay.

Suddenly, Claire Bennett thought of someone. Left with no other choice, she dialed his number. "Zhouzhou, do you have an empty place there? Can you let me stay for a couple of days? Once I find a place, I'll move out."

The number she dialed was Zane Cole's. Maybe he was the only person she could turn to now.

When Zane Cole heard Claire Bennett's words, he fell silent for a moment, then anxiously pressed, "Claire Bennett! What happened to you? Did you and Julian Sterling have a fight? Where are you right now? I'll come find you immediately!"