Chapter 559
She'll Come Looking for You on Her Own
Recently, Claire Bennett had been cooking for herself. When she opened the fridge, she started zoning out again, thinking of Julian Sterling.
He'd only just moved in yesterday, so he probably didn't have much in the way of cooking supplies either, right?
She hadn't seen Julian Sterling carrying any food earlier, either. She wondered if he'd eaten dinner, or if Marcus Reed and the others would bring him food, or maybe he'd go out to eat.
As Claire Bennett's thoughts ran wild, she quickly made a few dishes.
A mustard greens soup and two stir-fries. They looked simple, but they were presented very nicely.
Looking at the full table of food, she hesitated for a moment, then still left her apartment and went over to ring Julian Sterling's doorbell.
...
At the same time, Julian Sterling was on the phone with Ruby Sterling.
"What did you say to Claire?" Julian Sterling asked in a low voice. "When I came back just now, she asked me if I'd been kicked out by the Sterling family."
"Hahahahaha..." Ruby Sterling burst out laughing when she heard that.
Only after quite a while did she stop laughing, and then Ruby Sterling told Julian Sterling every last thing she'd said to Claire Bennett, word for word.
Only then did Julian Sterling understand Claire Bennett's shifting expressions from earlier.
He really had guessed right. Claire Bennett thought it was because of her that he'd been 'kicked' out by the Sterling family, which was why she'd looked so guilty toward him.
At that thought, Julian Sterling really didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Bro, based on what I know about Claire, if she finds out you were kicked out by the Sterling family, she'll definitely feel guilty. Then you two won't keep giving each other the cold shoulder anymore. She might even come looking for you on her own!"
Ruby Sterling started putting her little brain to work, laying out all kinds of guesses.
The moment she finished speaking, the doorbell rang.
Julian Sterling looked toward the door. This was a high-end apartment building with dedicated management, so no random weirdos would be ringing the bell.
Could Ruby Sterling have guessed right? Had Claire Bennett come to him on her own?
Julian Sterling ended the call directly, then walked over and looked outside through the peephole.
Sure enough, Claire Bennett was standing at the door, looking full of unease.
The corners of his lips curved up in a pleased smile as he opened the apartment door. "Claire, what is it?"
Claire Bennett lifted her eyes to look at Julian Sterling and asked in a small, embarrassed voice, "Um... have you... eaten dinner yet?"
When she saw Julian Sterling's meaningful look, her expression turned a little awkward.
Why did asking it like that sound kind of like an invitation?
Claire Bennett gave a light cough and said as if nothing were wrong, "Here's the thing. I made a little too much food just now, so I wanted to ask whether you'd had dinner. It'd be a waste to throw it out anyway, so if you haven't, I can..."
Before Claire Bennett could finish, Julian Sterling had already stepped out of his place.
"Perfect. I haven't eaten, and I was just wondering what to have. I'll eat at your place." With that, Julian Sterling naturally headed toward Claire Bennett's apartment.
When Claire Bennett saw Julian Sterling walking into her place, she was completely dumbfounded!
She'd meant to pack the food into containers and bring it over to Julian Sterling. She hadn't planned on eating with him!
By then, Julian Sterling had already walked into Claire Bennett's apartment, and Claire Bennett quickly came back to her senses and hurried after him.
Five minutes later, they were sitting together at the dining table.
Claire Bennett scooped a bowl of rice for Julian Sterling and handed him a pair of chopsticks. "Let's eat."
Since Julian Sterling was already inside, one meal really wasn't a big deal. Claire Bennett calmly accepted the situation and ate with Julian Sterling with a clear conscience.
But with the two of them sitting across from each other, this silent intimacy suddenly made Claire Bennett think of their time in Chicago.
Back then, Julian Sterling had still been pretending to be poor. She hadn't known about his identity as part of the Sterling family, but they had been very happy.
Julian Sterling was a little distracted too, clearly also thinking of the sweetness they had shared in the past. As he looked into Claire Bennett's eyes, his gaze grew gentler and gentler.
When Claire Bennett saw the look in his eyes, she turned her gaze away uncomfortably.
She gave a light cough and asked, "Ruby also said you're going to leave Sterling Group. Is that true?"
A dark look flashed through Julian Sterling's eyes.
He had no intention of leaving Sterling Group. Everything had just been Ruby Sterling making it sound like he was in a miserable state. Since Ruby Sterling had already said that, he couldn't expose it.
Julian Sterling gave a low response.
Claire Bennett set down the chopsticks in her hand and looked up at Julian Sterling.
With a serious expression, she said, "Julian Sterling, why do you have to push yourself into this kind of situation? Without Sterling Group backing you, your life and work will be very difficult from now on. Maybe things in Chicago won't be as easy for you as before, either."
The reason Julian Sterling had lived so well in Chicago before was entirely because Sterling International was backed by Sterling Group and had plenty of connections and resources.
If he lost Sterling Group's support, maybe things would slowly start going downhill.
And was he really willing to give up something as huge as Sterling Group's empire?
Julian Sterling smiled faintly and said, "I've already experienced what it's like to live uncomfortably before, so I can accept it."