Chapter 144

After walking out of the café, Elsie tucked the old notebook into her bag. The Phantom was quietly waiting by the curb. As Justin Wilson opened the car door for her, her phone rang—it was Jonathan Scott. She picked up. He asked, "Ellie, are you free today?" "Depends. What's up?" she said. "I want to apologize to you in person for what happened last time." Jonathan had been working through the mess between him and Madison Miller—nine years’ worth of entanglement wasn’t something you could just walk away from overnight. Their lives were tied up in every way—emotionally, financially, professionally. Cutting all that off is tough. His voice sounded worn out. Not physically tired, more like mentally drained. "I'm throwing a little farewell party tonight at the villa. Was gonna use it as a wedding house once—doesn’t matter now. If you could come, I'd really appreciate it." Honestly, Elsie didn’t have much of a connection with him. If it weren’t for William, they'd probably just be strangers.