Billionaire Lawyer's Secretary - Chapter 170: Chapter 170

As Alex was about to leave, he handed Elara a string of twelve lollipops—a little tradition of his. Whenever she and Janice had an argument, he would always bring her these treats.
"I got them a couple days ago, but you haven't been home, so they've just been sitting in my laptop bag," Alex explained. With that, he turned to go.
Elara clutched the string of strawberry-flavored lollipops tightly in her hand, her tears splashing onto the shiny wrappers.
She looked up at him. That tall back still felt so familiar to her. Once, there was a time when she would have given anything just to see it again. But now, that back would only grow further and further away from her.
"Alex," Elara suddenly called out, prompting him to stop in his tracks.
Elara hurried over to him, slipped off her suit jacket, and held it out. But Alex didn't take it. He said, "Just keep it. If returning it is too much trouble, feel free to toss it."
As Alex turned to leave once more, Elara called out to him, her voice steady. "Alex," she said. "Can you promise me something?"
He turned to face her, the light in his eyes fading. "What is it?"
"I know what you and Julian have been secretly up to. I'm not concerned about the specifics, but you must promise me this—no matter what the Heaton family does to you or Dylan, never resort to anything illegal," she said.
Elara added, "You're the role model for the three of us. We've never hated you. Even though we've all gone our separate ways, we still wish you well.
"So please, don't do anything reckless. Even if it means doing things you'd rather avoid, just stay within the law. Because if you don't, there may be no way to undo the consequences." Elara looked genuinely concerned.
Alex gave her a warm smile. "Worried about me?"
Elara nodded. "Yes. Ruby and I both just want you and Dylan to be okay."
Elara said, "I truly believe Adrian will protect Dylan; he's incredible and will absolutely get him out safely. So, please, don't do anything you'll regret, alright? Can you promise me?"
Alex stood there, looking into Elara's clear eyes. After a few seconds of silence, he said softly, "Okay, I promise."
Elara let out a sigh of relief. "Elara," Alex called out to her.
"Yes?" she replied.
"If helping me meant going against your own heart, even if it deeply hurts you, would you still be willing to do it?" Alex asked.
His question left Elara stunned. She gave it some serious thought.
"If it's only emotional pain, and it doesn't violate laws or harm anyone else, I'd willingly put myself on the line to help you and Dylan. I love you both; you're my family. So, tell me, how can I support you?" she said.
Alex smiled, "Alright, thanks for your answer. I was just speaking hypothetically. Go on, take care of Janice." Elara gave him one last look before turning and walking away.
Alex stood there, watching her go. 'But Elara, I'd rather do things I hate than let you get hurt again,' he thought.
As soon as Adrian stepped off the plane, his phone buzzed with a photo message from an unknown number. He opened it, his brows knitting in confusion, quickly placed a call to Elara.
Janice had recently been moved to a regular room and was asleep. Elara was silently and gently tucking her in when her phone suddenly rang, startling her. She quickly pulled it out and hit decline to silence the sound.
Fortunately, Janice was in a deep sleep and didn't wake up. Adrian's call was declined, which soured his mood. Seeing Justin brimming with energy and full of himself right next to him only made Adrian even more irritated.
They exited the airport through Exit A, where their ride was already waiting. Adrian got in first and then glanced at Justin, who was getting in from the other side.
"Go sit in the front. I don't want you crowding me back here," Adrian said impatiently.
"Seriously? The back seat can fit two people no problem. You think it's crowded?" Justin shot back.
"You're an eyesore," Adrian said flatly.
"Well, looks like someone just got their call ignored by their crush and now everyone's rubbing him the wrong way," Justin teased. Adrian said nothing.
"That was Alex in the photo, right? Well, even Mr. Hartley of the Hartley family can't beat a childhood sweetheart." Justin couldn't help but gloat.
Adrian sent a voice message to Paige on WhatsApp, saying, "Justin was out partying all night again yesterday. Maybe it's time to freeze his card." The message immediately irritated Justin.
"Come on, Adrian, Elara's the one who pissed you off; why are you taking it out on me?" Justin protested.
"Paige, don't forget to freeze all his prepaid bar cards too," Adrian added.
Justin was fuming. "So just because I'm the nice guy, you think you can bully me? If you're so tough, why don't you try going head-to-head with Elara instead?"
Adrian smirked. "Are you trying to teach me what to do?"
"You only act tough with your own people," Justin scoffed.
"You wanna bet I can get Paige to freeze your gas card too?" Adrian shot back.
'Seriously? Even my gas card? He's gonna cut me off from driving now?' Justin thought, dumbfounded. "Fine. What good does it do you to take out your own wingman?" Justin grumbled.
"What are you mumbling about?" Adrian asked.
Justin gave a quick smile. "Nothing, not mumbling anything."
He went quiet for a few minutes, then a notification popped up on his phone. [Dear Mr. Johnson, your membership card at our store has been suspended. If you have any questions, please call: 82374873.]
"Dammit." He quickly selected someone to transfer money to, and entered his password. But just as he did, a message appeared—[Your card has been frozen.] "Damn it!" Justin cursed again.
Adrian looked down at his quiet phone, still feeling annoyed even after hearing Justin swear twice.
"Adrian, this is way too much. How am I supposed to survive with no money at all?" Justin whined.
"Did I let you go hungry?" Adrian retorted.
Justin closed his eyes, swallowing his frustration. "Adrian, hear me out. For now, if you give Elara the cold shoulder just a little, it could make a big difference."
Adrian looked up, half-believing. "Make a big difference?"
Seeing Adrian was interested, Justin grinned. "Alright, Adrian, if you get my mom to unfreeze my card, I'll teach you how to hook Elara like she's the catch of the day."
Adrian looked unimpressed. Justin quickly tried to recover, saying, "Bad choice of words. My fault. Well, let me teach you a trick to get her to join your birthday celebration the day after tomorrow."
Adrian spun his phone in his hand, crossed his legs, and leaned back in his seat, lazily raising an eyebrow to signal Justin to go on.
"Just send her that picture earlier and ignore her calls; no matter how many times she tries to reach you, don't answer," Justin said.
Adrian was skeptical. "You sure about that?"
"If you don't believe me, that's on you. But I've dated way more girls than you, so just trust the expert," Justin shot back.
Adrian unlocked his phone, saved the photo, and sent it to Elara. The message was delivered. He kept his gaze fixed on the screen, anticipating a response.
A full minute passed. Still no call, not even the little dots indicating she was typing appeared. Adrian sighed and switched off his phone, casting an impatient glance back at Justin.
"Nice move?" Adrian said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
Justin scratched his head. "Wait, who would've thought Elara wouldn't even bother to call? You guys are still stuck in that push-and-pull phase; usually, one little tease and she'd be all over it..."
"Push-and-pull phase? We're already together," Adrian replied with a sly grin.
"Already together?" Justin snorted. "Well, you're even more hopeless. Elara's got you totally under her thumb."
"So, what now?" Adrian asked.
"Just wait and let her calm down for a while. Remember what I told you. The most important thing is, when she calls, whatever you do, don't pick up," Justin said.
Just as Adrian's phone began to ring, he quickly reached for it and glanced at the screen—Elara's name was flashing.
Justin, as the strategist, reminded him, "Seriously, whatever you do, don't pick up."
But Adrian's thumb slid across the screen; he picked up almost instantly. "Hello?" Adrian said.