Josefina scoffed, "If Caiden didn't have a knack for business, his dad wouldn't have handed over the family empire to him, right? And his dad, what a piece of work—cheating on his wife and neglecting his kids."
Hattie sighed, "In the end, marriage is all about conscience. Caiden's mom didn't file for divorce because she didn't want to legitimize the mistress in the Rowland family. She wanted to keep her as 'the other woman' forever."
Josefina gave a thumbs up. "Caiden's mom is pretty smart."
They shared a knowing smile.
...
Back at school, Josefina headed to the principal's office.
Hearing the knock, Mr. Marquez himself opened the door for Josefina.
"Ah, the big shot is here. Would you like some tea, coffee, or maybe a soda?"
Once inside, Josefina noticed Mr. Marquez had an impressive assortment of beverages.
Josefina was taken aback. "Mr. Marquez, you really didn’t have to go to all this trouble."
"Hey, it’s the least I could do for you."
They both sat down, and Josefina asked, "So, what’s up, Mr. Marquez? You wanted to see me?"
"Well, here's the thing. We have this competition coming up, and since you're here, I was hoping you could join our team for the medical school contest?"
Without hesitation, Josefina declined, "Mr. Marquez, I really wanted to keep a low profile at school, and I'm pretty tied up as it is. Maybe consider asking someone else?"
Mr. Marquez’s face fell, more bitter than unsweetened chocolate.
"Come on, give us a hand here," Mr. Marquez pleaded with a grimace.
Standing up, Josefina apologized, "Really sorry, Mr. Marquez, I just can’t. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way."
Sitting up, she wondered aloud if it was the iced tea she had before bed that was keeping her awake.
She reached out for her phone to text Oliver.
Josefina: "When are you coming back? How’s it going with my senior brother? Need a hand?"
Without waiting for Oliver’s reply, she noticed a new message notification.
Confused, Josefina sat up and looked out the window.
There was Oliver, standing by the window, his handsome face as mesmerizing as ever.
Josefina's eyes widened in disbelief, quickly turning into sheer joy. Without even bothering to put on her shoes, she ran to the window.
Oliver pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly.

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