The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 1661

“She looks so young and delicate, but she’s got a wicked tongue.”

A nearby assistant let out a soft sigh. “No wonder Andrew lets her wrap him around her finger.”

Dorothy stood up, glaring in the direction Shirley had disappeared. Her hands tightened, knuckles pale. “A kid who barely knows the world dares to lecture me,” she said, her voice icy.

She’s really choosing the hard way.

“She better figure it out and back off from Andrew herself. Otherwise, I won’t hold back. If she keeps pushing, I’ll go after the people she cares about most.”

“So, Dorothy, you mean…”

The assistant looked puzzled, glancing between Dorothy and the exit.

“Find out everything there is to know about Shirley’s family,” Dorothy replied, her expression frosty. “Especially her grandmother. I want details.”

If Shirley cared so much about her family, that was exactly where Dorothy was going to start.

***

Shirley nearly bolted out of the hotel.

She didn’t stop running until she was sure there was no one around. Pressing her backpack close to her chest, she sank down against a cold wall, willing herself to breathe and letting the icy air seep straight into her bones.

All she could think about was what Dorothy had said.

No one can love someone else forever…

Even if she ended up with Andrew, she’d just be holding him back. She could hear his mother’s contempt, thinly veiled, in every word. In every look.

So what if she was brave enough to try? She could suffer, that was fine, but there was no way she would let her grandmother—who had already lived such a hard life—get hurt again because of her.

Shirley bowed her head, her eyes stinging. Tears threatened, but she refused to let them fall.

She just couldn’t take that step.

***

Later that night, Shirley camped out in the lab. She had zero intention of going home.

Before locking herself away, she sent Andrew a quick message, letting him know he didn’t have to pick her up in the morning.

“What’s up?”

Andrew caught the change in her voice right away. He sounded worried. “Are you feeling sick?”

The lights inside were still on.

Through the glass, he saw Shirley hunched over her computer, typing nonstop, flipping through research papers, totally lost in her work.

She really hadn’t lied to him.

He wanted so badly to go in, just to see her up close after thinking about her all day. But the words from their last call echoed in his mind, and he decided not to risk disturbing her.

Quietly, he left the bag by the door and tapped lightly, just enough that she might notice.

She heard the sound.

Shirley turned around, catching a glimpse of someone’s shadow darting past the doorway.

It looked just like the guy she’d been replaying in her mind for hours and hours.

She jumped up and hurried out, but there was no one in sight. Instead, she tripped over a little bag waiting by the entrance.

On top, there was a note: Eat something before taking the medicine. There’s candy inside if it tastes bad.

The handwriting was terrible. Only Andrew could possibly write like that.