Olivia suddenly chuckled. “What are you so scared of? He’s not gonna bite or something.”
Ella Nielsen kept her head down, her cap casting a shadow over her face. She mumbled, “I don’t know… just got this weird feeling… like he’s, I don’t know, different from us somehow.”
Olivia gave her a long, thoughtful look, then grinned. “No worries, I’ll get rid of him for you.”
Back inside the house, Olivia casually brought up wanting to walk around and soak in the countryside vibes, subtly suggesting that Julian head back to his friend's place.
Julian glanced at the time and stood up. “Yeah, I should get going.”
As he got to his feet, he leaned close to Claire, whispering something in her ear.
Claire’s ears turned red instantly from the feather-light touch and the low murmur.
