Listening to Finley''s infectiousughter and his words, Ste waspletely taken aback. She looked at Ronald, sniffled a bit, and stammered, "You, you, you..."


    Ronald, seeing her pouty and wronged expression, leaned down to peck her softly on the lips. "What''s wrong? Are you upset?"


    Ste wriggled a bit in his arms, showing her displeasure.


    Ronald chuckled softly. "There, there."


    Ste huffed indignantly. She had honestly thought she was making a cool seven hundred grand a year through her own efforts, but what a joke! Turns out, it was nothing like that at all. "So, StarRiver Corp. is..." she asked.


    Finley chimed in, "It''s your brother''s."


    "Don''t you speak! I wasn''t asking you," Ste snapped, clearly annoyed.


    At this point, not only did Ronald want to throttle Finley, but Ste was also tempted to do the same.


    "You tell me," she insisted.


    Ronald nodded, confirming her suspicions.


    Ste snuggled deeper into his embrace, and Ronald gazed down at her tousled head. Her sunhat had been knocked askew from all her wriggling.


    Seeing her all puffed up and sulking, Ronald felt a sudden wave of affection, mixed with a hint of helplessness.


    This little rascal, always so infuriatingly adorable.


    "Alright, alright, don''t be mad, okay?"


    Ste''s voice was filled with unprecedented grievance. "I''ve been working so hard to support myself."


    When she first opened her studio, she had slowly started getting orders, even if the fees weren''t that high. But it was enough to keep her afloat.


    And StarRiver Corp. had paid her such a high design fee, without her suspecting a thing.


    She had genuinely believed it was because the boss admired her work. But in the end, it was all just smoke and mirrors.


    Ronald reassured her, "You''ve done well. It''s impressive you sought your own way."


    When Ronald first learned about Ste''s studio, he already had a pretty good idea about her financial situation within the Larkin family.


    So, when she suddenly used the ck card he had given her, Ronald''s heart skipped a beat. He thought she was in some kind of trouble. Despite having a lot on his te, Ronald couldn''t ignore it. Finley added, "Yep, our little princess here is pretty awesome, knowing how to earn her keep."


    Ste shot him a re. "You keep quiet."


    Ronald echoed her sentiment, "Zip it."


    Both spoke in unison, leaving Finley speechless.


    Great, he''s the bad guy again.


    Ste continued to grumble in Ronald''s arms, while he listened patiently.


    As they passed by a supermarket, Ronald said to Idris, "Go grab some snacks." "On it," Idris replied.


    It was obvious who the snacks were for - Ste.


    She hadn''t eaten much on the ne, and


    Several hours gone &


    was probably starving.


    s to en.kikistorie she


    Idris got still


    Yo Sittiut of the car. Seeing F


    there, he asked, "Mr..


    Sley


    want to pick up some 1 favorites?"


    Finley shook his head. "Nah, I''m a grown man. I don''t need snacks."


    His stomach was still aching fromughing so hard earlier.


    "Hopeless." Idris simply sighed. Eventually, he went off by himself.


    Finley suddenly realized how out of ce he was.


    "Guess I''ll go see what I can eat," he said, quickly getting out of the car.


    This left just Ste and Ronald.


    The man looked down at the little one still nestled in his arms.


    "Are you really angry?"


    Ste confessed, "I always thought I was pretty aplished."


    Ronald nodded. "You are aplished, even knowing how to keep yourself hidden."


    But honestly, what difference did it make whether she hid or not?


    Ste lifted her head to look at him.


    "Why didn''t youe for me sooner?" she asked.


    "Things weren''t settled," Ronald replied.


    Xander had forced her out of Ferrond in such a way, it was a stark reminder to Ronald. Without their father, the Quinn family was in a precarious position, with many cireling like vultures.