You Had Me, You Lost Me, You'll Never Find Me novel Chapter 28

By the end of college, they had completely stopped acknowledging each other's existence.

Perhaps the grueling reality of surviving in the real world over the last three years made their petty college drama seem entirely ridiculous now.

They could laugh about it today, brushing it off as nothing, but back then, they had treated each other like mortal enemies.

Thinking about it all.

Sylvia suddenly felt the business card in her pocket burning against her skin.

Should she actually team up with her?

-

Sylvia was walking alone down the street when a sudden honk startled her. She turned to see Finley Harris behind the wheel of Ashton's car. She had no idea how long he had been tailing her. "Ms. Harlow, do you need a ride?"

Sylvia ignored him, found a nearby motel, and checked herself in.

It wasn't until she was alone in the room that she realized she had left her favorite plushie in Ashton's car.

The plushie's name was Bella. She had kept it by her side since she was a little girl, and it served as a powerful emotional anchor. Even though it was faded and worn, Sylvia brought it with her everywhere she went.

She immediately headed back downstairs to find Finley.

Finley hadn't left. He was waiting by the car and stepped out when he saw her approach. "Ms. Harlow."

"Please unlock the car. I need to grab something."

She remembered Ashton tossing the plushie into the passenger seat earlier. Finley unlocked the doors, but when Sylvia checked the front seat, it was empty. Refusing to give up, she scoured the back seat, but it was nowhere to be found.

"Where is... where's my plushie?" Sylvia demanded.

Finley immediately put on a flawless mask of ignorance. "I'm sorry, Ms. Harlow, I have no idea. You'll have to ask the boss."

Knowing she wouldn't get anything out of him, Sylvia pulled out her phone and dialed Ashton's number. It went straight to voicemail.

She quickly unblocked him and fired off a text.

"He's not a sugar daddy; they're childhood sweethearts, practically dating. Reina comes from massive old money, okay? Did you see the shoes she's wearing? They're custom diamond-studded flats from a luxury brand. I checked the price—they cost tens of thousands of dollars."

"Tens of thousands is pocket change for these billionaires, but I'd have to shoot on set for months just to afford one shoe! The wealth gap is sickening."

The chat then proceeded to dissect Reina's entire family history.

Reina had an older sister who died in a car crash years ago. The accident had also left Reina with a slight physical defect—her legs were slightly uneven, though it was barely noticeable. She also had an incredibly doting older brother who literally founded an entertainment agency just to turn her into a star.

Someone in the chat sighed in awe. "She's literally living the ultimate dream life."

"But no one can figure out who the hot guy is. His background is completely scrubbed. Do you think he's the heir to some mega-corporation just playing around?"

"He can't be in the industry. Looking like that, he'd be plastered all over the internet."

Suddenly, another paparazzi shot dropped into the chat. This one caught Reina's face in high definition, down to the peach fuzz catching the sunlight.

"Wait, did you guys notice that Sylvia has the exact same mole on the edge of her eyebrow as Reina?"