Her cheeks flushed, and she quickly said, "Okay, go focus on your meeting. I won’t bother you."

Without waiting for Seth to reply, she hung up.

’Phew! How could that man make two simple words sound so... so heart-fluttering!’

Sarah Shelby shot her a sidelong glance and giggled. "Not playing anymore?"

Clara Grant looked down to hide her expression and put her phone back in her bag. "I’m done. It wasn’t that much fun anyway. Okay, let’s start shopping for real now."

Sarah had already spotted a women’s clothing store from a brand she loved. The moment she heard Clara was ready, she grabbed her and dashed inside.

Neither of them noticed that not far behind, two other women had stepped onto an escalator and were slowly ascending.

And those two women were none other than Autumn Shelby and Jenna Quinn.

It was Autumn Shelby who had called Jenna last night, right after seeing the news of Seth and Clara Grant’s relationship go public.

’Exposing Clara Grant’s background would be useful and important, of course, but it was also necessary to play the sympathy card with the Quinn Family first.’

’Otherwise, even if she managed to bring down Clara Grant and make the Quinn Family cast her aside, their hearts likely wouldn’t return to her.’

’If she could get the Quinns to understand her difficult circumstances and forgive her, to grow close with them again first, then once Clara Grant was out of the way, the position of Seth’s wife would be hers for the taking.’

’But she didn’t yet have the courage to go see Uncle and Aunt Quinn directly, nor was she confident they would forgive her.’

’So, she turned her sights to Jenna Quinn, who had also recently returned from abroad.’

’Jenna wasn’t much older than Seth, and back when Autumn was dating him, she had often hung out with Jenna. As a result, they had been on fairly good terms.’

’They had only lost touch five years ago, when Jenna eloped to the U.S.A. with Carter Shaw.’

When Autumn had called, she could hear a hint of hesitation in Jenna’s voice, but Jenna had ultimately agreed, saying she would be at the mall on Bexley Street today. And so, the two of them had driven here.

"Jenna, don’t you want to browse the women’s boutiques down there? It looks like those brands have their latest collections out," Autumn Shelby said, glancing down as the escalator carried them upward.

As she spoke, she reached out, intending to link her arm with Jenna’s.

"I’m not a big fan of those brands." Jenna smiled faintly. They had just reached the second floor, and she stepped off the escalator first, deftly avoiding Autumn’s outstretched hand.

’To be honest, Jenna had been stunned for a moment when Autumn called. She couldn’t imagine what Autumn was thinking, calling her out of the blue.’

’After she had inexplicably run away from the wedding and vanished for over a year, she actually had the nerve to call!’

’She thought Autumn must have some serious nerve.’

’But regardless of her motives or her objective, Jenna hadn’t wanted to see her at all.’

’After all, Autumn had vanished without a word. They only found out she’d supposedly had cold feet because the Shelbys’ parents told them.’

’But after giving it some thought, she had agreed to meet.’

’Because even though Autumn had run out on the wedding, it hadn’t really caused any negative impact on the Quinn Family or Seth. In fact, her departure had, in a way, done Seth a favor, allowing him to find Clara Grant, a woman he truly loves.’

’Besides, she and Autumn used to get along reasonably well.’

’It was all in the past, so what was the harm in meeting her?’

But even if they had once been on good terms, a rift had formed between them. That’s why she had dodged when Autumn tried to affectionately link arms with her just now, like they used to.