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Ron stayed at Max's place until almost four in the morning, leaving feeling incredibly satisfied. After all, a knockout like Max didn't come around every day.
Of course, he didn't have to leave, but he didn't want to disturb Max's sleep—or his own. Due to his line of work, Ron was a light sleeper who'd wake at the slightest sound, grab his sidearm, and scan the room before settling back down. And no, this wasn't the same kind of "weapon" Max had just been handling—this was the kind that actually fired bullets.
However, as Ron drove home and passed the subway entrance, he spotted a surprising figure. He knew his chances of getting any sleep tonight had just gone out the window.
"Hey! Caroline, what are you doing out here?" Ron rolled down his window. Standing at the subway entrance with a bewildered expression, dragging an oversized Louis Vuitton suitcase, was none other than his "good friend" Caroline Channing.
What were the odds? He'd just left Max's place, and now he was running into Caroline?
But thinking about it, maybe it wasn't that strange. Max had mentioned she'd just started working for a new boss—some cute, short Korean guy. Ron was pretty sure that had to be Han Lee.
According to the timeline, this was right around when Channing's financial empire collapsed due to fraud charges. Caroline had probably knocked on every door of every friend she could think of, but nobody was answering. She was at the end of her rope.
If Ron hadn't been so wrapped up in this drug case lately, he would have figured this out much sooner.
"Ron!" After enduring the cold night air for hours and being rejected by countless former friends, the poor girl practically collapsed when she saw Ron's warm greeting, throwing herself at him as he got out of the car.
"Hey, what's going on?" Ron gently stroked Caroline's silky blonde hair.
"Ron, my father's in serious trouble. I'm completely broke now. I have nowhere to go. Everyone's avoiding me like I've got the plague. And I'm terrified of sleeping on the streets..." Caroline sobbed.
Well, there was a good reason Caroline trusted Ron so much. They were more than just friends—he'd been her first.
Ron, in turn, had genuinely respected Mr. Channing, and they'd even had this memorable conversation:
"Ron, now you understand my financial methods. Yes, it's essentially a Ponzi scheme targeting the wealthy elite. So, are you going to turn me in?" Mr. Channing had asked.
Ron had replied, "Of course not. I actually think you're more honorable than those rich bastards. They use every tax loophole in the book and never pay their fair share. But you? At least you always paid your taxes on time."
Because of that conversation, even Caroline's father had been impressed with Ron. He'd even been planning to visit Mr. Channing when he had some time in LA, but the guy got arrested before Ron could make the trip.
"Okay, you've been through hell, Caroline, but it's going to be alright. At least you've still got me. We're friends, right?" Ron comforted her while mentally figuring out how to help her get back on her feet.
"I think you need to rest right now. Maybe take a hot shower and get some real sleep. We can deal with everything else tomorrow, okay?"
"I—" Caroline started to say something else, but Ron gently placed a finger over her lips.
"Leave everything to me, just like you've always trusted me before."
As an experienced agent with a generous expense account, Ron held platinum memberships at several luxury hotels.
He simply drove to the nearest five-star establishment, booked a suite, and escorted Caroline to her room.
Perhaps because of the recent trauma, Caroline desperately needed comfort. The moment the door closed, she dropped her suitcase and threw herself into Ron's arms, kissing him with desperate intensity.
"Wait, Caroline, I'm pretty wiped out today..."
Under normal circumstances, Ron would never turn down a beautiful woman in his arms, but today... he was genuinely reluctant. After all, he'd only left Max's place thirty minutes ago.
"Ron, are you starting to hate me too?" Caroline pulled back, looking at him with tears in her eyes. What could Ron possibly say to that?
"How could you even think that?" With that, he kissed her back.
He knew Caroline was at rock bottom. He was genuinely worried that if he rejected her now, she might do something drastic—like jump from the 22nd floor.
Caroline desperately needed some validation and comfort to forget her troubles. Ron could only steel himself and do his best to be there for the vulnerable woman in his arms.
For the first time, he realized that something so pleasurable could become genuinely exhausting.
Only after Caroline had fallen asleep from exhaustion did he leave a note and quietly slip away.
"Ugh..." Ron walked to his car and stretched.
It was already six in the morning. Not only had he not slept all night, but he'd been "working" non-stop. He was completely drained.
"I think I seriously need to hit the gym more often. Just two partners and I'm already feeling it in my back," Ron muttered to himself.
But his performance had been impressive. Tonight he'd already earned rave reviews twice in a row. Even if he quit being an agent and focused on targeting wealthy socialites, he'd probably get rich quick and live the high life.
"Ugh..." Elsewhere, a short figure stood next to a women's scooter, stretching tiredly just like Ron had been.
Not only were the voice and posture familiar, but even that flame-painted scooter looked incredibly recognizable.
"Howard?" Ron called out tentatively.
Howard spun around and exclaimed in surprise, "Ron!"
It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it? But there had already been so many coincidences tonight that Ron didn't mind one more.
"What are you doing here?" they both asked simultaneously.
But then Ron remembered—last night he'd encouraged Howard and Raj to go to that party together. Now Howard was standing outside a hotel at dawn—what else could that mean?
"Looks like you had some success last night?" Ron asked teasingly. But Howard's expression confused him.
"Well, kind of," Howard sighed, his face showing a mixture of confusion, nostalgia, reluctance, and regret. Ron had never seen anyone display such a complex range of emotions.
It reminded him of those "mistake was made" memes he'd seen online in his previous life.
What the hell had this guy been through to end up looking like that? Ron was genuinely curious.
However, a large Black woman emerged from the hotel, providing the answer to his question.
"Baby!" The hefty woman rushed over and grabbed Howard's arm upon exiting the hotel, as if afraid he might bolt.
Ron felt the ground vibrate as she approached. At that size, she had to weigh at least 300 pounds. Standing about 5'9", she lifted Howard—who was maybe 5'4" on a good day—like he was a child's toy.
So the real question was: how did Howard manage it? More importantly, what kind of logistics were involved?
You can't just walk up and hit the "interact" button in real life, right?
"Ron, this is Bernadette's cousin, Lily," Howard introduced weakly, his eyes seeming to say: When life backs you into a corner, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.
End of Chapter 16
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