Chapter 17: She Looks Familiar

The butler greeted William when he entered the Colton residence. “Have the guests arrived?” he asked. The butler took his blazer before nodding. “The guests arrived an hour ago. I have served them tea and snacks. The Old Master is waiting for you in the reception hall.” The reception hall was a better way of saying ‘living room’ for the rich. William walked into the room and saw his father sitting on the single sofa at the head of it. The old man looked up and nodded for him. “Take a seat,” he said gruffly. William noticed the two women turn in his direction. The older woman seemed rather surprised by his presence, whereas the younger one stared at him with a mixture of awe and recognition. “Nice to meet you, I am William Colton,” he said simply and extended his hand for the women to take. “You must be Mrs. Vera Kincaid.” The older woman was dressed impeccably, but something about the way she dressed made her look like the evil witch pretending like the fairy godmother. Everything about her looked fake. It could be William’s bias against her, but when he turned to the younger girl, he felt the same way. “And you are?” “Wendy Kincaid. I’m sorry for intruding on you,” she said quietly. She looked at him from under her lashes and waited for him to say something more. William gave them a curt nod, thinking that this little girl would cling to him if he acted warm with her. He took a seat across from them and crossed his feet, waiting for his father to lead the conversation. Wendy tucked her head down, ignoring the boring conversation about the dire condition of the economy to message Justin. He was the one who took the most notice of Sarah and her presumed sugar daddy. And Wendy was almost sure that she had seen this very man with Sarah. Actually, she had seen him a few times at the university while the session was out, too. [Does this guy look familiar?] she had asked Justin. The reply came a little late. [It’s Mitch’s boyfriend. Professor Jacobs hates this guy for leading the department around by the nose. Who is he? Did you find out?] Wendy had already received the information she needed. She looked at William with a complex expression, one which William didn’t ignore. “Miss Kincaid, is there something weighing on your mind?” William asked point blank. “I’ve noticed you staring at me for some time now.” Wendy pretended to laugh nervously. “No, William… can I call you William?” she said softly. “You looked really familiar so I was trying to remember where I had seen you.” William arched a brow. “You’ve already called me William. No use to change your greeting.” “The two of you know each other?” Vera interjected, finding the perfect opportunity to broach the topic. “I’ve seen William around campus a few times.” She turned to William with a shy smile. “I know that you were an alumnus of the university. It was part of why I decided on joining, but I didn’t think I would come across you and not realize who you were.” William licked his lips. Before he could respond, George spoke up. “William, do you know Miss Wendy? You never told me.” William couldn’t decipher what George was thinking, so he settled on speaking the truth, even if it sounded a little harsh. “I was wondering why she looked familiar. It turns out she is taking the summer course meant for the late admissions.” William made it clear that Wendy had gone in through connections and she was struggling to catch up with her class. “Is there any reason why you went back to the university all of a sudden? It’s not like you to leave work and go elsewhere.” William stiffened. He knew exactly what George was asking. George wanted to know what was so important at the university that he used his time away from work for it. Time he could have used to search for Philip’s oldest daughter. “I was looking into the outgoing students from our department. The curriculum is immaculate and it is time our company nurtures the best of the best. Consider it paying forward so that our company can reap its benefits later on.” The business-centric response appeased George, but it made Wendy think of something instantly. She couldn’t mention Sarah at any cost. Sarah was clearly a dirty little secret that William would never reveal in front of his father; moreover, she didn’t know how George would react if he found out William was seeing someone. Unlike in the past decade, the rich and famous were slowly breaking barriers and allowing their children to marry and date as they pleased. They no longer forced their family to be unhappy because of financial gains. While Wendy had no idea if George was of the same opinion, she didn’t want to risk it. “William, you’re really thoughtful. I will surely apply for your company when I get the chance.” William replied with a tight smile. “I am sure your talents would be better utilized at Stones and Brothers.” Wendy’s smile promptly fell, whereas Vera looked perplexed. She couldn’t figure out why William was acting so hostile when George had been pleasant with them throughout. She knew they weren’t the Kincaids’ biggest fans, but William’s attitude held another kind of venom. She would have to ask Wendy later. “Father, can I change into something more comfortable?” William asked calmly. He just wanted to escape from this tense situation for a while. When he got permission he left promptly, forgetting his phone altogether. A bright idea came to Wendy. After a few moments of listening to her mother chatter, she announced that she needed to use the washroom. She was delicate about how she swiped William’s phone from the table and scurried towards the bathroom. Once inside, she typed in Sarah’s number and put the phone to her ear. - - - - - - Sarah’s phone rang. She lunged across her bed to grab it from the nightstand where it was charging. She knew from the ringtone who the caller was and she couldn’t wait to pick it up—she needed to talk to William and sort their issues out. But when she answered, she realized who it was. She stared at the phone for a second before she spoke. “Come again?” Sarah blinked several times and asked the caller to repeat themselves. A long exhale filled her ears. Sarah clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palm. “Hello?” she snapped angrily. “You heard me the first time,” Wendy bit back.