Chapter 25 Betty's room was right next to Tara's. As she watched Betty's door open and close again, she went back to her own room. After taking a shower, Tara lay in bed. She was drowsy. The memory of Jonah asking her to make a hangover remedy came back to her. It seemed Jonah was keeping a close eye on her. Specifically asking her to make the soup must've been his way of pulling her into his room to warn her not to get any ideas about his friend. She yawned and soon fell asleep.

Nothing that had happened that day could really weigh her down. It was still the rainy season in July. The morning was filled with mist and a light drizzle. The workers in the villa were already busy at work early in the morning. In the dining room, Tara stood behind Winston, just like the past few days. Behind Soren, Hailey looked distracted. She was already regretting turning down that man last night. After all, it was such a rare opportunity. Soren glanced over at Tara, visibly annoyed.

He had arrived earlier than Winston, so why was she standing behind Winston instead? She carried herself with such neat precision, without even a hint of the impropriety she used to display. She didn't come off as someone who had a crush on Winston. Lance, who was eating breakfast, had heard from Soren that last night at the party, Jasper had gone to ask Tara for her contact information. But Tara turned him down and came from a great family. Even his reputation was excellent.

Hardly any woman ever turned him down. Lance was honestly surprised. Jasper had exceptional features, but Tara had changed. Lance thought back to how Tara used to throw them flirty glances all the time and how she kept trying to catch their attention even after getting a talking-to by Terence. With a frown, Lance looked across the table at Tara. Her head was down as she stifled a yawn quietly. There was no trace of the subtle seduction she used to throw his way.

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Just as Tara was about to yawn again, she noticed Lance staring at her with a complicated look. Their eyes met, and she was a little confused. Why was he looking at her like that? She hadn't interacted with him at all in the last couple of days, let alone done anything even remotely flirty. Lance looked away, and Tara finally felt as though she could breathe again. She thought she might have accidentally offended Lance. Another day flew by.

By the time Tara finally had a moment to herself, it was nearly the end of her shift. She jogged out to the backyard garden and picked up a vase. When she was about to head back inside, she heard Stella's voice. She paused and looked around to see where it came from. The cool breeze after the rain brushed against her. Tara looked toward the unlit lawn. Stella had her back to Tara. In front of Stella stood a tall, upright figure. Tara squinted into the darkness, trying to figure out who it was.

"I want to remain, Mr. Swali, please, I'm begging you. I don't want to leave the... I also don't want to leave you guys," she added in her heart, not daring to say it out loud. Stella had already received a light warning from Terence last night. But by noon, Gemma pulled her aside and said they were considering letting her go and that she should be prepared. Stella hadn't expected things to go this far. She rushed to find Lance, crying as she pleaded with him to let her stay.

Lance just frowned. He didn't make any promises. "Because of the party last night, I was misjudged. It's not what Mr. Caldry thinks. I'm just trying to get close to you guys," Stella didn't ever dare to look up while saying these words, but he didn't call her out on it. To him, it didn't matter who the housekeeper was: drunk or right, someone had fallen beneath him. After sobering slightly, he said he would make it up to her.

Not wanting to go back on his word, as he said, "Remember I said I'd compensate you last night?" Seeing her tense up when he brought it up, he made it clear he would make it up to Tara that night. When he saw it was Stella and Tara, she just kept her head down and went back to work. She moved the vases back and forth.