Love’s Cunning Ruse

Chapter 303

On the drive to the cemetery, Julien gripped the steering wheel, turning to Julie, “No wonder it wasn’t found abroad. Turns out, Rankin’s final resting place is right here at Whispering Pines.”

It seemed they had been searching for quite some time. After the incident with Davina Field, Julie had asked Julien to help locate Rankin’s grave. Unexpectedly, even with Julien’s capabilities, it had taken this long to find it.

A light drizzle misted from the sky as they passed a florist. Julie asked Julien to pull over, then walked inside the shop.

She lingered among the blooms, contemplating her choice. The florist, eager to help upon learning Julie was visiting a friend’s grave, suggested an array of vibrant flowers, each more beautiful than the last.

Yet Julie’s gaze settled on a secluded corner.

The owner hurried over, “Ah, this is the Bird of Paradise. It’s also known as…”

“Strelitzia,” Julie finished with a smile, and then turned to a bunch of light pink gypsophila nearby. “Could you wrap these up for me?”

Her eyes had been on the Bird of Paradise, but in the end, she asked for the gypsophila to be wrapped. The owner handed Julie the neatly packaged flowers and then watched as she picked a single Bird of Paradise, settling the bill.

Back in the car, Julie placed the Bird of Paradise amidst the gypsophila.

Julien nonchalantly inquired, “What flower is that?”

Julie knew she wasn’t asking about the gypsophila.

“It’s Bird of Paradise, also called Strelitzia. It’s said to be the bird that flies to heaven, carrying all sorts of emotions and yearnings with it. If there’s a heaven, then a good soul like Rankin is surely there. The flower’s message is: No matter when, no matter where, never forget the one who waits for your love. It just… felt right for him.”

Julien remarked, “A flower is just a plant. All those nice and sad meanings, we attach them ourselves.” After saying this, noticing Julie’s expression, Julien quickly added in a softer tone, “But if there really is a heaven, he’s probably there.”

For Julie, hearing such words from Julien was nothing short of miraculous. She knew it was just an attempt at comfort.

“Julien, can I ask you something?” Julie asked tentatively, wary of broaching a sensitive topic.

Julien replied,

earlier about

Julie could finish,

but

it might have upset Julie, and she explained further, “I mean,

was surprised by the additional explanation, a

case going? You’re not working for the National Security Agency at the moment, right? So why are

mind sifting through memories associated

something else was inside, only to find out they were indeed just vitamins. He asked what was going on, and you mentioned you were on a murder

conclusions. Julien

think I’m thinking?” Julie teased,

Julien remained silent.

murder case, right? The

were from him,” Julien admitted, knowing Julie had seen through the

ventured a

you imagine anyone else?”

Julie shook her head. No one but Hayden would dare such a

you and Hayden,

what you think; there’s nothing

smile grew suggestive, “Aren’t you going to tell me about

say.” After a pause, Julien added, “Quad Dylan has a big

Hayden of being ‘lacking in virtue’ was too amusing to contain. She could only imagine the look on

and him, you’re both pretty tough. But when two tough people

talk about the elephant in the room. And yeah, I’m not the best at this stuff either. Even my relationship with Kieran got pretty messed up sometimes. But we complement each other’s personalities, and we do sit down and talk things out, every once in a while.” Julie had known since she met Julien that her experiences were more complicated than

toughness and stubbornness often attributed to boys, yet lacked the dependency and softness expected of girls. She was used to solving problems on her own, rarely shared her feelings, and had spent a lot

less, as if she didn’t even hear Julie speaking, sometimes even threatening to shut

you the hard truths even if

at the base of the hill and

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