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355words
“Absolutely.”
He gushed,praising my boldness,claiming he knew I was special from the start.
I nudged him aside,telling the server,“The commission’s yours.”
“What?”The manager blocked her.“Ms.Lee,I’ve been nothing bu.t honestYou can’t do this.”
“Honest?Your obvious bias says otherwise.”
I tapped my chin,then said,“Tell your boss:fire you,or rent for this place goes up by 40%.”
Oh,forgot to mention—PrimeBistro’s building was now mine.
I told the server I’d cover everyone’s meals—except Ethan and Lana’s table.
“Jasmine,you own PrimeBistro’s property?”
As I swiped my card,Ethan grabbed me.
“None of your business.Let go.”
Shoving my card back,I accidentally flashed a thick stack of freshly issued property deeds.
Ethan’s voice cracked.“These…these are yours too?”
As he leaned in,practically trying to grab my bag,Diane pushed him away.“Jasmine’s done with you.She overlooked your selfish behavior before—don’t you dare try to cling to her now.”
Lana’s face cycled through red and black.
She snapped at Ethan to pay their bill.
The server swiped his card, and it was declined for insufficient funds.
“What?My paycheck should have come in by now!”Ethan fumbled with his phone.
His $20,000 monthly salary was stretched thin—$8,000 for his dad’s nurse,plus rent,utilities,and transport left little.
“Lana,can I borrow some of that $300,000 your cousin has? Just to pay this bill?”
His whisper carried.
Lana yanked away.“You’re asking my cousin for spare change?How embarrassing.”
“I'm not going to humiliate myself like you.”
Diners gave them knowing looks.
I had the server kick them out to not ruin our meal.
Security escorted them out.Ethan and Lana wished they could vanish.
I told my colleagues about Aunt Laura’s inheritance,but I kept it vague, just mentioning some cash and shops,not Elite Gardens.
“You can eat at PrimeBistro whenever you want—it’s on me.”
They hugged me,thrilled.
Diane sighed,relieved.“We each brought $2,000 to split the bill.”
“When you ordered lobster,I nearly fainted.”
“Now we can dig in.”
They took photos, celebrating my new - found freedom from a bad relationship and my unexpected wealth.
The cashier said Ethan made a dozen calls downstairs, desperately trying to scrape together the money to pay their bill.
