Page 111 of King of Ruin

"No, I'm not."

Astrid stared at her.

The answer was far too simple.

She slowly placed her cup down and rose from her chair, the elegant movement carrying the same confidence she seemed to have in everything she did. She began walking around the sitting room, her heels making quiet sounds against the polished floor as she thought through every possible explanation.

Yet none of them made sense.

After a few steps, she turned back toward Elise, her eyes narrowing with suspicion.

"Then you must be with him because of his money."

She pointed toward Elise, completely certain she had figured it out.

"Right?"

Elise only gave a small shrug.

"No."

Astrid stopped.

"No?"

"No."

She stared at Elise for a moment, then slowly continued pacing.

"His looks, then?"

She turned around again, lifting her eyebrows.

"He's Xavier Chen. He's handsome, powerful, and successful. Any woman would want to be beside him."

Again, Elise only shook her head.

"No."

Astrid's expression tightened.

She clearly wasn't used to someone rejecting her logic so easily.

She crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Elise with a mixture of disbelief and frustration.

"Then his family connections?"

"No."

"His status?"

"No."

Each answer came calmly, without hesitation.

And somehow, that only made Astrid more suspicious.

She stopped in front of Elise, staring down at her as though she were trying to understand a completely foreign concept.