"Send... send me abroad to study?" she repeated unconsciously.
'Why is she helping me?'
'We're supposed to be rivals.'
This was beyond anything Stella Sterling had ever experienced or understood in her twenty-odd years of life. She couldn't comprehend it, nor could she bring herself to believe it right away.
"Wh-why would you help me? Besides, studying in Veridia... it must cost a fortune..." Her voice was laced with hesitation and disbelief.
After all, even Jett Westgate had only given her a house in Linchester and some money to send her on her way. He'd never considered sending her away to study, to give her a future.
"Stella Sterling, with the Valentine Family's wealth, never mind sending you to Veridia to study—if I wanted to build an entire university there, it wouldn't be out of the question."
"Few people get to meet Annelise Valentine. Fewer still get to sit at the same table and negotiate terms with me."
