Reflecting on this, she sighed softly, her voice tinged with sincerity.
“Honestly, before I met you, I didn’t even know what envy felt like.”
“What?” Corrine arched a brow, her expression calm but curious, her casual demeanor masking her intrigue.
Karina, looking slightly crestfallen, met Corrine’s gaze with a trace of grievance in her eyes.
“You know, I’m the heiress of the Brooks family-one of the four major families in Lyhaton. In my family, I can have anything I want. But compared to you, I feel like I don’t belong.”
“I heard that someone recently spent 500,000 dollars on a bracelet at the Glorious Jewelry Auction.” Corrine gently lifted Karina’s wrist, her tone light but layered with meaning.
“It looks an awful lot like this one.”
Karina, clearly flustered, pulled her hand away. The gemstones on her bracelet sparkled brilliantly under the light, but the irritation in her tone dulled their luster.
“He owes me that much!”
The car soon pulled up to the Ford Group building. Corrine stepped out, her movements graceful and unhurried.
As she made her way into the company, her phone rang. Nate’s voice greeted her on the other end, “I’ve reserved a private room at Lonsong Restaurant. Care to join me for dinner tonight?”
Corrine couldn’t help but laugh softly at his request.
“Dinner’s still five hours away. Isn’t it a bit early to be asking?”
“This was the only excuse I could come up with to see you that you wouldn’t easily turn down,” Nate replied, his tone earnest yet playful.
“Unless,” he added smoothly, “you’d prefer to give me a proper title-like your boyfriend.”
Corrine maintained her composure, though a faint glint of mischief danced in her eyes.
“Weren’t you the one who claimed that courting a woman requires sincerity, humility, initiative, and, most importantly, unwavering commitment? Are you planning to contradict yourself now?”
Nate let out a quiet, amused chuckle at her pointed remark.
“I thought sincerity had already proven itself to you, but clearly, I’ll need to raise the bar.”
“Progress has to come step by step, doesn’t it?” Corrine replied smoothly as she stepped into the sleek, private elevator.
“Then let’s see how you evolve into Mrs. Hopkins.”
Nate’s tone carried a teasing warmth, his words wrapping around her like a soft breeze, stirring something delicate within her heart.
A soft blush warmed her cheeks.
“I have work to finish now. I’ll see you tonight.” On the other end of the call, Nate paused briefly, his voice turning gentle.
“See you tonight.”
The richness of his tone, laced with a quiet affection, seemed to soften even the cold, mechanical hum of the phone.
After hanging up, Nate turned to Matias, his expression shifting into something more serious.
“Take care of the online uproar quickly, I don’t want it ruining her mood-or her appetite-this evening.”
“Miss Holland has already started addressing it,” Matias explained calmly.
“To prevent interrupting her plan, our team is actively managing the comments.” He added after a brief pause, “The police mentioned that the Ashton and Burgess families are pushing to resolve this privately.”
Nate’s eyes darkened, a cold gleam flickering within them.
“Lyhaton isn’t a playground where the Ashton and Burgess families dictate the rules.” His words made it clear-settling privately was out of the question. If they continued testing boundaries, Lyhaton would no longer accommodate their arrogance.
Matias felt the weight of the unspoken threat, a chill brushing over him. Nate’s determination to shield Corrine was undeniable.
“The attackers have already stained their hands with enough filth. Securing justice won’t be hard,” Matias said.
Nate nonchalantly loosened the top button of his shirt, his voice steady yet firm.
“Make sure it’s resolved cleanly.”
“Understood, sir,” Matias responded with a crisp nod, his tone steady and professional.
At the same time, a sensational post titled, “Popular Actress Colludes with Unknown Criminal Forces to Commit Violence in Public” began dominating online discussions, fueling a frenzy of public outrage.
Leah had orchestrated the chaos, goading her fans to retaliate against Corrine. In her mind, as long as the damages didn’t result in physical harm, she could easily sweep it under the rug with money.
After all, enlisting fans to go after rivals was practically an unspoken rule in the industry. But this time, her plan had spiraled far beyond her control.
The mere accusation of partnering with criminal elements to execute her revenge threw Leah into a state of panic. Frantic, she poured funds into scrubbing the post from every corner of the internet, but her efforts only seemed to bleed money without making a dent in the backlash.
Growing desperate, she directed her marketing team to re-edit the footage from the Lonsong Restaurant entrance and pair it with a copy of her hospital diagnosis report from the previous night.
As anticipated, the newly edited video stirred fresh waves of hostility against Corrine online.
“In broad daylight, she has the audacity to act like this! She needs to be punished severely!”
“She’s nothing but a bully to our sweet Leah! We won’t let her off so easily!”
“An apology isn’t enough. She needs to face the law for what she’s done!”
Leah watched the supportive comments pour in, a flicker of triumph breaking through her previously grim expression.
Reclining on the hospital bed with a silk face mask plastered across her skin, she closed her eyes and allowed herself to savor the image of Corrine humbling herself in desperation
There was no way Corrine could outmaneuver her. Leah was sure of it.
Even with the Ashton family’s supposed backing, Corrine was no match for her-and now, with their ties severed, she stood no chance at all.
The memory of Corrine’s two sharp slaps from the night before resurfaced, sending a jolt of anger through Leah. Her teeth clenched, and her hands balled into tight fists beneath the sheets.
The image of Corrine humiliated and pleading for mercy brought a fleeting sense of satisfaction to Leah, lifting her spirits.
Her phone buzzed beneath her pillow, its vibration breaking the silence. Picking it up, she saw Tracy’s name flashing on the screen.
“Oh, Leah.” Tracy’s voice was steeped in concern.
“I just read the news-how could you keep something like this from me? It’s heartbreaking to suffer such an injustice!”
Her tone shifted to one of bitter disdain as she pivoted to Corrine.
“I told Bruce from the beginning-Corrine wasn’t fit to be with him. That woman brought nothing but whispers and scandals to the company. Marrying her was bound to disgrace the Ashton family.”
Leah’s eyes briefly flashed with contempt, but she masked it well, her voice remaining gentle and composed.
“Mrs. Ashton, I share some of the blame for what happened. If not for my involvement, Corrine and Bruce wouldn’t have had such a dramatic falling out, and she might never have left Ashton Group so abruptly.”
Tracy scoffed, her voice brimming with derision.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.