Melanie looked up, and adjusted her hat as she looked at the handsome face before her. “You’re…Melanie Jones!”When the man called out her name, Melanie suddenly realized who he was. He was Adam O’Shea, a popular model and the darling of the fashion world.He was of mixed descent and stood at a towering height of 195 centimeters. His thick brows, bright eyes, and sharp features propelled him swiftly to stardom as an ambassador highly sought after by various international brands within the past two years. Some claim that he was born for the runway and the camera lenses. Otherwise, a model as perfect as he would not have been possible.Melanie stood up and asked, “Do you know me?” “I’ve seen all of Mr. Smith’s cover shoots. My favorites are those two series in which you’re featured! The Genie of Fragrance! You look even better than in the photos!” Adam’s eyes lit up as he praised Melanie with a smile.“Thank you,” Melanie thanked him politely.“Do you always say so little?” Ad
“What else do you know?” Annie’s gossip radar started ringing.Melanie told Annie about her bumping into Adam at the airport.“In that case, Adam O’Shea probably doesn’t know that he just got himself a new partner?” Annie asked.Melanie nodded. “Based on what he said at that time, the finale of the show is a solo segment.”Annie’s face lit up. “I’ll get someone to check things out on Adam’s end right away.”Melanie fed Annie a piece of grilled meat, which Annie gobbled up before saying, “If he doesn’t yet know that he suddenly has a troublemaker for a partner, I’ll have someone inform him about it! Ha ha ha!”“Thank you very much for that. Don’t choke,” Melanie laughed out loud, too.A distance away, Kelly was having her meal, surrounded by a few other women.Seeing Melanie and Annie chatting and laughing away, looking unperturbed by her provocation just now, made Kelly stand up in frustration. She crooked her finger to signal her subordinate to follow her to a quiet corner, wh
Adam was kept busy with preparations for tomorrow’s show the moment he arrived at the hotel. Make-up trials, outfit tryouts, jewelry matching and stage rehearsals filled his schedule.It was only when he finally had time to eat that he heard about the organizers taking the liberty to find a new partner for him without his agreement—and it was the rich heiress of an organization he had never heard of in his life!He was sought-after by many and born for the stage, but he was also equally fearful of the stage. That was why it was a pursuit of perfection for him each time he appeared on stage. He would communicate in advance with the organizer of each and every event he made an appearance in, and he had to agree to the partner that the organizer had planned for him.This time round, they had agreed for the finale of the show to be his personal catwalk without a female partner. The last minute change made his blood boil!He snapped harshly, “I’m done with organizers who don’t know ho
Ms. Yancey stood stunned for a moment before turning back to look at Melanie.Melanie stepped forward upon realizing that she had been implicated in the issue.“Ms. Yancey,” she said, “I’m afraid this is all a misunderstanding. I don’t really understand it myself, but I heard Ms. Murray mention earlier about someone who thinks too highly of herself in wanting to be Adam’s partner, which was what angered Adam. Was she referring to me?”“This was a misunderstanding to begin with.”Ms. Yancey couldn’t be bothered to spare a glance at Kelly. She looked at Melanie, before her gaze landed on Adam. “I can promise you that no one is able to stuff a partner down your throat without getting your express permission. As such, you can catwalk at tomorrow’s show with peace of mind.”“That’s great! We similarly look forward to our first collaboration with you, Ms. Yancey,” Adam’s manager chimed in at just the right time.“What I’m most concerned about right now is whether Melanie Jones is wil
“This question again?” Linda looked at Melanie with a smile, her eyes twinkling. “You really feel a strong affinity with me, don’t you?”Melanie’s face remained unchanged. She looked patiently at Linda, waiting for the latter’s answer.There seemed to be no reasonable explanation for the many coincidences between them. However, Melanie clearly remembered being rescued by a mysterious stranger from the fire at the York’s estate. When she was unconscious, the mother of that little boy once said that she knew that she was pregnant… Since Melanie saved that little boy, said woman would do all she could to protect the mother and child.Wasn’t everything that Linda was doing to protect Melanie and her child?!“I feel a strong affinity with you, too. It feels just marvelous!” Linda said.Melanie wasn’t surprised. She didn’t expect Linda to give her a genuine answer anyway.However, Linda’s vague answers to her questions were enough for Melanie to pinpoint the problem. Melanie smiled,
The bodyguard standing behind Linda said, “Ms. Yancey, we’ve called the police. They’re on their way here.”“What use will they be?” Linda shrieked, clearly displeased. The police would come, open the case, interrogate suspects and investigate the matter. Even if they manage to find the stolen diamonds, so what?Could her show wait till then?“Melanie, what do you mean?”Linda was pinning all her hopes on Melanie. Melanie sniffed out the entire safe thoroughly, and turned around to say, “I smell a lingering scent on the safe, which smells like a mix of perfume and tobacco. If you can gather everyone here and line them up with a gap in between each person, I’ll be able to quickly pinpoint who touched that safe. That’ll make the matter easier to investigate.”Linda’s eyes lit up. “How could I forget the talent that you are?”She chuckled, and instructed the bodyguard behind her, “Make everyone line up and await checks!”“Yes!”The bodyguards split up to maintain an orderly qu
“What makes you so sure?”Linda’s right-hand man was puzzled.Melanie saw the curious look on Linda’s face, and explained, “When Adam lost his temper last night and you scolded Mr. Wright in front of everyone, he smelled only of tobacco. Not this brand of cologne that he was wearing just now.“I suppose it’s because he must have been very busy preparing for the show over the past few days, and didn’t bother with his usual luxuries.“When you called him and Kelly over to explain themselves, I paid close attention and noticed that he hadn’t applied any cologne at that time. However, I also noticed a faint smell of cologne after he queued up. He’s smarter than Kelly, and used only a little to create the impression that he had applied the cologne much earlier on.“But no matter how faint the scent is, a professional will be able to pick up the top note mixed with a bit of the middle note instead of the base note, which should be present had he applied the cologne much earlier on.”“I
Melanie and Annie followed Linda’s right-hand man backstage.Adam had his makeup on, and had changed into his outfit for the runway. A yellow diamond larger than the size of a pigeon’s eggs hung before his bare chest. The yellow diamond looked exquisitely cut and was surrounded by pave diamonds which looked like stars accentuating the beauty of the moon, yet not stealing the limelight of the yellow diamond featured in the middle.The Sun and Moon collection was indeed dazzling and mesmerizing.“I see that you’ve found it!” Melanie exclaimed.Linda smiled. “I did, all thanks to you!”“I had my men secretly follow Mr. Wright who, as we suspected, wanted to flee with the diamonds. He even had plane tickets booked. We restrained his wife and child and lay in wait for him at his house. It was a breeze finding the Sun and Moon collection after that!” Linda’s right-hand man looked admiringly at Melanie. “Our men all praised Miss Melanie for her brilliant idea, which saved us from m