Tyler merely glanced at Maria's gift and made no moves to accept it. "Okay."Maria was undeterred as she opened the gift before him. "Tyler, I saw this necktie at the mall and thought it was perfect for you. Why don't you put it on and see if it suits you?"Once she had the necktie in her hand, Maria walked toward Tyler to put it on for him but was stopped by a slim figure before she could approach him."I'm sorry, Miss Sparks, but he doesn't like your gift."Maria acted as though she had just noticed Vicky and said, "Miss Shaw, Tyler didn't even say that he doesn't like it. I don't think it's appropriate for you to make the call without asking him what he thinks about the gift, is it now?"Every guest who attended the party, including Tyler, referred to Vicky as 'Missus Hart', but Maria was the only one who called her 'Miss Shaw'.Vicky smiled. "He is my husband, and I'm the host of this party. We're a couple and what's his is mine, so my thoughts represent his as well." She pau
Before Vicky could get closer, the person seemed to have sensed her presence and turned.The woman was not surprised at all and smiled at Vicky before greeting her with a soft voice. "Miss Shaw, it's Mister Hart's birthday today. Why aren't you by his side?"Displeased by the way she was addressed, Vicky deadpanned, "Why are you here, Miss Mayland?"Nikki was dressed in a light blue gown, and her features looked enchanting with makeup. "You must be curious as to how I got in without an invitation, Miss Shaw." Nikki tugged her hair behind her ear and smiled. "I'm in no position to be invited to a party like this, but I'm here...as a performer.""A performer?""That's right."In an extravagant venue, all guests looked elegant in their splendid clothing.It was a world where Nikki did not belong."You've been to enough parties like this, and you should know that performers are often hired for these occasions to play the violin or piano. So, I'm here to perform," she said, before s
Nikki instinctively reached out to grab Vicky to steady herself, but Vicky instinctively moved away from the abrupt movement.Crash! The tower of wine glasses next to them collapsed, and Nikki fell onto the shattered glass."Goodness, what's going on?!" a woman's gasp echoed in the hall.When Vicky turned around, she saw a flash of crimson red charging toward her while screaming, "Oh my god! What happened?! Someone fell! Oh my god... Her hands! Someone call the doctor!"Only a few people noticed what happened at first, but Maria's scream brought silence to the hall as everyone turned to look at them.Vicky's lips curled into a cold sneer when she saw the dramatic act Maria put on.'This woman seems to hate me a lot, huh?' she thought to herself. 'She first tried to frame me, and now she's coming at me on Tyler's birthday.'Vicky turned to look at Nikki, who paled at the pain.'These two are teaming up against me? How do they even know each other?'Once she had everyone's atten
All the noises attracted the other guests, and they began to walk closer to the three of them.Tyler, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found, which gave Maria the boost of courage she wanted."Miss Shaw, is this necessary? Miss Mayland is only here to perform for Tyler. Everyone knows that he likes listening to piano music. It's bad enough that you don't know how to play it. Isn't it too much to forbid others from playing for him?" she spoke, raising her voice.Vicky stood in the middle of the crowd calmly. "Miss Sparks, you've just gotten here, so why are you so sure that this is my fault? Have you stopped being an actress and switched professions to become a director or something?"Maria stilled and glared at her. "I wasn't far away when I saw you approaching Miss Mayland and pushing her toward the wine glass tower to prevent her from performing," said Maria as she turned to look at a certain spot. "Those people saw you as well. They're all witnesses!"Vicky had never laid e
"Today is Tyler's birthday, and everything you do represents not just yourself but Tyler as well. You're embarrassing him." Maria lowered her voice but made sure that she was loud enough for the others to hear her. "How about you apologize to Miss Mayland and we'll all forget that anything ever happened?"Maria and Nikki partnered to paint a picture for the other guests.Not only were the elite members of Stoneford City invited, but there were also wealthy individuals from all around the world present at the hall who were not aware of Vicky's past or the rumors about her.After what Maria and Nikki said, those who did not know what happened in the past started to look at Vicky with contempt.Maria's lips curled into a smug smile when she saw the looks on the other guests' faces. 'So what if Tyler approves of you as his wife? I want everyone to scorn you; spurn you wherever you go!'Vicky listened to them quietly before commenting, "Just like what Miss Mayland and Miss Sparks had s
Vicky was no doubt far superior in terms of looks, and though she came from a fallen family, her family used to hold a position of power in Stoneford City. Even when the glory of the Shaws had faded, their connections in the city remained. Compared to Nikki, who had no power or connection at all, Vicky triumphed over her.As for how much they each mattered to Tyler, there were rumors that he had been to a certain bar to listen to Nikki's performance and had helped her once but was not seen again since then.Whether or not Vicky was involved in stopping Tyler from going, Nikki could not be that important to Tyler if he gave up on her so easily. Moreover, Tyler had invited Vicky to the first dance in front of everyone at his birthday party.Even if it was all but an act, it was enough to draw jealousy toward Vicky for what he had done for her. A man in Tyler's status would not have done such a thing if he did not place importance on Vicky to begin with.Indeed, there was no reason fo
There were no sheets on the piano, and Vicky might not be able to play any song at all even if there were.If she was never good at playing piano before losing her memories, it was unlikely for her to remember how to play without any sort of recollection.Vicky only agreed to Maria's request to buy time because once Tyler appeared, a few of his words would break all accusations toward her.Vicky sat down and glanced around, feeling disappointed when she could not find Tyler anywhere."Miss Shaw, the piano was already adjusted beforehand, so you don't have to test the notes. Stop stalling and play already. Miss Mayland's wounds need to be treated," Maria called out.Vicky sneered coldly as she glanced at the smug expression on Maria's face.'I guess she came prepared,' she thought.It was indeed hard for Vicky to get out of this, but Maria had forgotten about something.Tyler.Even after what happened with the bracelet, Maria still had not come to the realization that Tyler was
Vicky was not only capable of playing decently; she was stellar!People who did not know much about playing the piano would only be impressed by how beautifully she played, but those who had a certain extent of expertise in the regard would know that Vicky was extremely talented.'I thought that Vicky can't play at all? They said that even if she plays, it's so horrible that it's hard to listen to a whole song. Why am I seeing something different?' Sheila thought to herself as her eyes widened in disbelief.Maria, too, gaped at Vicky, unable to recover from the shock.Nikki—who chose to stay to see Vicky embarrassing herself instead of treating her wound so she could push herself to appear as a victim of bullying—paled. With widened eyes, she bit her lower lip and shivered. She shook her head hysterically and mumbled, "No... That's not possible."Nikki was confident in her skill as a pianist. Though she was not one of the very best in the world, she knew she qualified as a profess