Gerald’s tone was entirely calm. “I ordered some bespoke formal dresses and jewelry for you some time ago. But I never had the chance to give them to you. Today’s a good day to collect them so that you can wear them for the auction.”Bespoke jewelry… North gulped. “What kind of jewelry?”“A whole set of rare purple diamond jewelry.”North choked and started coughing. Was it that set of rare purple diamonds?She remembered when the diamond set was put up for auction six months ago. Nicholas had joined the fray, and she heard that someone had gotten it with a bid of 1.9 billion dollars. North even exclaimed at the time that the world sure had a lot of rich people.As it turned out, the one who bought that diamond set was actually Gerald.He even turned it into bespoke jewelry for her to wear to the auction.North refused him politely, “Wouldn’t that be too flashy, Gerald?”Gerald said calmly, leaving no room for doubt, “Mrs. Howard, anyone who stands by my side is bound to grab
Beep beep!Mr. Tripoli’s phone rang. It was as if it signaled his death. When he answered the call, his expression suddenly shifted, and his legs turned to jelly. He fell to his knees with a thud.North raised an eyebrow. Without even looking at him twice, she turned to head upstairs.…Upstairs, Cynthia was trying the jewelry on while the stylist flattered her. “Mr. Howard must really love you, Ms. Cynthia. Bidding on the diamonds alone cost him 1.9 billion, and turning them into jewelry cost him another fortune. You make them look prettier just by wearing them!”Cynthia’s ego got a big boost from this.She had heard that Gerald sent the diamonds here to be turned into jewelry.So, she had made her way here when they were completed today. Listening to the manager and employees’ flattery, she started feeling reluctant to take them off.Honestly, she had no idea who Gerald intended to gift this to, but it could not possibly be North Myers.Cynthia started daydreaming at the tho
“If you know she’s your in-law, Cynthia, what makes you think an adopted cousin like you can compare to my wife?” Gerald said bluntly. “In other words, what gave you an ego big enough to convince yourself that you’re worth that 1.9 billion?”The entire room fell silent.Cynthia was still teary-eyed, but now she was humiliated to no end. Turning red, she cried out, “Gerald! How can you say that to me?”Gerald watched her tears fall onto the bracelet. It was supposed to be a beautiful sight, but all it did was disgust him.Frowning, he leaned in to whisper in North’s ear. “We don’t have to take the jewelry if someone else has already put it on.”Cynthia froze. Was Gerald disgusted by her tears?!North blinked. “Why? That’s 1.9 billion dollars. I want it back.”Gerald gulped. Was North… playing coy?Emotionlessly, he turned to the trembling assistant nearby. “Take them off.”As the assistant walked over, Cynthia’s humiliation hit a breaking point.Still teary-eyed, her arrogance
The assistant was filled with sympathy for the manager and the employees. If one offended Mr. Howard, one was doomed!Then again, they had brought it onto themselves. When Gerald ordered the bespoke jewelry, Mr. Tripoli had not even asked who it was for. Instead, to flatter the Brackens, he had given it to Cynthia right away.They were tripping over dollars just to pick up pennies.After going home, North was admiring the purple diamonds when an image suddenly flashed in her mind.It seemed to be of her holding a stack of blueprints, asking someone beside her if they looked good.“When we get the chance, I’ll take your blueprints and turn them into actual jewelry for the masses to admire,” that person said.North pressed a hand to her head.Why were these memories real? She did not remember any of them!And that blueprint… North looked up instinctively and stared at the purple diamonds in front of her for a while.The blueprints in that memory matched the jewelry exactly.“Ha
It was a young man in his 20s with platinum blonde hair and arrogance written all over him.He blew up upon hearing North’s response, looking downward abruptly. “How dare you…”He was about to start yelling when he saw her beautiful face and blushed instantly. Swallowing all the insults he had been planning to say, he choked out, “You… I…”The femme fatale looked quite nice. Were women like her Gerald’s type?North had no idea who this man was, but she recognized Joe Hampton behind him.Oh. Sharon’s bootlicker was here.Joe was so angry that his face tensed as he gritted his teeth and asked, “How dare you show your face at the auction? Did you find out Sharon was coming? Are you trying to outbid her?!”North had nothing to say to a bootlicker, so she turned and tried to leave but got blocked by both men again.“Say something! Are you trying to outbid Sharon for the violin?”“Sharon’s the darling of our group, but you? You’re the jinx!”North frowned. Were these people sick in
Sharon’s lips thinned, and she wore a bitter smile. “However, sometimes I really do admire you. At least you have freedom, unlike me. All my life, I was forced to learn etiquette and music.” She sighed.Nathan opened his mouth to say something. However, he stayed quiet. For some reason, he got the feeling that Sharon’s words were a little… fake.North was mildly interested as she watched Sharon put on her show.The way she framed herself as superior really made North want to puke.Because North had been banished to the country when she was younger, she had never been to the etiquette classes of the upper class. That was why Sharon could attack her confidence. North looked up coldly and said, “That’s true. I never got as good an education as you did, Ms. Sharon. That’s why you need to keep an eye out. I have never been well-bred, and I have a bad temper. So, you should think carefully before you provoke me.”Sharon’s face suddenly went pale.Nathan could barely maintain his arro
Sharon stuttered, “I-It just s-slipped my mind… Nate, I didn’t do it intentionally.”North clicked her tongue. “If you say it slipped your mind, Ms. Sharon, then you must really have only forgotten to mention it. Gerald, let’s go to the auction hall.”Gerald glanced at Sharon dully. “Take care of yourself.”Sharon stumbled a little and swayed on her feet.Once Gerald and North left, Sharon clenched her fists. She felt resentful as tears began to fall. She wailed, “Nate, I didn’t know North hated me so much. Gerald and I are only friends. Maybe I shouldn’t have come back to the country…”Nathan did not comfort her as she had expected. Instead, he asked, “Sharon, did you really not tell me they were married because you forgot to?”Sharon’s body went rigid. She sounded even more pitiful as she asked, “Do you doubt me too?”Nathan hesitated for a moment and found that he really could not bear it. “Sharon, when all is said and done, you and Gerald already broke up. He has his own fam
North frowned. She turned and saw Mike standing there. She said, “Gerald, do you hear a dog barking?”“It’s you!” Mike could not help but lose his temper. “Gerald, you must be here for the final lot of the auction, right? Do you want the land in Southvale?”The land in Southvale? North blinked. She had heard Patricia and Mike mention this plot of land many times. Had they still not been able to obtain it?Gerald did not even look up. “F*ck off.”“Gerald, what are you so haughty about?” Mike hated Gerald’s unaffected demeanor the most.Back when Gerald had newly returned to the Howard family, he was a malnourished beggar without a home, while he was the superior heir of the Howard family! Yet, when Gerald looked at him with that cool expression, it made Mike feel a wave of shame and rage.He gritted his teeth. “Gerald, don’t you really want to know where that person from four years ago is? I have news about her! I’ll tell you if you let me have the land in Southvale!”North abr