Chapter 239

“Mom, don’t even think about it,” Renee quickly interrupted. “You know what kind of people the Clarks are these days. If you don’t trust Uncle Carl, don’t you at least trust Uncle Patrick?”

“You’re right, but they pulled in a lot of investors for this project. If they weren’t confident, they’d have to be pretty bold to go through with it,” Susanne said, stifling another yawn.

Renee urged her to take it easy and get some sleep. But after they hung up, an uneasy feeling lingered in her chest.

…

Despite her discomfort with the way Leon looked at her, Renee focused on her work, designing a brooch for him with real dedication. Inspired by a koi fish, she captured a moment of the fish in motion, its fins and tail gracefully fanning out through ripples of water. For the fish’s head, she used Leon’s own sapphire, with white diamonds and various shades of blue sapphires radiating out to enhance the design.

Mandy was pleased, commenting that the design was just right—not too delicate for a