Natalie anxiously held her breath, waiting for the call to connect. However, she was met with a cold robotic voice informing her that the number didn’t exist. It seemed whoever was after her had taken precautions to erase their tracks.

Realizing that the person who sent her the text message didn’t want to be traced, Natalie concluded that they had deliberately erased the number after sending it. Although she wasn’t tech-savvy, she knew it wouldn’t be difficult to accomplish such a task. This made her more certain that it wasn’t Charis’s ghost haunting her; someone was using Charis as a decoy to frighten her. But why? What did they want from her? Natalie wracked her brain, trying to recall if she had wronged anyone else who had been close to Charis.

“Hello? Earth to Natalie! You forgot to turn off the water!” Elizabeth appeared out of nowhere, tapping Natalie’s shoulder from behind. Startled, Natalie quickly turned off the tap.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?” Elizabeth could see that Natalie’s mind was elsewhere and frowned in concern. “What’s going on, Natalie? You’ve been distant lately. Is it because of Dalores?”

Natalie looked at Elizabeth, seeing the worry etched on her friend’s face. “You’re overthinking things. Dalores isn’t bullying me anymore. Besides, I have my bodyguard now. She’ll think twice before causing trouble.”

Elizabeth burst into laughter, having heard about the morning incident. Suddenly, a thought struck her, and she looked at Natalie in confusion. “Why did you suddenly hire a bodyguard?”

As Natalie explained, the two friends walked out of the bathroom together. “Didn’t you hear about what happened last night? The billboard on our building’s roof fell down out of the blue. Everyone said it was an accident, considering how old the building is.”

Elizabeth, unaware of the full story, found nothing strange about it. Natalie saw this as a good thing; it meant Elizabeth wasn’t in danger. She didn’t go into detail and simply claimed that the bodyguards were hired by Brandon.

Returning to her workstation, Natalie noticed a large bouquet of fresh red roses wrapped in black paper on Elizabeth’s desk. “Oh my God! They’re beautiful! Are these from Jorge?” she asked curiously.

Truth be told, Natalie didn’t like Jorge for Elizabeth and had hoped she would break up with him. In her eyes, Elizabeth deserved a better man. Jorge had already proven himself to be a domestic abuser and drug addict, which worried Natalie for her friend’s safety.

Elizabeth blushed, her cheeks matching the color of the roses. She lowered her head shyly and pinched a rose petal, leaving a slight mark. “Jorge has been really good to me lately. It feels like we’ve gone back to how things used to be. I think he has genuinely changed.”

from saying more. She didn’t want to dampen Elizabeth’s

new design project. Mr. Wesley asked me to give you these materials,” Tasha

to select a young designer for their dress designs. Everyone can

dress design. Although she usually focused on runway fashion and rarely took on couture projects, she understood the significance of this opportunity, especially since it was her first project after returning to W Marks. Opening the

the prominent families of Barnes, she knew about

the Harding family from Seacisco. They also have a presence here in Barnes, currently led by Garrett,” Natalie speculated

since Natalie last

was Laney, but she looked completely transformed. Her long hair was elegantly braided, framing her beautiful face. Her eyebrows were neatly groomed, and her

couldn’t help but stare at Laney, observing her every move. Laney’s eyes scanned the room, searching for something or someone. When her gaze finally met Natalie’s, she offered a polite nod, accompanied by a gentle, somewhat distant smile. Natalie knew that Laney had been taking etiquette courses from Mrs. Harding, but she hadn’t expected such a dramatic transformation in such a short time. Laney seemed like an

as Natalie longed to approach Laney and strike up a conversation, the presence of Mrs. Harding made her hesitate. She didn’t want to overstep any boundaries, so for now, she pretended they were strangers. With a

the designers present, her voice carrying an air of authority. “I need two outfits—one for my son and one for his wife. They’ll be wearing them to

of the designers, seized the opportunity to impress Mrs. Harding and handed her a cup of coffee with a flattering smile. “No problem, Mrs. Harding. We have swatches

graciously accepted the coffee and began expressing her preferences. “Thank you. I want the dress to exude elegance and possess a conservative style. Many dresses these days are far too

assert her opinions as if she were the one who would be wearing the dress. Laney sat quietly beside her, maintaining perfect

a word in. “Absolutely, Mrs. Harding. We can create exactly what you’re envisioning. It’s true that many dresses nowadays seem to have

the design to strike a balance between dignity and fashion,” Mrs. Harding affirmed, taking a sip of

determined to win the coveted project, continued to flatter Mrs. Harding. “Rest assured, we can deliver

Dalores’ response. “Indeed, it is rare. Do any of you have

her courage, she took a deep breath and rose from her seat.

her head to look at Laney, who sat beside her. While Laney had shown improvement recently, she still had a long way to go to become the ideal daughter-in-law, especially when it came to taste. Mrs. Harding had already envisioned the dress she wanted for Laney when they arrived at the studio and hadn’t planned on asking for Laney’s opinion. However,

The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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