2025-12-17 09:10:48Adrian looked at Vanessa and suddenly felt amused.
Not in a warm way.
More like watching someone embarrass themselves without realizing it.
A faint sneer tugged at the corner of his mouth.
“If we’re talking about affairs,” he said coldly, “then your relationship with him looks far more convincing.”
His gaze slid briefly to Charles before returning to Vanessa.
“She and I just met today,” Adrian added calmly, nodding slightly toward Iris. “Try again.”
The words were light, almost casual.
There was no anger in them. No raised voice. No explanation.
Vanessa's face flushed instantly.
Her breath hitched as disbelief turned into rage.
Her chest rose sharply as anger flooded her expression.
“You—!” she shouted, taking a sharp step forward. “How dare you say that!”
Her heels scraped loudly against the floor, the sound sharp and jarring.
Several people nearby flinched.
Being called an adulterer was her biggest fear.
She had spent years polishing her image—successful, respectable, admirable.
A woman everyone praised.
The idea that people might now see her as immoral made panic creep into her bones.
She clenched her fists.
“You’re lying!” she yelled, her voice cracking slightly from fury. “You’re shameless! Twisting the truth like this—”
Her finger jabbed toward Adrian, trembling with anger.
Her voice rose even higher, sharp enough to draw more attention from across the lobby.
“You think you can smear me just because you’re pathetic?” she snapped. “Do you think anyone here would believe you?”
She let out a cold laugh, trying to steady herself.
“Fine,” she sneered. “Since you love lying so much, are you going to tell everyone now that she is the one from the Rand family who invited you here?”
Her eyes darted sharply toward Iris.
The accusation was deliberate and calculated, meant to humiliate.
Iris didn’t react.
She stood quietly beside Adrian, posture straight and expression composed.
She didn’t frown, didn’t argue, she didn’t even look offended.
That composure alone irritated Vanessa even more.
Adrian answered without hesitation.
“She is from the Rand family,” he said indifferently.
The statement was simple.
A beat passed.
“But she’s not the one who invited me.”
For half a second, the lobby fell silent.
It was the kind of silence that came before laughter—
before mockery— before judgment.Then laughter erupted.
It rolled through the lobby like a wave.
Whispers burst out immediately.
“Did you hear that?”
“He’s really serious about this nonsense.”
“First he claims the Rand family invited him, now this?”
“Does he think everyone here is stupid?”
Some shook their heads.
Others smirked openly.
Charles laughed the loudest.
He threw his head back, clapping his hands slowly, exaggerated and mocking, as if applauding a bad performance.
“Vanessa,” he said with a wide grin, “your ex-husband is impressive.”
He dragged the word impressive, thick with sarcasm.
He turned to look at Adrian, eyes filled with disdain, as if he were watching a clown who didn’t know when to stop.
“Truly a man who loves to daydream,” Charles added lazily. “One fantasy stacked on another.”
He leaned closer to Vanessa.
“No wonder you divorced him,” he muttered loudly enough for others to hear. “This level of delusion is dangerous.”
Vanessa felt reassured by Charles' reaction.
The support steadied her nerves.
She crossed her arms, lifting her chin proudly as if reclaiming control of the situation.
Her earlier panic faded, replaced by confidence.
“Exactly,” she said coldly. “He’s gone mad.”
She looked around deliberately, letting everyone hear her.
“A poor man pretending to be important,” she added. “How laughable.”
At that moment, a pair of heels echoed across the lobby.
The sound cut through the noise.
A woman walked out from behind the lobby counter.
She wore a tailored suit, perfectly pressed.
Her hair was neatly tied back and her expression was calm but sharp, eyes already assessing the scene.
It was Elaine .
The manager of Skyline Hotel .
Her presence alone caused several people to straighten subconsciously.
Elaine frowned slightly as she approached, her gaze sweeping over the gathered crowd, then landing on Vanessa, Charles, Adrian, and Iris.
“What’s going on here?” Elaine asked.
Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried authority.
The surrounding chatter faded.
Charles turned immediately.
His face brightened as if he had been waiting for her.
“Elaine,” he greeted her warmly, stepping forward. “Long time no see.”
He smiled, familiarity obvious, his posture relaxed.
“It’s nothing serious,” Charles said casually, waving a hand. “Just ran into a couple of lunatics.”
Elaine raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Lunatics?”
Charles chuckled, then gestured toward Adrian and Iris with a mocking tilt of his head.
“This man suddenly barged in claiming someone from the Rand family invited him to dinner here,” Charles said with amusement.
His eyes flicked toward Adrian disdainfully.
“And the woman next to him even claims she’s from the Rand family.”
Another ripple of laughter passed through the crowd.
Vanessa smirked, clearly satisfied.
She watched Elaine carefully, waiting for her to take their side.
Elaine’s smile stiffened.
Her fingers tightened slightly at her side.
The Rand family?
Her heartbeat skipped.
She did know the Rand family was hosting an important guest today.
A very important one.
One she had personally overseen preparations for.
She glanced at Adrian.
Then at Iris.
Both of them stood calmly. No fear. No anger. No desperation.
Neither of them tried to explain further.
That calm unsettled her.
For a brief moment, doubt crept in.
The lobby grew quiet.
Some people exchanged looks.
Charles noticed the hesitation immediately.
His smile stiffened and he spoke up quickly.
“Elaine, don’t misunderstand,” he said smoothly. “It’s actually Vanessa who’s hosting the Rand family today.”
He gestured toward Vanessa.
“We’re here to celebrate their cooperation.”
Vanessa nodded firmly, stepping forward half a step.
“That’s right,” she said confidently. “I’m the one working with them.”
She met Elaine’s gaze without flinching.
Elaine pressed her lips together.
Even so, unease lingered. Just in case.
She straightened her back.
“Skyline Hotel is a property of the Rand family,” Elaine said clearly, her voice firm. “And I know every single member of the Rand family.”
Her gaze sharpened.
She pushed through the crowd, walking straight toward Adrian and Iris.
Up close, she examined them carefully.
Their faces. Their posture. Their quiet confidence.
She searched her memory.
Every gathering. Every banquet. Every family member she had ever met.
Nothing. Recognition didn’t come.
Her expression darkened and the doubt vanished.
Suddenly, her hesitation turned into anger.
She spun around sharply.
“Security!” Elaine shouted. “Get these two people out of Skyline Hotel!”
Her voice echoed across the lobby.
Gasps followed instantly.
Security guards moved at once, stepping forward.
Vanessa's lips curled into a triumphant smile and Charles folded his arms, clearly pleased.
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Chapter 170
ADRIAN'S OFFICE The office door opened with a quiet knock that didn’t wait long for permission.Mr. Henderson stepped in, closing it behind him. He didn’t speak immediately, but Adrian looked up from his desk anyway, already expecting him.“Mr. Henderson,” Adrian said.“Sir.”There was no need for formalities between them, but habits formed over years didn’t disappear easily.Henderson moved a few steps forward, stopping at a comfortable distance from the desk, his posture relaxed but attentive. He didn’t ask why he had been called in.He already knew.Adrian leaned back slightly in his chair, one hand resting against the armrest, the other loosely holding a pen he hadn’t realized he’d been turning between his fingers.“I need an event planner,” Adrian said.Henderson gave a small nod, as though that confirmed exactly what he had expected.“I assumed as much,” he replied.Adrian’s gaze remained steady.“Not just any planner,” he added. “I want the best.”There was no exaggeration in
Chapter 169
Vanessa watched Monica for a moment longer.Monica wasn’t backing down.That much was obvious.There was no impatience in the way she waited, no dramatic demand for answers—but there was persistence. Quiet, steady, and irritatingly focused. The kind that didn’t fade just because it was ignored.Vanessa exhaled softly through her nose, her fingers tapping once against the arm of the chair before going still.“Alright, fine,” she said at last.Monica’s expression didn’t change immediately, but her attention sharpened.Vanessa tilted her head slightly, studying her with a faint, almost testing look.“But don’t judge me.”The words came lightly, but there was something underneath them—not uncertainty, not quite. More like a challenge disguised as a warning.Monica let out a small breath, her lips pressing together faintly before she shrugged one shoulder.“I’m listening,” she said.Vanessa held her gaze for a second longer, as if confirming that she meant it. Then she leaned back into her
Chapter 168
VANESSA'S OFFICE Vanessa sat behind her desk, one leg crossed over the other, her posture relaxed in appearance but not in meaning. Her fingers rested lightly against the arm of her chair, tapping once, slowly, as she watched the man standing across from her.He wasn’t remarkable at first glance.That was exactly the point.Mid-thirties, perhaps. Clean. Well-dressed, but not flashy. The kind of face people wouldn’t remember easily, but also wouldn’t question. There was nothing about him that invited suspicion.Vanessa had chosen carefully.She tilted her head slightly, studying him again, not for the first time.“You understand what you’re being asked to do?” she said.Her voice was calm.Controlled.Not raised.The man nodded once.“I do,” he replied.Vanessa leaned back slightly in her chair, her gaze never leaving him.“Say it,” she said.The man hesitated for a fraction of a second—not out of confusion, but calculation—then spoke.“I’m to get close to her,” he said. “Casually. Na
Chapter 167
By the time Charles drove into the compound that evening, the story had already taken shape in his head.Not just loosely.Not partially.Fully formed.Refined.Adjusted in all the places where reality had failed him.He had already told Vanessa that he met Adrian. Now he had to give her a good detail of the discussion. He parked the car a little more forcefully than necessary, the engine cutting off with a sharp finality that seemed to echo his mood. For a moment, he stayed seated, both hands still resting on the steering wheel as he stared ahead through the windshield.The encounter replayed itself.Not as it had actually happened.But as he had already begun reshaping it.Adrian standing there.Adrian listening.Adrian responding.The version in Charles’ mind shifted the balance each time he replayed it, smoothing over the hesitation, erasing the warning, removing the quiet authority Adrian had carried so effortlessly.Replacing it instead with something else.Something that fit b
Chapter 166
The moment Charles reached them, the energy around the entrance subtly shifted.The store manager, who had been standing just a step behind Adrian during the final exchange of departure courtesies, immediately picked up on it. His posture changed almost imperceptibly—professional ease tightening into alert awareness.He gave Adrian a brief, respectful nod.“I’ll head back inside,” he said smoothly, already stepping away without waiting for a response.Adrian didn’t stop him.He simply acknowledged the departure with a faint inclination of his head before turning his attention fully to the person now standing in front of him.Charles.For a brief second, neither of them spoke.The silence wasn’t neutral.It was charged with recognition—on Charles’ side especially. There was something in the way he held himself, slightly squared shoulders, chin lifted just enough to suggest confidence that had to be consciously maintained rather than naturally carried.Adrian, on the other hand, remaine
Chapter 165
Adrian had not hesitated when he made the decision.Once it formed clearly in his mind, it was executed with the same precision he applied to everything else that mattered.The appointment had been arranged the next morning.A private consultation.Not for something off a display shelf.Not for something pre-designed or chosen from existing collections.He wanted something specific.Something made.The kind of ring that didn’t exist until it was created for a single person.For Iris.The call had been brief, but firm. His assistant had handled the logistics, and within the hour, everything had been confirmed.1 PM.That same day.Adrian had arrived without delay.The location was discreet, high-end, and designed for clients who didn’t simply buy luxury but commissioned it. There was no unnecessary noise, no crowded showroom, no public browsing. Everything was arranged through private consultation, where designs were discussed in detail and executed with precision.He had been led into
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