Chapter 25: Valentia Makes Her Move

Angelo didn’t come home that night.

The next morning, Livia went to school early.

At lunch, Florence came over with her tray and sat next to Livia, handing her the phone. "Look, Valentia becomes the new face of M Jewelry just as she returned."

Just the mention of Valentia's name was enough to make Livia lose her appetite.

Still, she glanced at the phone and indeed saw Valentia attending the signing ceremony with the brand representatives of M Jewelry.

The person signing the contract wasn't Angelo, though—it was Donovan.

‘I must admit, Valentia really did have the chops to square off with me.’

"It's kind of strange, even though Valentia's got nationwide popularity, it's puzzling how she snagged an endorsement deal with the M brand right after coming back. I mean, I remember M Jewelry never used a spokesperson before. They’re breaking their own rule this time. Don't you think there's some dirty little secret between the company's boss and her?" Florence mused to herself, scrolling through the comments below the video.

Most of them were singing praises: Valentia is gorgeous! She deserves it! M Jewelry has good taste! more importantly, a bunch of Valentia's fans had already started flocking to M Jewelry stores to buy their pieces as a show of support for her.

"She's pretty badass," Florence concluded, setting down her phone. Noticing Livia's gloomy demeanor and lack of enthusiasm, she expressed her concern. "What's up? You look awful."

Livia had lost her appetite. Shaking her head, she replied, "Maybe it's the heat. I'm just not hungry. You enjoy your meal. I need to go."

Back in the office, Livia clicked on the trending searches. There was Valentia in the video, wearing a fresh floral sundress with her hair in a bun, her innocent face charmingly exposed, adorned with jewelry on her ears and neck, striking various poses with the M brand's jewelry on full display.

One day, lying in a hospital bed, the next taking on an endorsement - talk about dedication to the job.

Angelo really seemed to have Valentia's back, offering her such a lucrative endorsement deal as soon as she returned. It'd be hard for her not to rise to stardom.

With Angelo's resources, it was only a matter of time before Valentia secured her spot in the entertainment industry.

"Miss Ashcroft." Luke knocked on the door frame.

Startled, Livia dropped her phone onto the desk.

She hurriedly turned off her phone and asked calmly, "What's up?"

No one else was in the office at the moment, just Livia.

Luke stood in front of her desk, his gaze landing on the phone that was now face-down on the desk. "You saw it, didn't you?"

"Saw what?"

"Valentia endorsing M Jewelry."

Livia shrugged slightly. "What has that got to do with me?"

"Angelo is the behind-the-scenes boss of M Jewelry," Luke observed her expression closely.

Livia smiled. "Still has nothing to do with me."

Only she knew how much frustration was hiding beneath her nonchalance and indifference.

Luke didn't press further.

He turned to leave, then stopped and turned back. “Miss Ashcroft, let me take you out for dinner tonight."

"Why?"

"To thank you for looking after me." Without waiting for Livia to refuse, he left.

That evening, as Livia stepped out of the school gates, she saw Luke waiting under a tree.

"Miss Ashcroft," Luke called out to her.

Livia, a touch of helplessness in her voice, said, "You have classes tomorrow, if you're hungry I'll treat you to something at the diner up ahead."

Luke shook his head. "I'm taking you somewhere real quick."

"Luke," Livia's voice carried a hint of authority. "You have classes tomorrow!”

"It won't take long."

Unable to resist Luke’s insistence, Livia compromised and hailed a cab. Soon, they arrived at an upscale hotel. Luke led the way and pushed open the door to a private room.

Inside, several people were laughing and chatting merrily until they abruptly fell silent at the sound of the door, turning their gaze collectively towards Luke.

Standing behind Luke, Livia felt a little awkward. She didn't want to impose her presence on them like this and felt like a clown.

"Angelo, having a good meal without inviting me?" Luke sauntered in casually, not intimidated by Angelo’s frosty face. He turned back and called out, "Mrs. Bradley, come on in."

Livia was mortified. She shouldn't have trusted Luke, much less followed him here.

Angelo's gaze fixed on the partially visible figure at the door, lips pressed tightly together.

Valentia’s smile froze on her face.

Everyone present was an executive from M Jewelry, including Donovan.

Sensing the tension, Donovan quickly tried to smooth things over. "Miss Ashcroft has joined us too. Just finished teaching, I presume? Thanks for bringing Luke back. Come, sit down and join us for dinner."

Donovan was well aware that Angelo didn't like his personal business exposed to outsiders, including colleagues.

Listening to Donovan’s invitation, Livia could only find it laughable.

She offered a faint smile to the motionless Angelo. 'If it weren't for his influence, would Donovan have spoken up?'

"No, thank you," Livia politely declined. "Actually, I escorted my student Luke here to speak with Mr. Bradley. Luke is going through adolescence, and as his guardian, it’s important to pay attention to a youngster's physical and emotional health. Work is important, but so is a child's well-being. Therefore, I urge Mr. Bradley to spend his free time on the child himself rather than leaving him alone at home all the time.

"That's all I wanted to say. Please enjoy your meal. I will be taking my leave now. Goodbye." Livia maintained her composure and calm throughout.

She believed her words were strictly professional, and as for Luke's calling her 'Mrs. Bradley,' everyone would presumably ignore it.

Nodding slightly, she turned and left the room with composed grace.

It wasn't until she was outside the hotel that Livia allowed herself to breathe deeply, finally releasing the pent-up tension.

After returning home, the first thing she did was contact a locksmith to have the locks changed immediately, including updating the security codes.

Laying in bed after a shower, she found herself devoid of even the desire to cry.

Reexamining her past relationship felt like a joke. She pondered what she had gained from it, what she had possessed, what she had been looking forward to.

Scrolling through her phone, she noticed a few lines from Bronte: [Life is so long, what does it matter if we take a few wrong turns? We're just on a detour, but we'll all meet at the end. Our final destination is the same: death.]

Livia left a comment below: [Every stage of life is merely a transition. Only the dust is our ultimate resting place.]

Bronte replied: [What’s wrong with you?]

Livia responded: [Just trying to match your sentiment, to come off as cultured.]

After reaching the end of her feed with nothing left to see, Livia put down her phone and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night, her phone buzzed to life. Frowning, she fumbled for it and answered without checking who was calling.

"Hello?"

There was no sound from the other side.

Annoyed at being disturbed, she prepared to hang up.

"Speak up, or I'm hanging up."

"Softly... ah..."

The indecent noises from the other end snapped her out of her sleepiness in an instant.

She turned on the light and checked the caller ID, which boldly displayed a name: Angelo.