Chapter 58
Regarding the spice incident, Jessa tried to defend herself several times, but Levi told her to focus on preparing for her concert tour. He warned that if she put her energy into other things again, he would cancel his sponsorship.
Jessa has been behaving herself these past few days and hasn't caused me any more trouble.
I've reminded Faye many times to learn to say no. I don't want her to be used in matters between Jessa and me - that would make things even messier to deal with.
Due to the design plagiarism, the company suffered serious losses. Although the compensation money Levi lent from Jessa has arrived, things are still very difficult for the company right now.
As for the losses to WR Company, we had planned to compensate them accordingly, but Elliot refused, saying, "We should weather this storm together."
I always feel bad owing others, but I can't find a way to make it up to them. All I can do is work hard on the design part and try to get the new collection on track as soon as possible.
A quick knock on the door pulled me back from my thoughts. I rubbed my temples and told them to come in.
"Ms. Ember, someone's here to see you. Should I let them in?"
Nola's secretary came to ask what I wanted. Because of my special status, aside from her secretary, no one else knew my identity.
"Who is it? Did they leave a name?"
"Someone named Faye."
"Let her in."
It was almost lunch time - was Faye here to have lunch with me?
This place is quite a distance from the Morgan Group. Young people just love to wander around. If it were me, I'd feel like even a few extra steps were a waste of time.
I opened my phone, planning to book a restaurant to treat Faye to lunch.
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in."
I put down my phone and smiled at Faye.
"Blair, you haven't eaten yet, right? Perfect, I brought food." Faye was carrying a large bag that looked like a thermal container from home.
"You went home?"
Faye giggled, "No, I had them make it in Levi's name. They picked me up from the office and then brought me here."
Actually, they would have sent her food even without using Levi's name. Maybe she thought mentioning Levi worked better, or that the food would be better.
"Let's eat together then. Do you have anything to drink? If not, I'll go get something from the break room."
"Yes, yes, yes, fresh-squeezed orange juice."
Faye laid out the containers one by one on the coffee table. "Blair, I think I'm benefiting from Celestia's influence. This fresh-squeezed orange juice is a rare treat."
"Not really. Your brother likes it too. They buy tons of oranges at home every day."
We started eating. Faye kept smiling, and I guessed she must have something to tell me but hadn't figured out how to start yet.
"How's work going? Actually, you'd be more relaxed and comfortable staying home with Celestia. Since you're on break, you should really relax."
"Blair, after my birthday, I'll be an adult. I can't just do nothing, right?"
I suddenly thought of Levi's sister Cleo, who does nothing. She hasn't come around to bother me in a while, giving me the illusion that Levi is an only child.
"Cleo does nothing all day."
"She's not doing nothing - she's looking for trouble. My aunt actually mentioned to me that she used to not want to take care of her kids and would always dump them on you."
I smiled. "Guess why she doesn't need me to watch them anymore?"
"Why?"
"Because last time I just refused her directly."
Faye gave a thumbs-up. "Smart move."
"If you don't learn to say no, you'll just drain yourself. Once I figured that out, everything got easier."
Come to think of it, after my relationship with Levi cooled down, I had a lot less unnecessary trouble.
Faye looked around, then glanced at the door.
She turned back and said quietly, "Blair, I discovered a huge secret."
"What is it? Why so dramatic?"
"Jessa's mom, that Arabella - she's dating a young man." Faye's eyes were determined, not like she was lying.
"How do you know?"
Faye swallowed and continued, "Remember how she bullied me? I've been pretty upset about it. So I told a friend of mine, and since he had nothing to do lately, he followed her for a few days."
"Following her? That's not really appropriate..."
"I know it's not good, but I was so mad. Last time, she insisted I put Jessa up to stealing. I just can't let it go when I think about it."
Still young and hot-headed. I hadn't expected Faye to pay such close attention to Arabella that she'd discover her affair with someone else.
If this had happened before, I definitely would have let Chase know - it would be his comeuppance. But now I don't care anymore. After all, the Greer family has nothing to do with me anymore.
"Blair, she doesn't look like the type who would hook up with young men. I guess you really can't judge a book by its cover." Faye was still too young to understand that people's nature is hard to change.
The fact that Arabella got together with Chase in the first place shows that a woman like her, so fickle, probably had something going on with other men, too.
"Just pretend you don't know about this. Better to avoid trouble."
I told Faye not to spread it around, not to tell anyone. Arabella isn't easy to deal with, and Faye couldn't handle her.
"Blair, I even got evidence on camera. Since Jessa treated you so badly, why don't we tell Levi? Let him know that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree - if Arabella's character is like this, Jessa can't be much better."
"Absolutely not."
I put down my utensils and told her seriously, "Whether Jessa is good or bad, Levi can judge for himself. If you tell Levi these things and he cares about Jessa, he'll just think you're stirring up trouble. It'll affect your relationship."
"I'm not scared. Levi's not an idiot. Can't he see that Jessa's not good to you?"
"Then why do you think he still helps her and indulges her?"
Faye was speechless. "Blair, Levi really is... I don't even want to talk about him. Can't he see that Jessa is such an angelic bitch?"
I smiled bitterly. "Haven't you heard that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?"
"She's a homewrecker who broke up someone else's family, and she did it on purpose. It's disgusting." Had Faye's disgust for Jessa reached this level?
"Just eat your food. Let's drop this matter here. Don't tell anyone else, especially not your brother. Don't let him blame you without getting the facts straight."
If emotional entanglements could be resolved cleanly and decisively, Levi wouldn't keep being so wishy-washy. If it weren't for old feelings, Levi wouldn't be so unable to tell right from wrong despite Jessa hurting me again and again.
"Blair, I found out some things about your past a few days ago. Jessa's dad is your real dad, right? So this Arabella is like your stepmother."
"Faye, they have nothing to do with me. Don't mention them in front of me anymore. And you should stay away from them, too. Keep your distance."
"Got it."
I'm not someone who looks for trouble, and I haven't truly let go of the past. But if I can't let go, it'll be hard for me to move forward. My mother would definitely want me to look ahead, not back.
As for Arabella - she was keeping a man on the side. No wonder she never had enough money!