Chapter 50 Deep Love
She looked at him gently and said, "Hey, Mr. Winston." As she spoke, she extended her hand towards him. Despite the obvious disdain in his eyes, she had to pretend she had never known him.
Jack glanced down at her outstretched hand, scoffing. "Emily, what kind of game are you playing now?" He let her hand hang in the air, showing no intention of shaking it.
"Mr. Winston, you’ve got the wrong person. I’m not Emily, I’m Alison. This is our first meeting." She tried to keep her voice steady, facing him calmly. The orange evening gown she wore made her look even taller, and the guests below kept snapping photos of her and Jack.
She had nowhere to hide, not even the option to bury her head in the sand.
Jack said coldly, "Emily, stop pretending. Even if you change your hairstyle and name, I can still recognize you." He showed no mercy, turning to his brother Aidan, "If you expect me to go on a trip to Paris with this woman, forget it. The thought alone makes me sick." He humiliated her in front of everyone without a second thought.
Her heart ached terribly. He truly hated her to the core.
But maybe, deep down, the one he truly loved was always Emily. The tenderness he had shown her before was just because he mistook her for Emily.
Everything was a lie. Nothing was real.
At that moment, she felt like she could hardly breathe. Thankfully, she hadn’t let the kids come to find their dad, or they would have been humiliated by Jack.
She couldn’t back down, nor could she admit she was the fake Emily who had lived with him in the apartment for three months.
She had to find the real culprit, the one who had framed her.
So, she forced a smile and said softly in German, "Mr. Winston, do I look like a woman you used to know?"
Jack was taken aback. "You... you speak German?"
Alison tried to hide her inner pain, smiling as naturally as possible, and replied in French, "Why, can’t I speak German?"
"When did you learn French and German?" Jack’s expression changed, his look of disdain turning into disbelief.
Alison knew she had won this gamble. She believed she could make Jack believe she wasn’t the woman from back then. Calmly, she continued in Japanese, "I majored in German in college and also learned French and Japanese. If you don’t believe me, Mr. Winston, we can find a place to chat in German, French, or Japanese after the press conference."
Jack stared at her, the resentment in his eyes gradually fading. Under everyone’s gaze, he finally extended his long hand and shook her small hand.
This handshake conveyed his warmth and presence. Alison tried hard not to tremble, not wanting Jack to see any flaws. The old Emily didn’t know German, French, or Japanese.
This was the difference between her and Emily, and the reason Jack believed her.
Jack held her hand gently, looking at her for a full three seconds before slowly letting go.
At this moment, the host announced the end of the press conference.
Aidan walked over, smiling at them. "Jack, if you don’t want to go on a free trip to Paris, give the lucky card to me. Don’t waste it."
Lillian, Jack’s companion, also approached as the crowd dispersed. She said naturally, "Jack, if you don’t want to go, we can find a closer place to relax. You’re so busy with work."
"Great, I totally agree. That way, Jack’s good luck will be mine." Aidan grinned, looking like he had scored a big win. "Grandpa, thanks for drawing Jack’s name, but I’ll gladly take his luck." He reached out to Jack. "Hand it over."
"What are you talking about?" Jack asked, confused.
"The lucky card. Didn’t the host just give it to you?"
Jack looked down at the card in his hand. It turned out the staff had handed it to him when he saw Alison, and he had taken it without thinking. Now he saw it was a lucky card. He looked at Alexander, puzzled by what the chairman was up to. If it was to get him back to YD, that was never going to happen.
He would never return to YD.
To avoid being tricked, he handed the card to Aidan. Just as he was about to let go, Lillian suddenly said to Alison, "Miss Fairchild, your evening gown is stunning. I feel like I’ve seen it somewhere before." She frowned. "But I can’t remember where."
Alison knew it was at Chanel, but she had been hiding in Aidan’s arms at the time.
If she had known she couldn’t avoid this, she wouldn’t have pretended to hurt her ankle yesterday.
Lillian’s question made Jack remember something. His excellent memory quickly recalled that Alison was the woman Aidan had carried while trying on evening gowns yesterday. He took back the lucky card he was about to hand over, looking at Aidan mischievously. "Brother, how does it feel to take something from someone else?"
"Jack, what do you mean by ‘taking something from someone else’? Anything we brothers fancy is automatically ours..."
"Aidan!" Alexander suddenly interrupted sternly. He was exasperated. How could both his grandsons be such playboys, changing women almost daily?
"Grandpa, what’s wrong?" Aidan asked innocently, not realizing he had said anything wrong.
"You’re the CEO of YD. Speak with some decorum. Stop acting like a playboy all the time. Show some progress!" Alexander was so angry he tapped his cane on the floor. If it weren’t for her, he wouldn’t have bothered coming to this press conference.
"Grandpa, don’t say that. Apart from real estate, which of YD’s other industries hasn’t doubled since you managed them three years ago? You can’t blame me for the real estate sector. It’s because Isabella gave our family such a treasure in Jack. With him around, how could I compete?"
In reality, he couldn’t compete with Jack. Jack was far superior in design and styling. Aidan wasn’t an architecture major; he studied trade. How could that be his fault?
Besides, they were brothers. There was no need to compete for the real estate pie. But a foreign client specifically requested Jack to design a villa, repeatedly emphasizing they only wanted Jack. So, he had to bite the bullet and invite Jack to the press conference, even bringing the chairman to help. The client had a deep friendship with the chairman, who kept urging him to find a way to get Jack to agree.
This way, he could test Jack and Alison’s relationship and have a chance to get Jack to agree to go to France. Once they met the client, everything would be easier.
Alexander looked at Jack, disappointed. "You two, get rid of those unreliable girlfriends and find good matches to marry. Continue the Winston family’s legacy."
"Grandpa, leave that to Jack. I’m the older brother; I’ll let him go first." Aidan said.
"Aidan, traditionally, the older brother marries first, then the younger follows. You don’t need to let me go first. Set an example yourself." Jack retorted.
The brothers were at odds, while Alison held the free trip to Paris lucky card like a hot potato, unable to get rid of it. "Lillian, why don’t you take this card? You and Mr. Winston going to Paris would be a lovely story."
This so-called luck was clearly Aidan’s arrangement. She wouldn’t fall for it.
Lillian happily took the card. "Thank you, Miss Fairchild." She was about to put it in her bag.
Jack suddenly said, "Wait, give it to me."
"Jack, are you going to keep it safe for me?" Lillian asked, excitedly handing the card to Jack.
Jack took the card gracefully, saying slowly, "No, I’m going to give it back to Miss Fairchild. Since this card represents good luck, neither of us has a reason to refuse YD’s kindness. But brother, don’t regret it."
"Jack, what do you mean? And what did you mean by ‘taking something from someone else’? What’s going on?" Aidan was completely confused.