"I can afford it. Just take it without worry." Clark patted her head, his voice even softer. "I owe you an apology, Serena. Sothing ca up last night, and I had to leave hastily. I didn’t an to stand you up. You’ve got to understand—I never intended to leave you behind to go out with Rose."
"Clark, it’s not a big deal! I’m sure you and Rose had sothing important to take care of. I’m 18, not a clueless 8-year-old! You’re making it sound like I’m petty."
"Of course not. My sister is the most understanding. You bought so many gifts for the family in one go. How does that make you petty?" Clark smiled warmly, then asked, "Is your vacation over? Are you going back to school?"
"Yes, this afternoon."
In fact, Serena was feeling a bit sad.
She didn’t want to leave her ho and her family.
But she wasn’t like Rosemary, the perfect student who could skip school and wander around.
She feared that the bond she had painstakingly built with her family over the past few days would fade over ti.
"I’ve got so other things to take care of in the next few days, Serena. Once I’m done, I’ll take you and Rose out. You can think about where you’d like to go and give so suggestions," Clark said gently.
"Okay."
The thought of Clark taking her out made her heart flutter with joy.
"Clark, I have to go back to school this afternoon. Honestly, I’m going to miss you. Once I leave, it’ll be a few days before I can co ho."
She held onto Clark like a little girl, holding him tight.
The light in Clark’s eyes softened even more. "No matter when you co back, I’ll always be here. We have plenty of ti together. No need to rush."
Clark looked at the girl in front of him and swore, "Whenever I’m free, I’ll be there for you—wherever you want to go."
"Clark, you’re the best." Serena bead a sugar-sweet smile.
"Martha, when you pack Serena’s bags later, ensure you include plenty of snacks. Our Serena’s quite the foodie."
"That’s not true!" Serena pouted.
After their walk, Serena returned to her room, and Martha found an excuse to join her.
"Martha, do you think it’s wrong of to feel this way? Clark clearly sees as his sister, but I..."
Serena didn’t finish her sentence before Martha cut her off.
"He might see you as a sister now, but that may change in the future!"
Martha’s words were like a dagger piercing through the warm bubble that had just ford in Serena’s heart.
"Didn’t I tell you? As ti goes on, they’ll grow closer to Rosemary, and their bond will strengthen. But you’ll feel more and more like an outsider. You saw what happened today—and even the servants don’t respect you!"
Serena felt a twinge of pain. "But I still feel bad about deceiving Clark. I only spent $1.3 million, but you said it was $2.6 million."
That was double the amount!
"Clark’s not short of money. You saw how he gave you $3 million without batting an eye. You can buy so many things with that much in your account!"
The best houses in Sumrfield cost about $20,000 per square foot. With $3 million, she could buy a large house. It might not be as grand as the Reflections Villa, but it would be her own property—under her own na.
"If every brother gifted you three million bucks every now and then, along with the fortune from the old lady, how many houses you reckon you could buy in a year? Who needs love when you can have property?"
Serena looked down, remaining silent.
"Serena, next thing we should do..." Martha whispered in Serena’s ear, plotting sothing.
anwhile
At Villa Cascada, Rosemary arrived. Jack reported, "Boss, those guys from last night woke up, but they’re not spilling a word. Tough nuts to crack."
"No worries, no rush. I need to visit the lab first."
Watching her leave, Jack thought, How cool she looked when she’s in business mode!
Rosemary got back to analyzing the powder from yesterday, feeling like she’d missed sothing. As she was busy, her phone vibrated.
It was a call from Crystal Temple.
"Crystal?" Rosemary paused, puzzled.
"Rosemary dear, where are you? I’m at Reflections Villa!" Crystal’s voice ca over the phone. "The servants said you left early this morning. Are you out having fun? Can I join you?"
"I’m out with a friend."
"Oh, alright. When will you be back?"
"Probably not anyti soon."
"Clark is also not at ho. Can you finish your work by lunchti?
We could have lunch together. I heard Sumrfield has this beautiful cave restaurant that everyone’s raving about."
Crystal wanted to bond with her future sister-in-law, but also because she found Rosemary’s cold deanor comfortable.
However, Rosemary politely declined the invitation after realizing Clark’s intentions, saying, "Maybe not at lunch. I’ll treat you another day."
"Oh, I can’t let you pay! Let’s plan another day to check out that restaurant, and I won’t bother you and your friend anymore."
Crystal chatted a bit more before hanging up.
Looking at the beautiful garden of Reflections Villa, Crystal felt a bit bored since Mr. Collins and Mrs. Collins were not at ho.
At that mont, Serena called out softly, "Crystal?"
"Serena dear," Crystal greeted her with a friendly smile.
"Are you here for Clark? He’s out and there’s no one else at ho.
Would you like to go out for a bit, maybe grab lunch?"
Serena thought it would be good to bond with Crystal in case she beca her future sister-in-law. Having one more friend was always better than having one more enemy.
But Crystal laughed, "Maybe another day. I just rembered I have sothing to take care of. I’ll be going now."
Serena felt awkward but still managed to smile. "Alright, we’ll plan for another day."
After Crystal left, Martha couldn’t help but comnt, "She clearly doesn’t want to bond with you. She was all over Rosemary earlier and even asked her out for lunch. But the mont you ntion it, she suddenly has sothing to do. Who is she fooling?"
Serena didn’t expect Crystal to be so calculating—only wanting to bond with Rosemary.
"After all, you’re just an adopted daughter," Martha added fuel to the fire. "Serena, do you see the difference now?"
The biological child was always favored.
An adopted child was still an outsider in this family.
Back at Villa Cascada, Rosemary’s experint was still not completed.
Hearing that Clark had arrived, she turned to see a tall figure standing in the doorway.
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