At noon, Grace arrived at the NextEra Corp headquarters in a rare edition luxury car, demanding to et CEO Aiden Handrix.
She didn’t even have Justin’s private contact number. She had been given only one number, which connected her to his personal assistant, Noah. It was infuriating—but she had to bear it.
When Justin was inford that the daughter of businessman Collin Hartz was there to et him, he denied the request.
She was told the CEO was busy and that she could book an appointnt only if it was for business purposes.
"Do you know who you’re talking to?" Grace snapped. "I’m the daughter of the Hartz family—the richest business family in the Eastern country! You dare ask to wait for an appointnt?"
"Ms. Hartz, I’m sorry," the security head, Trevor, responded, calm and firm, "but here, we follow our boss’s orders. At this hour, he’s unavailable to attend to any guests."
Grace clenched her fists as she stood from the reception couch. "I’m his fiancée—your CEO’s soon-to-be wife. And you’re asking to book an appointnt?"
Trevor, completely unaffected by her anger, replied, "Ms. Grace, Mr. Handrix is already married. We know our lady boss very well—Mrs. Natalie Handrix. There’s no way Mr. Handrix has any other fiancée."
Trying to control her temper, she shifted her tone. "Then get today’s appointnt."
"Ms. Hartz, all appointnts are fully booked for the next two weeks. It’s not possible today. But I can ask the secretary to book a slot two weeks from now," Trevor replied professionally.
Grace wasn’t stupid—she could clearly see what was happening. She knew she wasn’t going to et Aiden anymore.
Grinding her teeth, she turned to leave. Just as she stepped out of the building and walked toward her car, another vehicle passed by—and she happened to catch a glimpse of a familiar figure inside.
Aiden? She recognized Justin instantly. They said he was busy in etings, and here he is... Rage flared within her. I know how to make him do what I want.
Grace got into her car and ordered the driver, "To the Riverdale Estate."
-----
Grace arrived at the Riverdale estate, where she t Aeldric.
"Mr. Riverdale, I was wondering if I could take ira with for wedding dress shopping," Grace proposed. "That way, I can get to know her well—since we’re going to be family soon."
"She is not adept at these things, as she’s been kept away from the world," Aeldric replied.
"I understand, Mr. Riverdale, but trust —I’ll take good care of her, and maybe help her learn a few things," Grace said, refusing to back down. "Since Aiden is busy and refused to co with , I could at least have his sister accompany ."
That last line struck Aeldric—his grandson was denying the woman he had chosen for him. He looked at Kawin. "Call ira here."
ira soon arrived in the drawing room, with Lana following close behind.
"You’re going with Grace to help her with the wedding preparations," Aeldric said as if delivering a decree she had no right to refuse. "She’s your sister-in-law, so you’d better behave and help her."
The poor girl could only nod. There was no way she would speak up in front of this terrifying old man.
"Let’s go," Grace said, smiling pleasantly at ira, though the younger girl couldn’t shake the bad feeling in her chest.
Lana began to follow them, only to hear Grace ask, "Who are you?"
"I’m Ms. ira’s personal caretaker and bodyguard," Lana answered, holding Grace’s gaze steadily.
"Oh! You don’t need to follow us," Grace said with a dismissive wave.
"I’ve been ordered to remain with Ms. ira at all tis. I must follow those orders," Lana replied firmly.
"As the soon-to-be mistress of this house, I’m ordering you not to follow us," Grace snapped.
"I take orders only from Mr. Aiden," Lana responded coldly and without hesitation.
Grace looked at Aeldric. "Mr. Riverdale, this woman—"
"She is following my grandson’s orders," Aeldric cut her off, making his stance clear. He was siding with his blood.
Grace had no choice but to give in and allow Lana to accompany them.
Aeldric smirked as he watched Grace leave. This stubborn rich heiress thinks that just because she’s marrying into this family, she’ll be queen here and can order anyone around in the Riverdale estate. She’s nothing but a tool to connect two families. She should learn to obey.
-----
On the way to the wedding dress showroom, Grace sent a ssage to Noah’s number:
[Let my fiancé know that I’m taking his sister with for shopping. I’ll make sure to buy her beautiful dresses, but I’ll need his help to choose them. I’ll send so samples—make sure to let know his opinion.]
She smirked and put her phone aside. If you truly care for your sister, you’ll co.
------
Justin was in his office when Noah inford him of the situation.
"Is Lana with her?" Justin asked.
"Yes, Mr. Harper."
"Keep in touch with her," Justin ordered. "Send a few of our strong bodyguards there—just in case."
A while later, another ssage ca from Grace. This ti, she had sent pictures of branded dresses—most of them provocative and far too exposing for a young, sheltered girl like ira.
One image showed a short, glittery white dress with thin straps. It barely reached the mannequin’s thighs, and the neckline was dangerously low.
Below the picture, Grace had written:
[I think this will suit ira really well. I’ll have her try this one. I’ll send you a picture of our sweet ira wearing it so you can see for yourself.]
Justin’s gaze darkened instantly as he stood up. Noah saw the change in his deanor and didn’t wait for further instructions—he had already asked the driver to keep the car ready.
Justin arrived at the grand wedding dress showroom. He was led to the private trial area, filled with nurous bridal gowns and an elegant fitting zone, all of which had been booked exclusively by Grace.
The mont Justin stepped in, his gaze swept the space, searching for ira. He didn’t spare even a glance at Grace, who was lounging on a luxurious couch, sipping coffee and chatting with the designer.
Lana noticed him and quickly walked over.
"Where is ira?" he asked.
"She’s inside the trial room," Lana replied.
Grace stood up with a smile. "Oh, you’re here? Good. You can help pick out a dress for our wedding—and maybe one for yourself, too."
Justin didn’t respond. It was as if she didn’t exist. He turned to Lana. "Go get ira."
"She’s in the middle of changing. She was excited to try sothing new," Grace interjected. "Are you really going to upset your sister? Let her try it on first—then you can decide what’s good for her."
Just then, a staff mber stepped out of the trial room and said, "Ms. Grace, she’s ready."
With that, she pulled back the curtain. "Ms. ira, you can co out."
Justin looked up just in ti to see ira stepping out from behind the curtain—and his anger imdiately surged to see what she was wearing.
"Brother..." ira gasped, clearly shocked to see him. She quickly moved to hide behind the staff mber to hide herself, utterly embarrassed to face him.
Reviews
All reviews (0)