Chapter 16: An Interest in Her Past

Before Ophelia left, she went to the door of Winford’s study on purpose. “Honey, I’m going.”

He nodded. “OK.”

But she didn’t move. He looked up from his desk. “What is it?”

“Why don’t you call me Lia today?” She pressed her body against the doorframe and looked at him expectantly. Then, she continued shyly, “I like you calling me that.”

His heart skipped a beat. He stared at her for a little while and then said, “Lia.” He didn’t have the heart to refuse her.

She cracked a smile. “Goodbye!” Then, she lifted her dress and ran away joyfully. He gazed at her back with mixed feelings until she disappeared from view. But he couldn’t focus on the files in front of him anymore.

“Go look into how she was doing in the Greene’s house,” he murmured to himself. He had an interest in her past now.

Graham said, “Yes, Mr. Pruitt.”

Chapter 16: An Interest in Her Past

In Granroy Hotel, the place where Erin’s birthday party was held, many people were already present, though the party hadn’t started. Bessie looked stunning, surrounded by several rich girls her age.

“Hasn’t Ophelia come?” one girl asked.

“Is she really gonna dress like that?” another chimed in.

“That dress is weirder than what she wore last time. Just imagining it disgusts me,” a third girl declared.

“She’ll disgrace your family, Bessie,” another added. They all sounded disdainful.

The reason for the conversation was that Bessie had sent a photo in their group chat, claiming it was the dress Ophelia was wearing to the party. Bessie was sure Ophelia would still wear the dress she’d arranged, so she’d spread the word first. Hearing the gossip about Ophelia gave Bessie a secret satisfaction.

“It’s your mom’s birthday party. Why would you let her do that?” one girl asked Bessie.

Bessie revealed a bitter smile. “I tried to stop her, but she didn’t listen…”

“Then you shouldn’t have let her come. She’ll ruin your mom’s birthday party!”

Watching the girls’ disgusted looks, Bessie pulled a subtle, smug smile. Then, she sighed. “Ophelia is my sister. How can we stop her from coming to my mom’s birthday party? I just hope you don’t mind what she’ll cause.”

The girls around her felt angry on her behalf. “She’s just your stepsister. Don’t be too nice to her. She doesn’t deserve to be on the same occasion as us. You want to keep her at a distance.”

They forgot that Ophelia was Samuel’s biological daughter and that Bessie was only his stepdaughter. Technically, Bessie was the one who didn’t deserve to be there. But Bessie seemed to forget that too, revealing only a look of resignation.

Suddenly, a person ran over. “Ophelia is coming!”

The girls’ eyes lit up. They couldn’t wait to see how ridiculous Ophelia looked.

“She’s coming! I already feel disgusted.”

“I should have brought a blindfold.”

“I wonder what kind of makeup she’s wearing.”

“It must be awful. Think about her former dramatic makeup. My goodness. Why would she be doing this to us?”

“She shouldn’t be here. She’ll be welcome in a circus.”

They were lost in the discussion and didn’t notice that the one who had told them Ophelia was coming looked a little weird.

“Wait…” the person said. “Ophelia looks different than before.”

Another person scoffed, “How? Does she look more horrible?”

The others all burst into laughter and looked at the door. Suddenly, they stopped laughing, and their eyes widened. The whole party hall quieted down, and everyone gazed at the door. A young girl walked in with grace. Her eyes were twinkling, and her face was gorgeous. She was wearing a blue evening dress with diamonds on the hemline. While she was walking, the dress looked like the flowing Milky Way.

Winford hired someone to make the dress for Ophelia, and a professional team did her hair and makeup. Why would she wear the dress Bessie had given her? Winford was her husband, so she could afford an evening dress.

“Am… am I hallucinating?” someone mumbled in surprise. “She looks like Ophelia…”

“Is Ophelia so beautiful? I can still remember how awful she looked with those unsightly clothes and makeup…”

Bessie’s smile froze. She dug her fingernails into her palms so hard that she almost broke them. She didn’t understand why Ophelia would look like that. Noticing many people wearing amazed looks, Bessie gnashed her teeth.

Beside Erin, someone said in surprise, “Your stepdaughter is stunning. Why didn’t she dress like this?”

Erin thought with displeasure, “Again. Ophelia is out of my control again.”

“Is it just a coincidence? Or is there someone teaching her in Sunset Vista?”

Instead of showing her true feelings, Erin smiled with resignation, “Who knows what she’s thinking? She liked to dress like that before. I couldn’t stop her.”

Beside Bessie, someone asked, “What’s going on? Bessie, didn’t you say that Ophelia would wear the dress in the photo?”

The rich girls beside Bessie all turned to her. Bessie managed a weak smile. “I have no idea. I’ll go ask her…”

Then, she rushed to Ophelia and whispered anxiously, “Ophelia, why aren’t you wearing the dress I prepared for you?”

While enjoying people’s gazes, Ophelia thought dismissively, “Because I don’t want to be a joke.” Then, she looked up casually, lifted her dress, and turned in a circle. “Don’t I look good now?”

Bessie noticed Ophelia was the center of attention, but still responded with a hollow smile. “This dress is beautiful, but in an ordinary way. The dresses you wore before are special and suit you more.” Bessie lied right to Ophelia’s face.

Ophelia glanced at her and smiled. “Bessie, do you love that dress?”

To persuade Ophelia to put it on, Bessie answered subconsciously, “Of course…”

“Good. I brought it over. Why don’t you wear it yourself?” Ophelia said, gesturing. The next second, someone walked in while holding the dress. It was on a hanger, making it easier to show everyone how ugly it was. Some people even made disgusted sounds and wished they hadn’t seen it.

Bessie had a bad feeling. When she was about to say something, Ophelia’s pleasant voice sounded, “Bessie, you said you love it, so I brought it over. You can put it on.”

“Don’t prepare dresses like this for me again. You and Erin think this style is beautiful, but I don’t.”

“You insisted on me putting it on, so I could only do as you asked. But I don’t want to wear anything like this anymore. My husband thinks it’s ugly too.” She didn’t lower her voice while complaining. Everyone else paused before turning to Bessie and Erin with an unfathomable expression.

Ophelia was a joke before. In everyone’s impression, she had a terrible dress sense. No one her age in the circle wanted to make friends with her. But according to what Ophelia had just said, the culprits were Erin and Bessie.