Chapter 347 Set Up

Upon hearing that, Nathael’s stern face softened with a slight smile.

Maggie peeled her sugar figurine and held it out to him, saying, “Have this one. Don’t eat me.”

They watched TV together while munching on sugar figurines, but somehow, they ended up in bed later.

On the coffee table in the living room, there were still two uneaten sugar figurines lying side by side. As time passed, they slowly melted together, becoming indistinguishable from each other.

The day before the university joint competition, early in the morning.

Sierra got up early and got ready, then headed out to Ivan’s school.

After Ivan gained some recognition, he started his piano training school. It had quite a few teachers, including himself. However, the students there were mostly from affluent backgrounds.

Whenever Sierra practised the piano, she did it either at home or at Ivan’s place.

With the final day of the competition looming tomorrow, Sierra felt unexpectedly nervous. She knew she had to find Ivan to squeeze in some last-minute practice before the finals.

Sierra arrived a bit earlier and had already played through the piece she got from Maggie twice when Ivan finally walked in.

“Why are you late?” Sierra asked, a little annoyed.

Ivan replied, “Got held up with some stuff. Not bad, but try to put more emotion into it and make it flow smoother. Then it’ll be perfect.”

Sierra didn’t dwell on his advice much, only catching the “not bad” part. Her face immediately lit up with joy. “Really? Do you think I have a shot at winning the championship?”

“Hard to say about the championship, but with your grandpa backing you and if you perform like usual, you’ve got a good chance,” Ivan said softly, knowing just how to calm Sierra’s nerves after all these years.

Upon hearing this, Sierra’s eyes gleamed with a hint of malice.

“I’m going to win this time! I have to beat that b*tch Maggie and make her realise how formidable I am!”

Sierra knew that she had to win this time, whether it was for her grandfather, herself, the Camerons, or to prove something to her father.

“Practice a few more times, and I’ll help you find any issues,” Ivan patiently said, not seeing any problem with Sierra secretly using Maggie’s composition that Master Pierce and Ivan had helped Sierra revise before.

In this world, only winners had the right to speak. Who wouldn’t resort to any means necessary to climb to the top? Maggie couldn’t protect her composition despite being able to write such a good piece. It was her incompetence; she couldn’t blame anyone else!

“Mr. Reed, Ms. Cameron, your lunch is ready,” a school staff member announced as they knocked and entered.

“Let’s grab some lunch first, Sierra. I’ve arranged for a judge to come over in the afternoon to give you some feedback,” Ivan said casually, but Sierra caught the hint.

Her eyes sparkled as she stood up and exclaimed, “You convinced another judge for me?”

Ivan replied, “He hasn’t agreed to take the money yet. He wants to see how you’re doing first. He’ll only agree if he thinks you’re good enough.”

Literati must protect their reputation.

Though Ivan didn’t mention it, Sierra’s last performance, which he had to work hard to secure by bribing the judges, had left him quite frustrated.

After all, even if someone wants to support you, you still need to have the talent to back it up. You can’t expect to be pushed forward when everyone can see you’re not up to par.

Just like last time, those judges they bribed turned against them, causing Ivan and Master Pierce to apologise for quite a long time and have to spend more money again to fix the situation before things settled down.

Of course, Sierra only has a general idea about this and wouldn’t know all the details.

“I’ll make sure to perform well. Thanks, Ivan. If it weren’t for you all these years, I wouldn’t know what to do,” Sierra said with genuine appreciation.

Ivan smiled and reassured her. Then, they had lunch together in the music room.

But it didn’t take long for Sierra to start feeling hot. Her cheeks flushed slightly. She glanced at the man across from her and noticed that Ivan seemed to be feeling the same way.

She couldn’t help but swallow hard, her mouth feeling dry.

“Ivan, do you feel hot?” Sierra couldn’t resist asking.

Ivan had already taken off his jacket, sensing that something was wrong. “Is the air conditioning acting up? I’ll go check it out.”

Sierra closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again, still looking at Ivan’s face.

Ivan was about fifteen or sixteen years older than her. When she first started learning piano, he was only in his twenties, at the peak of his good looks.

No matter what, Sierra had to learn, so she naturally wanted to choose a teacher she found pleasing.

More than ten years had passed, and Ivan was almost forty, no longer young, but it couldn’t be denied that his appearance was still outstanding.

However, despite his outstanding looks, Ivan didn’t appeal to Sierra to the extent of stirring her heart. Moreover, over these years, Ivan had indeed aged. How could he compare to those handsome young men? It was hard for her to develop any feelings for him.

But at that moment, her gaze fell on Ivan’s lips, and she inexplicably wanted to lean in and taste them. Even the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes seemed to become sexy.

Ivan wasn’t feeling much better either. He was somewhat okay when he hadn’t moved, but as soon as he did, it felt like something had triggered him. His whole body felt overheated, and he was sweating profusely as if he had just been pulled out of water.

“Ivan…” Sierra reached out and grabbed him, feeling his skin scorching hot.

Ivan’s gaze fell on Sierra, his breath becoming erratic.

He knew very well that he must have been set up, but at that moment, his body seemed to be out of control, filled with an urgent desire.

Sierra, having been pampered since childhood, lacked self-restraint. In no time, she had wrapped herself around Ivan.

Ivan still had some rationality left. He forcefully pushed her away and stumbled towards the door, trying to open it.

But it seemed like everything was part of a carefully laid trap, as the door was locked from the outside.

Ivan pulled at the door with all his might, but it remained firmly shut.

“Open the door! Someone, open the door!” Ivan pounded on the door, sweat dripping down his body.

“What do you mean, Ivan? It’s your good fortune that I’m interested in you, yet you dare to push me away!” Sierra caught up to him, her eyes filled with rage.

Ivan turned around, his breath unsteady. The moment their skins touched, all boundaries were instinctively broken.

His mind plunged into confusion. Without thinking, he reached out and pulled her close, leaning down to kiss her lips.

When he was younger, he did think about marrying Sierra, but she was too young back then, and he couldn’t wait around. So, he ended up marrying someone with a respectable background. With the backing of both the Camerons and the Pierces, he had been doing pretty well all these years.

But his wife just couldn’t match up to Sierra’s youthfulness. Who wouldn’t prefer a young and beautiful body?