Chapter 140
Natalie put the gift box and the bucket in the hallway, turned around and said, “Rose had been getting ready for the piano competition lately and didn’t have time to chat with me.”
“But she still remembered you,” Natalie said, holding Paloma’s arm closely, “but she did tell me to come see you and chat with you to keep you company!”
Paloma chuckled, “She really went to a lot of trouble.”
Natalie looked up and glanced at Alarieka and Jaylene outside the yard. Her eyes flickered, and a hint of malice flashed through them.
“Ms. Wyatt, why didn’t you let them in?”
Paloma still had that gentle smile on her face, but most of the warmth in her eyes was gone.
She walked back again, put her hand on the door frame, and said, “I’ve always liked peace and quiet. You guys should go back. No need to hang around here and make things complicated.”
Alarieka immediately said, “Sorry, we didn’t mean to offend you, I just really needed help.”
Paloma wasn’t an unreasonable person, but the two people in front of her had never met her before and just started off by asking for help. That was really rude and honestly kind of offensive.
But seeing Alarieka so eager, she did get a bit interested.
“Why not tell me?”
Alarieka’s eyes lit up, holding back the hope in her heart: “Ms. Wyatt, the recent Mcintosh Piano Competition…”
Who knew, Paloma’s brows twitched, she frowned hard, and all the gentleness in her eyes disappeared in a flash. She looked terribly pale.
“Mcintosh Piano Competition? You guys were contestants? There was no way I was gonna give you special treatment.”
Alarieka felt a jolt in her heart. “No, I mean…”
Paloma sneered and said, “You guys weren’t the first contestants to come to me. I’ve said it so many times already, it’s just not possible. Don’t come to me looking for shortcuts.”
“Not seeing you off!”
Creak–bang!
Paloma was in the yard and shut the door completely.
Alarieka looked annoyed, raised her hand, and patted her own head.
Jaylene walked over, looking pretty pale too: “How do you even know Natalie and them? This is trouble.”
At first, Natalie thought it was funny to see Alarieka begging Paloma so hard. If Paloma hadn’t been there, she definitely would’ve made fun of her.
She and Roschelle were best friends, close for years. In her eyes, Roschelle was way more than just pretty, smart, and from a good family. She was independent, both in mind and money, a real leading lady. She had her own career and tons of fans. Even if she cared about Kieran, she wouldn’t stop moving forward for him.
She was a real leading lady, truly deserved everyone’s love and care.
The still–wet–behind–the–ears Alarieka stood in front of Roschelle. That was something you couldn’t even look at, let alone compare.
So, when she saw Alarieka get kicked out by Roschelle’s precious Paloma like that, she was pretty smug.
But she heard what Paloma said again.
Paloma said it was impossible for her to pull strings.
The smile on Natalie’s face was almost about to fall.
What did it mean?
Was Alarieka going to join the Mcintosh Piano Competition too?
Wasn’t it really like a ghost that just wouldn’t go away?
She looked at Paloma coming back, her smile paused for a moment, then went back to normal: “Ms. Wyatt, what are they here for?”
Paloma shook her head, her face darkened: “Every year there were some contestants who tried to take shortcuts with me.”
She gave a cold laugh, “If they put as much effort into practicing piano as they did scheming here, they wouldn’t have to come to me for shortcuts.”
A hint of disdain flashed in Natalie’s eyes, and she immediately said, “Yeah, some contestants just don’t know how to put real thought into the piano.”
“Rose was pregnant, and she still went out early and came back late every day to practice piano. It was really tough.”
When Roschelle was mentioned, Paloma smiled and said, “Yeah, Roschelle is hardworking and talented.”