Chapter 296
At the mention of Sienna, Lucia and the girl beside her both froze for a second. Seriously, everyone in Vallaris knew about Sienna.
Sienna was basically the queen bee of Vallaris, ruling the business world before she was even out of her twenties. Besides, she had the Bayer family in the politics field backing her.
Word on the street was that the Bayer family’s second son, Jacob, had just made a comeback, and now everyone was lining up to suck up to that big-shot officer.
No one ever questioned Sienna’s skills or her methods. She’d vanished for ten years, but in just half a year after her return, she’d already bankrupted a ton of companies in Vallaris.
She even uprooted the Winslow and Grant families; no one was safe. And now, Hart Corporation was right up there with the four great families, easily the last people you’d ever want to cross.
When Levi saw Julian freeze, he knew he’d hit the mark. Julian had been secretly crushing on Sienna all this time. Honestly, Levi had to admit that even he was stunned the first time he saw Sienna.
But Sienna had been overseas for ten years. She probably already has a husband and kids by now.
“Julian,” Levi called out, “what’s so bad about Miss Clare? So what if she’s been divorced three times and has three kids? She’s not looking down on you, but you’re the one turning your nose up at her.
“And Miss Sienna? She already has a family of her own. If you’re thinking about her, aren’t you just throwing yourself at her to be the lover? If word gets out, what will people say about the Ford family…”
Before Levi could finish, Lucia banged the table hard, snorting with rage.
“Shameless,” she shouted. “Julian, if you dare do anything to wreck someone else’s marriage, how will the Ford family ever hold our heads up?”
A stabbing pain shot through Julian’s heart, a bitter taste flooding his throat. He forced out, “We’re just friends.” With those words, he strode out without looking back.
The girl beside Lucia hurried after Julian. “Julian, wait for me.” Seren hurried to catch up with Julian.
Julian turned back. “What is it?”
“Julian, I know you don’t want to marry Miss Clare,” Seren said quickly. “I have an idea. Why don’t we just do a fake marriage? We’ll sign a contract, and when the time’s up, we’ll get divorced. Let me help you, okay?”
Seren was a relative from Bianca’s side of the family. Ever since Seren first met Julian, she’d had a crush on him.
But before Seren could confess, he disappeared. Now that he was finally back, his family was already trying to set him up with someone else. Luckily, he hadn’t agreed.
But with her suggestion, there was no way Julian would turn her down; he had absolutely no reason to refuse.
Julian gave her a long, serious look; his eyes soft and calm, but utterly cold, not a single ripple of emotion in them. It was like he was staring at a total stranger.
Seren’s hands were clenched in a pale-knuckled grip as she waited for his answer.
Julian’s brows drew together ever so slightly. “May I ask who you are?”
That one sentence hit harder than any insult. Seren was rooted to the spot, eyes wide in disbelief, as if she’d just been tossed from heaven straight into hell.
It was a feeling words couldn’t even begin to describe.
Even if there were no harsh words, the humiliation was everywhere, lingering in the air.
Seren was smart. She did her best to steady herself, forcing a brave smile onto her face. “Julian, don’t you remember? I’m Seren. We had dinner together before.”
Julian had absolutely no recollection of her. He replied politely, “Oh, Miss White. I have to turn down your suggestion. I don’t need your…”