Christina felt her heart skip a beat. She grasped Sharon’s hand and exclaimed, “Mom, what are you saying? You’ll always be young in my heart!”
As she spoke, she leaned her head on Sharon’s shoulder.
Sharon massaged her daughter’s shoulder and tamped down the guilt in her chest. Sometime later, she uttered meaningfully. “Take good care of that emerald pendant I gave you. It’s very important.”
“Is it? Isn’t it just a piece of emerald jewelry?” Christina asked while lifting the pendant around her neck for a closer look.
The pendant gleamed resplendently under the light. Anyone could tell that it was carved from the finest jade.
An inexplicable emotion flitted through Sharon’s gaze as she stared at the pendant. She repeated herself, “Yes, it’s very important. It’s proof of your identity. You need it to trace your heritage. When you have your own child next time, pass it on to them.”
And one day, when the pendant’s real owner returns for his possession, this will serve as the foundation for their
reunion.
Christina was puzzled by Sharon’s cryptic words. Trace my heritage?
She suddenly remembered Gideon’s words from the past.
What if I’m really not a child of the Steele family?
“Mom, are you hiding something from me?” questioned Christina curiously.
Sharon’s heart sank with dread. She hastily collected herself and feigned exhaustion. “I’m tired. Help me to my room, would you?”
Her acting was convincing enough. Christina dropped the topic and helped her mother to her room. She tucked a blanket around Sharon after the latter lay in bed.
“Good night, Mom.”
The next day, Christina spent a good amount of time dolling up for the fashion show.
She picked a pink knit set for the occasion. The midi skirt flattered her slim calves, and she completed the outfit with a pair of white Doc Martens. It was elegant and cheeky at the same time, and it accentuated her youthfulness.
She even put on some light makeup for the event. When she checked herself out in the mirror later, she smiled in satisfaction.
Christina checked the time and realized it was almost time to set off.
Meanwhile, Nathaniel remained in Hadley Corporation’s CEO’s office.
He had been busy visiting business partners or in and out of meetings since the morning.
He suddenly remembered his appointment with Christina in the evening and turned toward his assistant. “Cancel the rest of my meetings tonight.”
Sebastian briefly lifted his gaze from the documents he was poring over and replied, “Sure. I’ll cancel
them now.”
He pulled up Nathaniel’s schedule and spotted an important note. Cautiously, he said, “Mr. Hadley… I’m afraid we can’t skip one of the meetings”
Nathaniel frowned and shot his assistant a sharp stare.
Sebastian barely repressed his shudder and explained, “We went through a lot of trouble locking down a meeting with Arrow Corporation. It’ll be difficult to set something up if we postpone today’s meeting. The deadline for our contract renewal with them is fast approaching. If we don’t sign a new contract with them soon, it will surely delay our collaboration.”
After all, the CEOs of both corporations were busy men with demanding, near–inflexible schedules.
Sebastian checked the meeting date and wondered out loud, “That’s strange, though. I clearly remember arranging the meeting with Arrow Corporation tomorrow. Why is it suddenly happening today?”
The contract renewal was extremely important to the company, so Sebastian had memorized the meeting date.
Beside him, Madison paled slightly and offered, “I changed the timing. Arrow Corporation informed me that their CEO was only available today because he’s going on a month–long business trip to Horbah tomorrow. I didn’t want to delay our contract renewal, so I brought the meeting forward.”
She observed Nathaniel’s expression carefully and said, “I’m sorry, Mr. Hadley. That, was my fault.”
Nathaniel’s gaze darkened, and he instructed flatly. “Get the materials ready. We’ll head to the meeting
Does Christina think everyone’s as free as she is? Mr. Hadley’s so busy every day. He doesn’t have time to attend some random fashion show with her! Even if he has spare time, he should be spending it on his work instead of Christina.
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