Don't Mess with the Girl with Candy novel Chapter 1089

Just as Jimmie was about to leave, his eyes locked onto the photograph sitting on the desk.

"Who is this?"

He picked up the printout, his eyes narrowing as he studied the sharp features of the man in the image.

"Ms. Payne asked us to run a facial reconstruction on him," the hacker explained. "Apparently, he's a victim she encountered, but we still haven't been able to pin down his real identity. Why? Is something wrong, Jimmie?"

"He just looks... oddly familiar." Jimmie offered a faint smile. "Do you mind if I take a copy with me?"

"Of course, take it."

...

Sitting in the quiet isolation of his luxury car, Jimmie held the photo up to the light, analyzing every angle.

He really did look familiar.

Or maybe, after starring in so many blockbuster movies, he was just used to thinking everyone looked vaguely familiar.

Since Jimmie had only been eight years old during the shipwreck, it was entirely normal that his father's face had faded from his memory.

—

Cloudscape Community.

Juniper had just woken up from a thoroughly satisfying afternoon nap.

When she walked into the living room, Dana was glaring at her phone through her reading glasses, muttering angrily under her breath.

"Oh, Ms. Payne, you're awake!" Dana immediately rushed over and shoved the screen in her direction, absolutely vibrating with righteous fury. "Can you believe how utterly wicked this girl is? Trying to trap Mr. Schwartz just to ruin your relationship? And her father—covering up for her like that! Well, karma works fast. They're both locked up now."

Juniper took the phone and casually scrolled through the headlines.

The news was everywhere. Sheryl had been officially expelled from Eclara University. Both father and daughter had been denied bail and were currently sitting in jail awaiting trial.

That was incredibly fast. Shanley must have pulled some strings behind the scenes to expedite the process.

"Are you alright, Ms. Payne?" Dana asked cautiously, searching Juniper's face for any signs of heartbreak. She prayed Juniper hadn't misunderstood Mr. Schwartz's involvement.

"I'm fine." Juniper tossed the phone onto the coffee table with a bright, effortless smile. "I trust Shanley completely."

Who in their right mind would ever dare to covet Shanley Schwartz again?!

The way the university viewed Juniper had permanently shifted. If anyone ever wondered what a true power couple looked like, they finally had their answer.

After her last class, Juniper slid into Shanley's waiting car and haphazardly tossed her backpack into his lap.

"Subterra Vanguard will begin their assault at exactly 7:00 PM," Shanley murmured softly, instinctively organizing her messy bag for her. "Per your request, the explosive colors will be an iridescent black."

"They actually managed to make that?" Juniper turned her head, genuinely intrigued. She had just thrown that out as a joke to mess with them. He actually took it seriously?

"Whether they could or couldn't, they had to figure it out." Shanley reached over to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, his smile ridiculously tender. "You wanted it, didn't you?"

"It's going to pack a massive punch, isn't it?" Juniper licked her lips, her eyes gleaming with dark anticipation.

"Feeling bad for my research lab?" Shanley frowned slightly. Just as he was about to comfort her and tell her the cost didn't matter, his little fiancé's eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas.

"Felton, step on it!" she ordered. "I want to get back in time for the live stream. If the payload is that big, the fireworks are going to be spectacular."

Shanley was speechless.