Dumped Then Claimed By A Billionaire (Nerissa and Owen) novel Chapter 71

Chapter 71

Chapter 71

Nerissa had always been an orphan.

Even in her past life, she’d been alone.

And now, nothing had changed. She was still on her own.

Nerissa just couldn’t figure out why she was always the one left behind.

Back then, things were different.

She didn’t even have a grandpa.

4 223

28

55 vouchers

At just six or seven years old, she was living under a bridge. Every night, her favorite thing was to lie on the bridge and gaze up at the stars, wondering why all the other kids had parents, but she was the only one without.

She wished she could feel what it was like to be loved by a mom and dad.

She dreamed of wearing pretty little dresses, too.

She wanted to taste cotton candy, too.

She always came off as fierce, all claws and wild energy, so none of the kids nearby ever dared to play with her.

But nobody ever saw the truth.

Even though she acted like a tiny devil, all prickly and tough, she’d still sneak away and cry when everyone else was asleep.

She cried her heart out, all alone.

She cried herself to sleep, curled up against the bridge support.

In her dreams, she saw her parents come searching for her. As she sobbed, she threw herself into their arms, and they apologized, saying they’d lost her for so many years.

She couldn’t see their faces clearly, but her smile was brighter than ever.

From now on, she could finally have her own mom and dad, just like all the other kids.

But as she kept smiling, the dream slipped away.

And just like that, she woke up.

Only the cold bridge and the night wind kept her company.

When she was eight, the orphanage discovered her and took her in.

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

:

It was there, for the first time, that she was given a name of her own.

Nerissa Jamison.

Jamison was picked at random from a list of surnames.

Nerissa was chosen by the dean of the orphanage, symbolizing happiness and tranquility.

28)

55 vouchers

Later, because of her extraordinary talent, she was chosen for the youth division at the top research institute.

And then, after that,

No one called her by her real name anymore.

Everyone just called her Ms. Jamison, Dr. Jamison, or simply ‘the boss’…

But when the world was quiet and everyone else was asleep, Nerissa would find herself thinking, ‘Who am I, really? Is there anyone out there, somewhere, looking for me?’

Still,

This time, Nerissa was luckier than she’d ever dared to hope.

This time, she had a grandpa by her side.

Every time she saw her grandpa Hunter, Nerissa felt a special kind of warmth inside, something she’d never felt before.

With him, she finally knew what real family felt like.

When Faye heard Nerissa’s answer, her heart sank.

After all this time knowing Nerissa,

this was the first time she’d ever seen her like this.

The girl Faye knew was always so strong, strong enough to face down a whole gang of thugs without even flinching.

But now,

she seemed so vulnerable.

So delicate, it was like if one even brushed against her, she’d fall to pieces.

“Nerissa, I’m so sorry. I had no idea…” Faye grabbed Nerissa’s hand, her heart aching with regret.

‘Why couldn’t I just keep my mouth shut?’ Faye thought, mentally berating herself.

‘If I’d known, I never would’ve brought up her parents.

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

:

ผล 28

E55 vouchers.

“It’s okay,” Nerissa said, lifting her gaze with a gentle smile, her dimples showing. “It’s all in the past now.”

Seeing her smile, Faye finally relaxed a little. Then she asked, “Nerissa, have you ever thought about trying to find your parents?”

Faye thought, with that distinctive birthmark of hers,

it really shouldn’t be that hard to find her parents.

“No,” Nerissa said, shaking her head.

“Why?” Faye asked immediately.

Nerissa took a bite of her bunny-shaped dessert. “When my grandpa found me, I was just a three-month-old baby. Someone had tossed me into a ditch. He said I was bleeding all over, and thought I was a goner for sure. But turned out, I was pretty hard to kill.”

Faye frowned, her voice soft. “So… your parents really abandoned you on purpose?”

Three months old, she couldn’t even crawl yet.

There was no way she ended up in that ditch on your own.

“I don’t really know,” Nerissa said, shaking her head. “It was probably because I was a girl. Sometimes I wonder, if I’d been born a boy, would they have thrown me away too?”

Back in her previous life, after Nerissa had made it big, she went searching for her real family.

When she finally tracked down her birth parents, she thought she was finally going to have a family of her

own.

But the moment she walked into that house, she realized just how badly she’d gotten it all wrong.

Back then, her birth parents were already forty-six years old, but they had an eight-year-old son.

To be precise, he was a pampered boy who never had to lift a finger for anything.

At the very first moment Nerissa laid eyes on her birth parents,

the woman immediately pulled her spoiled son close and said, “This is your little brother. Your dad and I are getting old, so he’ll be counting on you from now on!”

After looking into it further, Nerissa found out that, apart from herself, there had once been four older sisters and two younger sisters.

But none of them had her luck.

One by one, they were abandoned and died.

She was the only survivor.

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

:

A28

55 vouchers

It was then that Nerissa realized for the first time that there really were parents in this world who didn’t love their own children.

After that,

her childhood dreams came crashing down.

Any illusions she’d ever had about her parents were shattered, too.

So, after everything she’d been through, when she got a second chance at life, Nerissa never even considered looking for her family again.

That chapter was closed for good, and she’d made up her mind to leave the past behind.

All Nerissa wanted now was to devote herself to Hunter, to be the best granddaughter she could be.

She dreamed of traveling the world with him, showing him all the wonders life had to offer.

She wanted to be there for him in his old age, to make sure he was comfortable and happy.

And when the time came, she wanted to be the one by his side, to see him off with love and dignity.

For Nerissa, her grandpa was all she ever needed.

From the memories of her past self, Nerissa finally experienced a kind of love she’d never known before. It was something truly special, making her realize that in this world, family wasn’t just about who one was related to by blood.

Sometimes, the bond could go way beyond blood.

But in reality,

Nerissa had a major sweet tooth now, and she’d always go for the full-sugar smoothies, all because of what she had gone through as a kid.

She’d had it rough growing up.

So now, she was determined to make up for all those bitter years with as many sweets as she could handle.

“It was probably because I was a girl.”

Those words seemed so casual, but they struck Faye right to the core.

They made her think of a news story she’d seen once.

A couple had abandoned their newborn daughter because they valued sons over daughters. Twenty years later, when their precious son developed kidney failure, they hunted down the daughter they’d thrown away and tried to guilt her into donating a kidney to save him.

Back then, whenever Faye saw stories like that on the news, it all felt so unreal, like something that could never happen in her world. She just couldn’t wrap her head around it. ‘How could anyone ever bring

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

themselves to abandon their own child?’ she’d wonder.

But now,

her best friend had been through it herself.

:

ନୂନ୍ମ (28

55 vouchers

Faye held Nerissa’s hand tightly, not even sure what to say to make her feel better. “Hey, Nerissa, don’t be upset. I may not know the real reason why you were left behind. But if it wasn’t intentional, then your family must have been searching for you all this time. Nowadays, with all those family search websites, it’s only a matter of time before they find you.”

Nerissa nodded softly. “Yeah, let’s just leave it up to fate.”

This time, she wasn’t going to go out of her way chasing after things that were never truly hers.

She was determined to live unapologetically, doing whatever she wanted, no holding back.

Faye stood up, walked over to Nerissa, and wrapped her in a big, warm hug. “Nerissa, you’ll always have me, and Grandpa Hunter, too. From now on, my folks are your folks. You’re family, okay?”

“Okay!” Nerissa smiled. In this life, Nerissa didn’t just have Grandpa, she had her best friend, too. “Thanks, Fifi.”

Nerissa was the one who had helped Faye through her pain, but in the end, Faye helped Nerissa heal, too.

From another perspective, Faye was just as much a source of healing for Nerissa.

Nerissa had always been used to going it alone.

But for the first time, she discovered that outside of work and experiments, the bond between girls could be something truly beautiful.

“Come on, Nerissa! You and I, we’re the best friends ever!” Faye grinned.

Faye picked up where she had left off. “Hey, Nerissa, why are you so sure about Kinsbeat Game? Thanks to Wade, it almost went belly up. And I heard the new shareholders don’t even know much about gaming. Seriously, it’s only been a month. What kind of decent game can you make in just over a month?”

“And

get this, Starlight Ascent already has over ten million pre-orders, while Splendor Peak barely hit a hundred thousand. Calloway Group is totally crushing them. Honestly, I wouldn’t bet on them.”

Ten million for one.

Barely a hundred thousand for the other.

How was that even a contest?

Unless a genius appeared,

there was just no way anyone could rescue Kinsbeat Game from that trainwreck.

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

“Fifi, let me tell you a secret,” Nerissa said.

:

“What secret?” Faye leaned in, eyes widened with curiosity.

A 228

55 vouchers

“Actually, I’m the new shareholder at Kinsbeat Game,” Nerissa added with a confident grin. “So of course I believe in my own game.”

Faye couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Nerissa, you’re such a joker!”

Nerissa froze.

‘No one ever believes me, even when I’m actually telling the truth,’ she thought.

*****

On her way back from the smoothie cafe, Nerissa got a call from Clive.

With the new game launch just around the corner, Clive was feeling pretty nervous.

“Ms. Jamison, the programming team is all set. We’re just waiting for midnight to drop the game. Any issues on your end?” he asked.

“No problem,” Nerissa said calmly. “Just release it as planned.”

“Got it,” Clive replied, and then added, “By the way, Calloway Group brought in a bunch of celebrities to hype up their launch. Should we try to pull in a few celebs ourselves? Ms. Jenkins said she could help out.”

Ms. Jenkins had tons of connections, and she was tight with all the top-tier celebs. If Nerissa needed anything, she was always ready to help.

Clive figured getting some hype was actually pretty important.

At the very least, Calloway Group was totally crushing it in pre-sales compared to them right now.

Calloway Group’s new game, Starlight Ascent, already had ten million pre-orders.

Meanwhile, Splendor Peak had barely scraped past a hundred thousand. With Starlight Ascent about to smash through twenty million pre-orders, and Splendor Peak not even sure it could hit two hundred thousand, Clive was seriously freaking out.

“No need,” Nerissa said as she kicked off her shoes at the door. “As long as our game is solid, we can pull off a comeback, even without any star power hyping us up!”

Clive had been pretty anxious, but Nerissa’s words calmed him right down. “Yeah, you’re right, Ms. Jamison.”

‘Nerissa is a total powerhouse, Clive thought, full of admiration.

‘If anyone can lead Kinsbeat Game to an epic comeback, it’s her,’ he told himself, feeling a surge of confidence.

After exchanging a few words with Clive, Nerissa hung up.

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

55 vouchers

Just as she hung up. Nerissa spotted a familiar chubby cat sprawled out on the living room couch. She stared in disbelief. “Snowball?!

Meow!

Nerissa walked over and scooped up the fat cat. After checking the info on its collar, she finally believed that it really was Snowball!

“Wow, it really is you! How did you get here?”

“Meow!

Hunter came out of the bedroom and saw Nerissa holding the cat. “Nerissa, do you know this cat?”

“I do. That’s Snowball. He’s my friend’s cat,” Nerissa replied.

Hannah had told her that Snowball was the kind of cat you just let roam, and sometimes he’d be out for days and wouldn’t come home.

But Nerissa had never thought he’d actually turn up at her house.

Hunter laughed, “No wonder he camped out at our door and wouldn’t budge. He must’ve sniffed you out! This cat’s way too clever. You know what’s weird? Kennedy and I both tried to pick up this chubby cat, but he wouldn’t let us get close. Now look at him, all snuggled up in your arms like he’s a stuffed animal!”

Nerissa smiled. “That’s just Snowball. He’s a bit shy around new people.”

“I see,” Hunter nodded. “Nerissa, I’ve got some fruit chilling in the fridge. Don’t forget to grab a slice.

“Okay, Grandpa.”

Nerissa adored Snowball, hugging him close as she headed for the kitchen. She cooed, “Since you’ve come all this way, how about keeping me company tonight? You can head home tomorrow, okay?”

“Meow!”

The cat sounded happy.

Ivan and Clive were sitting at a BBQ restaurant, digging into some grilled meat.

Watching Clive hang up, Ivan asked curiously, “So, what did Ms. Jamison say?”

Clive took a bite and said, “Ms. Jamison said we don’t need to bring in any stars for support.”

Ivan stared, wide-eyed. “Whoa, Ms. Jamison’s really that confident?”

Ivan couldn’t help but wonder. Who was this Ms. Jamison, the mysterious woman he’d never even met?

“Yeah, because Ms. Jamison’s got what it takes. She’s got the confidence and the power to make it happen,”

21:07 Wed, Jan 21

Chapter 71

Clive replied.

:

28

E 55 vouchers

Ivan lifted his beer. “Clive, here’s to your new game blowing up.. May it soar to the top and rake in a fortune!”

“Thanks, man!” Clive grinned, raising his own beer.

“Kinsbeat Game’s about to go under, and you’re wishing for it to blow up? Give me a break!” Suddenly, someone snarked from nearby.

Ivan and Clive both turned around and saw Grant and Tom, grinning like they’d just heard the funniest thing all night.

Grant and Tom were former partners at Kinsbeat Game.

After Wade left, they didn’t care about all those years working together, and they just broke their contract with Clive and left Kinsbeat Game to join Calloway Group.

Now that Calloway Group’s new game was taking the world by storm, they were practically strutting around like they owned the place.

Clive set his glass down. “Game’s not over yet, Grant, Tom. Don’t celebrate too soon. You might hurt yourselves patting your own backs.”

“Hurt themselves patting their own back?”

Grant let out a mocking laugh.

“Clive, stop daydreaming! Calloway Group’s Starlight Ascent is about to smash through twenty million pre- orders, and you guys can barely scrape together a pathetic hundred thousand. What are you even competing with? Just wait, your doom is right around the corner. You’ll be sleeping under a bridge before you know it!”

Right now, Kinsbeat Game was trapped with nowhere to run.

All they could do was wait for Calloway Group to steamroll them.

Unless…

they could really pull off a AAA game.

But still…

Could they really pull that off?

For Kinsbeat Game, it was like trying to reach the stars, damn near impossible.

Grant and Tom were feeling extra lucky they’d ditched Kinsbeat Game. If they hadn’t jumped ship, they’d be the ones getting screwed over right now.

“Mr. Locke, don’t be so cold. Mr. Beaumont’s been our buddy for years. How could we just watch him end up sleeping under a bridge?” Tom said mockingly, putting on a show of fake concern. “Actually, my wife’s been looking for someone to shuttle our little dog to and from pet school. When Kinsbeat Game finally goes belly

21:07 Wed, Jan 21