He Lost Me to His Best Friend novel Chapter 539

Scarlett was completely caught off guard. "What's this?"

Julian offered a warm smile:

"An early gift. Open it."

Scarlett blinked. "...I'm a grown woman. It's not my birthday."

Julian replied smoothly, "You don't need a birthday to get a gift. And I'm guessing you probably never got many surprise presents growing up, right?"

Scarlett thought about it for a second. He was right.

Before her father's accident, they didn't really celebrate random occasions with gifts.

After the accident, her mother was constantly working to pay off debts. When Scarlett wasn't at school, she was helping her mom survive. There was no time or money for pleasantries like surprise presents.

She took the delicate box and gently opened it. Inside lay a stunning platinum necklace. The pendant was shaped like a little girl.

But as she looked closer, the design felt incredibly familiar. She stared at the tiny pendant... her eyes widening in sudden realization. It was a perfect replica of her as a little girl, right down to the pigtails she used to wear.

Julian had actually commissioned a jeweler to recreate her childhood likeness in platinum... It was an incredibly thoughtful gesture.

Scarlett looked up, her eyes shimmering with profound emotion:

"Julian... how do you remember exactly what I looked like?"

Julian pulled up his phone's photo gallery. "My mom kept a few photos of us playing in the neighborhood when we were kids. I saw them a little while ago, and I thought you looked adorable. So, I had a jeweler custom-make this for you."

There was one detail Julian kept to himself.

He had originally planned to give her the necklace on Valentine's Day.

It was a day when most women expected something special, and he had wanted to make her smile.

But he had ultimately decided against it, fearing the romantic pressure of the holiday would make her pull away.

He wasn't afraid of confessing his feelings, but he was deeply afraid of overwhelming her while she was still healing.

She clearly hadn't fully escaped the trauma Yardley had inflicted on her.

Julian's voice dropped a fraction, "I'm glad. We'll save the deep emotional talks for another night. Right now, I'm ordering you to close your eyes, lean back, and clear your head. Think about all the heavy-hitting clients we're going to land at the summit today."

There was an incredibly grounding, reassuring power in his voice.

Scarlett obeyed, sinking into the leather seat and letting her eyes drift shut.

A second later, a soft, lightweight blanket—carrying the faint, clean scent of pine—was draped gently over her.

Without opening her eyes, Scarlett murmured:

"I have a feeling we're going to sign a massive contract today."

Julian looked surprised. "A massive contract? With who?"

Scarlett gave him a quick rundown of what had happened the night before. Opening her eyes, she looked at him seriously:

"I have Veronica by the throat. She's going to cave. But... if we partner with Thorne Industries to develop that massive tourism project, we're going to need a significant amount of capital. Are you in?"

Julian didn't miss a beat. "We already ran the due diligence on that project. It's incredibly solid, and it's government-backed. If we can secure it, I have absolutely no problem funding it."