Was Victoria just as helpless back then as Gwh felt now?
There was a difference, though. Today, it was strangersughing at Gwh''s misfortune; back then, the one mocking Victoria had been her own daughter. What must she have felt? How did she bear it and move on?
Whenever anyone worried about Gwh, she''d force a cheerful smile and pretend nothing was wrong.
"Come on, let''s see what we haven''t explored yet. There''s still more to see."
But the rest of the afternoon dragged on, everyone''s spirits noticeably dampened. In one of the other galleries, they ran into Patti Yale, who-as expected-was wandering around, snapping pictures with her phone.
She clearly saw Gwh, but acted as if she were invisible, casting a sideways look of disdain before moving on.
When they left the exhibition, Gwh made her way to her Ferrari, rapping her knuckles lightly on the car''s sleek hood.
"Anyone want to ride shotgun? It''s not every day you get Mrs. Everhart as your chauffeur."
Her lighthearted joke lifted the mood instantly.
Everyone scrambled to im the coveted passenger seat, but there was only one spot avable-sports cars weren''t exactly known for roomy backseats.
In the end, they had to settle it with rock-paper-scissors. Watching the group get so serious about it, Gwh found herself genuinely amused and couldn''t help butugh.
The girl who won climbed into the passenger seat, grinning as if she''d just hit the lottery.
"Gwyn, you''re really nothing like what I imagined."
Everyone in Starfall City knew the Langford family''s wealth rivaled royalty, and Mrs. Everhart''s name carried its own legend. But none of them had ever pictured the Langford heiress like this.
Not only was Gwh approachable, she didn''t have a trace of arrogance about her.
At the office, she kept such a low profile that people often mistook her for a fresh- faced grad, more like the girl next door than a business mogul.
Who would''ve guessed someone like her led a double life with so much power behind the scenes?
Gwh justughed. "We''re all human. Why act so high and mighty?"
Her happiest days were always in Greenvale here, nobody recognized her, nobody treated her like the Langford heiress, and she could talk to anyone without the weight of expectations No one tiptoed around her, afraid of saying the wrong thing. s
At first, Rhea, her passenger, was a little nervous after learning who Gwh really was. But after a few minutes of chatting, she slipped right back into their easy office banter. s
The two of them talked and joked all the way to the restaurant. Of course, Rhea
was tactful enough not to pry about Gwh and Hawthorne.
By the time they arrived, the others were already there.
Gwh didn''t even nce at the prices-she simply ordered several bottles of
top-shelf wine that cost more than most people''s annual sries.
Some in the group recognized thebels and couldn''t hide their shock.
Just the wine alone came to over a hundred thousand. Soon, the food started arriving-Maine lobster, king crab, everything you could imagine.
Gwh ordered only the most expensive dishes. The restaurant manager, noticing she wasn''t a regr, approached politely.
"I''m sorry, but with an order of this size, we''ll need to settle the bill in advance." Gwh smiled graciously. "Of course. Here, just charge this card."
She handed over the ck card Hawthorne had given her, making no fuss about
it.
The manager''s entire demeanor changed the instant he saw it-he epted the card with both hands, nearly bowing as he did so.<fn59d7> Read full story at F?nd-Novel</fn59d7>
At his level, he''d only heard rumors about cards like this; it was the first time he''d actually seen one.
Meanwhile, Hawthorne received
several spending notifications on his
phone. The total was well over three
hundred thousand. He
frowned-wife and food? Was
Gwh stocking up for a wedding?
s
"Gwyn, you really don''t need to go all out for a simple dinner with colleagues,"
someone said, a little embarrassed by her generosity.
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