Chapter 368 Do You Know Quinn?
On the massive screen behind them, several handwritten letters appeared in crisp, high-resolution detail.
A murmur rippled through the crowd.
Because... they were all love letters Samuel had written to Grace.
No wonder they had never been made public.
Every line was steeped in quiet intimacy — not a single word directly said "I miss you," yet the longing was woven through every sentence, impossible to miss.
Grace's cheeks flushed. "Why bring these out now…?"
Anna's smile was warm. "Mrs. Grace Martinez, Mr. Samuel Martinez plans to publish them as a gift for you."
Back when they were young, both had been consumed by work. Grace had spent most of her time locked away in the lab, while Samuel had practically raised Aurora single-handedly.
In those high-security environments where no communication devices were allowed, they had relied entirely on letters.
Catherine's gaze slid toward Cruz, who stood in the crowd looking distinctly uneasy.
"This gentleman's work may not be outright plagiarism," she said lightly, "but it's certainly… borrowing. And with such obvious borrowing, perhaps it's not appropriate for his piece to be displayed here at all?"
Lyra followed her words to the signatures at the bottom of the letters — and then to Catherine, who stood beside Samuel.
Her stomach dropped.
This was the literary master.
Which meant everything she had said earlier in righteous indignation had been aimed straight at the wrong target.
Cruz, a researcher in ancient literature, wasn't primarily a prose writer. But being called out for such blatant borrowing in public still left his face burning.
He turned on Lyra. "This is your fault. Running your mouth without thinking — do you have any idea how humiliating this is?"
Lyra's eyes stung. She had no idea Cruz's essays had been stitched together from bits and pieces of other works.
Grace's eyes shimmered as she looked at the letters. "I can't believe you kept all of these."
"How could I throw them away?" Samuel's voice was steady. "Even if the letters were gone, the feelings would still be here."
"Grandfather," Catherine said, her tone cool, "if these were your private letters to Grandmother, how did someone else get their hands on them?"
Samuel waved it off. "Years ago, some of my writings were sent to their institute for study. Cruz works in ancient and rural literature archives — he must have come across them then. It's fine."
At his level, such things hardly mattered anymore.
Grace's lips curved. "Don't let his calm fool you. If it were about one of you, he wouldn't hold back for a second."
She wasn't exaggerating. The last time Juniper had been bullied at the lab, Samuel had shown up in his award-ceremony suit, every medal he'd ever won pinned to his chest, and marched straight in to raise hell on her behalf.
Soon, familiar researchers called Samuel and Grace away.
Juniper grabbed Catherine's hand, weaving through the crowd in search of the Galactic Aurora Collective members.
Her eyes lit up when she spotted Sophia and Alkaid sharing a plate of cream cake in the distance — but before she could take a step, a sudden chill spread down her front.
She looked down. Half a glass of fruit juice had splashed across her white gown, staining it a deep, ugly red.
She met Faye's startled eyes. The girl was still holding the cup, both of them frozen in shock.
"I… I don't even know how it happened…" Faye stammered, looking more confused by the second.
She had been heading toward Catherine on purpose, juice in hand, but just as she drew close, someone shoved her from behind. Even though Catherine had pulled Juniper partly out of the way, the splash had still caught her.
Catherine's gaze flicked to a server standing not far behind Faye.
Faye was on the verge of tears, dabbing at Juniper's gown with napkins. But the stain was too dark, too soaked in to come out.
Juniper sighed. "Forget it. I believe you didn't mean it. Catherine will come with me to change."
"You… you believe me?" Faye's voice trembled.
"You said it wasn't on purpose. Why would I cling to it? Besides, you and I aren't even rivals — no need for such cheap tricks."
The unexpected grace in Juniper's words made Faye hesitate, then she blurted, "I'll come with you."
Upstairs, the guest lounge was quiet. Juniper slipped out of the stained gown with a sigh. "Shame… Catherine made this one for me. I was going to wear it to meet my idol."
Other dresses were fine, but none were made by Catherine.
The doorbell chimed. Annie stepped in, her arms loaded with gowns. "Mr. Howard asked me to bring these."
The hotel hosting the summit happened to be owned by the Howard Group.
Annie shot Catherine a knowing look. "Mr. Howard heard about what happened downstairs. He's busy at the moment, but said he'll come join you soon."
"Got it," Catherine replied.
Alexander had been buried in corporate matters for days, yet still found time to video call Catherine while they both worked.
Even during a cross-continental board meeting, he'd paused to ask if she'd eaten lunch — earning a round of teasing from his business partners about the iron-fisted CEO who turned soft for his fiancée.
Annie, watching them, had to admit they were perfectly matched — even in work, they were equals.
Lowering her voice, Annie added, "Arabella and Owen are here too, in Hall One. Mr. Howard and your people are there."
By "your people," she meant the ever-mischievous Galactic Aurora Collective.
Juniper had a presentation in Hall One, so the Windsor family's presence there was natural.
As Catherine pinned Juniper into a fresh gown, she used a few quick stitches to add subtle detailing, transforming the dress entirely.
Faye's eyes widened. "Ms. Windsor, your style is so much like Quinn's."
Juniper froze mid-thought. "Right, Catherine — that brooch you gave me last time looks like it's from Quinn's new line. It's not even released yet, is it?"
Quinn's pieces were often one-of-a-kind. The ones Juniper received from Catherine were, without exception, originals.
Juniper slipped an arm around her sister, narrowing her eyes. "Catherine… do you know Quinn?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
