Chapter 195
"Sure, just text me the time and place," Gianna replied.
After hanging up, Gianna decided to call Felix.
"I'm having dinner with Mr. Musk tonight, so you don't need to pick me up," Gianna said.
There was a brief silence before Felix's annoyed voice came through, "Raymond?"
"Yes," came her brief reply.
"I'm going with you," Felix said.
Gianna frowned while flipping through a document, "It's a business dinner. It's not convenient for you to come."
Felix stayed silent but didn't hang up.
Sensing his displeasure, Gianna sighed, "It's really just business. I'll come back right after, okay?"
"Be back by nine and don't drink!" Felix said sternly.
Gianna laughed, "Alright, I promise."
At six, Gianna arrived at the restaurant on time.
Sitting across from Raymond, she smiled, "Sorry, traffic was bad."
Raymond handed her the menu, "You're not late. I just got here early."
Gianna ordered two of her favorite dishes and handed the menu back to Raymond.
"I haven't been here before, so you can choose the rest," she said.
Raymond looked a bit disappointed but ordered two more dishes and gave the menu to the waiter, saying, "That'll be all."After the waiter left, Raymond asked, "How are things with you and Felix?"
"Pretty good. Let's talk about the collaboration. MY FASHION supplies designs and products to brands, but I know the Musk Group has its own sub-brands."
Raymond nodded, "Yes, but we need to expand quickly, so we need partners."
"Alright, tell me your specific needs," Gianna replied.
They talked business the whole meal, and before they knew it, it was past nine.
Felix's call reminded Gianna of the time.
"Where are you now?" Felix's asked in annoyance.
Gianna felt guilty, "Still at the restaurant, but we're almost done. I'll be back soon."
After hanging up, Gianna told Raymond, "It was a pleasure talking with you tonight. Let's discuss the details another day."
Raymond smiled, "Alright."
They left the restaurant together. Raymond watched Gianna's car leave before driving off.
Gianna got home after ten.
When she entered, Felix was sat on the couch, looking very angry.
Knowing she was late, Gianna changed her shoes and sat next to him, "I'm sorry. We got caught up in business. Next time..."
Felix kissed her before she could finish.
Feeling his unusual intensity, Gianna wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss.
When it ended, she was left breathless and weak, leaning against Felix's chest, gasping for air.
Felix's cold and domineering voice left no room for argument, "Stay away from Raymond from now on!"
Gianna was annoyed. She sat up and said, "MY FASHION is collaborating with the Musk Group. We can't avoid meeting, and he's your friend. What did you think happened exactly?"
Her face was still flushed, eyes filled with emotion, and she looked at him with a hint of anger.
"He's still a man," Felix said, pouting.
Gianna glared at him, "Do you think I'm so charming that everyone likes me?"
Felix didn't want her to know about Raymond's feelings for her, so he spoke firmly, "You must keep your distance from him."
"How am I supposed to do that? Should I go abroad and call him from overseas to discuss business?"
Hearing Gianna's teasing tone, Felix's eyes darkened, "Gianna, I'm serious."
Gianna raised eyebrows, "Do I look like I'm joking? If your business partner were a woman and I told you not to work with her, would you agree?"
"That's different," Felix said stubbornly.
"How is it different? I'm also worried that other women might fall for you. Should you stop collaborating with the Clinton Group just because of my suspicions?"
Felix stayed silent, so Gianna continued, "I've already said that Raymond and I are just business partners, and the places we meet have surveillance. We won't do anything that's out of line."
After a moment, Felix relented, "From now on, be back at the villa by nine, or I'll go with you when you discuss business."
Just as Gianna was about to respond, her phone chimed.
She saw a message from Garrett, her expression turning serious.
"I have some work to attend to. Let's talk later," she said.
With that, she hurried to the bedroom.
Garrett: [The timestamp on this image is indeed problematic. It's using the latest AI synthesis technology from the Country M, so unless someone is very specialized, they won't detect the issue.]
Gianna: [Can you separate the image from the timestamp?]
Garrett: [I can, but it will take at least until tomorrow morning.]
Gianna: [Alright.]
Ending her chat with Garrett, Gianna finally felt a weight lift off her shoulders.
As long as they could prove the image was synthesized, LR Design Studio would definitely lose the lawsuit!
Time flew by, and soon it was the day of the court hearing for LR Design Studio's plagiarism case against MY FASHION.
Gianna had already handed over the separated images from Garrett to the legal department and continued working at the office.
However, Bella, seeing that Gianna didn't show up, assumed she was too scared to come, and her smile grew even more smug.
If they won this lawsuit, MY FASHION would never succeed again.
As for Gianna, she would be nothing more than a defeated rival.
Bella got out of the car with arrogance. A crowd of reporters had already gathered at the courthouse entrance, and they swarmed to her the moment they saw her, thrusting microphones and cameras in her face.
"Bella, are you confident about winning this lawsuit against MY FASHION?"
"Bella, some people online are saying that LR Design Studio plagiarized MY FASHION and falsely accused them of plagiarism. What do you think about this?"
"Bella, we've heard that you and Gianna from MY FASHION are twin sisters. Some say that taking this to court over a few design sketches is a disgrace to the Redstone family. Do you think this has gone too far?"
With a composed smile, Bella replied, "I don't want to answer any questions at the moment, but I believe that the law will stand on the side of justice!"
After saying this, Bella's bodyguards pushed the reporters aside, and she walked into the courthouse with a smile.
Faith followed the lawyer into the courthouse, a few steps behind Bella.
Hearing Bella's confident remarks, her eyes were filled with disdain. She hoped Bella could maintain that confidence when MY FASHION's lawyer publicly exposed the 'draft' designs from LR Design Studio as synthesized in court.
Seeing that interviewing Bella was futile, the reporters turned their attention to Faith.
However, Faith didn't say a word as she walked straight into the courthouse with a cold expression.
Soon, the stark contrast between Bella and Faith's attitudes spread online, sparking heated discussions.
Not only online, but the entire high society of Dawnridge was also paying close attention to this lawsuit.
After all, it was rare to see twin sisters suing each other.
Lauren had been troubled by suspicions of Julian's infidelity and had no time or energy to care about the feud between Bella and Gianna. It wasn't until she heard about the case while playing cards that she learned MY FASHION was being sued by LR Design Studio for plagiarism. She was so furious she nearly fainted.
