Chapter 3
The day before I left, Celeste Johnson returned to the country.
She hadn’t changed at all, still as arrogant as before, tossing her jacket onto me.
“Are you enjoying your role as Lady Harrington?”
“I know you had a crush on Julian back then. My five years away gave you a five-year trial.”
“So, you should probably be kneeling and thanking me.”
“Still, Julian never forgot me, did he?”
I released my grip, and her jacket dropped straight to the floor. I stepped over it.
“Was cheating fun? What do you think Julian’s reaction will be when he finds out the truth?”
She hadn’t expected me to know about it and, enraged, raised her hand and slapped me.
It was too fast; I couldn’t dodge. When I registered it, my face was stinging.
Seeing Julian approach, Celeste began to play the victim, clinging to his arm and whining,
“Julian, I’m back now. It’s time for this stand-in to leave, isn’t it?”
I held back my tears, turning to go upstairs and change my flight. I’d leave tonight.
Julian sensed something was wrong. He paced outside my room, wanting to explain but unsure what to say.
When he finally twisted the doorknob and saw the empty room, he froze.
Realizing what had happened, he roared,
“Where’s Skylar Xu?!”
Just then, Elara returned from her office, her brows furrowed in confusion at her brother’s frantic demeanor.
“Didn’t she tell you? She’s becoming the head coach of Team E’s figure skating team tomorrow.”
It was as if a light bulb went off in his head, finally understanding the source of his deep-seated unease all this time.
But he simply couldn’t accept the fact that I had truly left.
“Impossible! We signed a renewal contract just two days ago! If she just leaves like this, I can pursue legal action!”
The undisguised fury in Julian’s eyes was fully directed at Elara.
It was the first time Elara had ever seen her brother speak to her in such a tone.
His strong, hot hand gripped her shoulder, his gaze sharp, radiating an intense pressure.
Elara had a fiery temper herself. After their parents died, she truly became like a mother to her younger brother.
As the elder, she wouldn’t tolerate her brother treating her this way. She raised her hand and slapped him directly.
“You can’t even keep your own wife in line, and now you’re coming to me asking where she is?”
“That contract isn’t valid.”
Julian rubbed his stinging cheek, a bewildered look on his face. “What do you mean, not valid?”
Elara sighed, a helpless expression washing over her face. “She intentionally misspelled her own name. Her message was crystal clear.”
“For all these years, the revenue she brought to the corporation has long surpassed the Harrington family’s initial kindness.”