Under the Heiress' Facade

Hera held the velvet box and entered one of the villas.

The last time she came here was when she went to Astral Nova for the auction. That was quite some time ago, but she hired someone to tidy up the place regularly so that she could stay here anytime.

She took off her mask and the cloak. Then, she picked up a pillow and slumped on the couch, staring blankly at the crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

Hera began recalling her recent memories with Bernard. At some point in time, she started to get used to how well he was treating her. She almost forgot that he was from the Killian family. It was hard to say that he was completely uninvolved in what happened in the past.

Even if it was eventually proven that Bernard had nothing to do with her adoptive mother's death and her adoptive father's imprisonment, she should not be involved with Bernard. Because in the end, he was still from the Killian family.

So, why was she so sad? Wasn't it better this way?

From the beginning, wasn't their reunion just a transactional deal? When she cured him of his sickness and when she came of age the next year, she would head off to Jedburgh. They would no longer need to interact with each other.

Whether Bernard was gay or straight, it was none of her business.

As she came to terms with that, she let out a long sigh of relief. Still, she felt as if her chest was blocked by something, and it felt uncomfortable.

Somehow, it was already evening.

Hera got up and turned on the lights before taking out her phone. It was then she realized that Bernard had called her several times. Because she had put her phone on silent, she didn't notice his calls. He also sent a few WhatsApp messages asking her where she was and why she wasn't picking up his calls.

She replied coldly: "I'm busy."

It was better to let things die down slowly.

Bernard immediately called her. Hera didn't feel like taking the call, so she declined.

He called again, so she declined again.

When her phone lit up the third time with his incoming call, Hera became annoyed. After declining, she noticed that it was an unknown number. She didn't think much about it, but the unknown number called in again.

This time, when Hera picked up the call, she shouted into the phone, "You're so annoying! Do you know that?"

The other person seemed taken aback before she said, "Ms. Youngworth, good day. I'm a salesperson from Jacob & Co. The cufflinks that you ordered are here. Will you come to the store to collect them, or should we deliver them to your doorstep?"

Hera remembered that when she went to buy cufflinks for Gideon, she saw a poster promoting a pair of canary diamond square cufflinks.

They were made of white gold. There was a diamond in the center, circled with white diamonds on the outer ring, cut in a trapezoid shape. They were dazzling, handsome, and luxurious. At the time, she felt that they suited Bernard, so she ordered a pair.

"I don't want them anymore," Hera was still frustrated, so she blurted that out.

The salesperson immediately got a fright upon hearing that, and her blood pressure soared. When Hera bought the cufflinks, the salesperson confirmed the purchase with her again and again. This pair of cufflinks was their most famous product. It was worth 8.4 million dollars!

The deposit was around 20 percent of the price. After the purchase was made, there was no refunding it!

She even signed the purchasing form. If Hera decided to refund, she still needed to pay the balance or she would be sued.

"Ms. Youngworth, at that time-"

"I'll transfer the balance." Hera knew what the salesperson was about to say, so she interrupted her.

It was exactly because she ordered these cufflinks that she was tight on money right now and asked Leon to get missions for her.

Now that she was determined not to get too close to Bernard, she didn't feel the need to give them to him anymore.

When the salesperson heard that Hera would still pay up, she breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright, since you'll pay the balance, I'll deliver the cufflinks to you anyway."

"No need," Hera said before hanging up.

The salesperson wondered about Hera's cold tone. Did she fight with her partner, which was why she didn't want the cufflinks anymore?