Chapter 122


    Ava jumped. Her heart skipped a beat, but as her eyesnded on the visitor, Ruby, a sigh of relief


    escaped her lips.


    Ava touched up her makeup with a casual air, and her voice carried a hint of disdain, “Ms. Ruby,


    aren’t you afraid your dad will p a hand over your mouth with talk like that?”


    Ruby, taken aback, pressed on, “How do you my name if we’ve never met?”


    Snapping her makeuppact shut, Ava retorted, “I haven’t met you, true, but I’ve seen your


    picture on Billy’s desk. If you’re not Mr. Antonio’s little princess, are you his secretary on the side?”


    Ruby’s expression darkened. She had a nagging feeling that Ava was up to no good at the


    company.


    …


    Ruby strode into Billy’s office and shared her suspicions. Billy reassured her, “Don’t worry. Ava’s not


    out to scam us.”


    “Dad, how can you be so sure?”


    “I had our designers check Ava’s drafts for giarism. They’ve been at it for two days straight and


    can’t find a single issue. They even rave about the fresh ideas, perfectly in tune with the current


    trends. Look at this, the presale numbers have already hit the roof!”


    Billy’s excitement grew as he spoke, and then he turned to Ruby. “You want to go to Harvard, right?


    I’ll make some calls. As my daughter, you’ve got to shine.”


    Ruby felt stung by the unsaid implication, wondering why her father had to poke at her insecurities.


    But with Billy so convinced, what space was there for her to argue?


    …


    Oliver was also clued into Josefina’spany situation. He had people watching over Josefina’s


    business, ensuring she got whatever she needed, no matter how grand.


    No exaggeration, if Josefina wanted a ne to jet off to a fashion show abroad, a private jet would


    be ready to whisk her from thepany’s rooftop at a moment’s notice. If Josefina’s firm needed


    fabric, suppliers stood by ready to deliver whatever was required.


    When Oliver heard about Ava’s betrayal and Josefina’s predicament of facing a presale without any


    new designs to show, his brow knitted in concern.


    “George, get our designers over to Josie’s ce. Whatever style she wants, I want it sketched out


    on the spot!”


    George nced at Oliver’s determined face and knew he wasn’t bluffing.


    “Sir, it’s impossible for designers toe up with drafts on the fly, isn’t it?”


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    Oliver looked up. His gaze was steely. “I want to see if they can deliver on their promises!”


    As Oliver stood, George interjected, “You have an important meeting in five minutes.”


    “Cancel it. I’m going to see Josie.”


    …


    Oliver arrived at Josefina’spany. It was his first visit. He knew Josie preferred to keep a low


    profile, not wanting to draw attention to his own high-profile persona.


    Donning ck shades that hid his piercing, charming eyes, he made his way to Josefina’s office


    door and knocked.


    Josefina called out, “Come in.”


    As Oliver entered, Josefina didn’t look up, seemingly engrossed in her sketching.


    “Josie.”


    At the sound of Oliver’s voice, Josefina jolted, hastily covering her draft with a file. Oliver leaned


    over the desk, with his hand resting on the surface, and as he lifted his head, his doting eyes met


    hers.


    They were close, too close. Josefina felt a shadow over her head and instinctively looked up. Their


    eyes locked, and their lips were merely an inch apart, on the brink of a kiss that could seal their fate


    in the next heartbeat…