The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Aaron had barely taken a few steps when he caught sight of Vivienne on Percival’s arm, accompanied by her family and Richard, heading in the opposite direction.

Frustration bubbled within him. “Weren’t we supposed to split them up from the get-go? What now?”

Equally taken aback by his grandfather’s intervention, Kenneth sighed. “The first step of the plan is a bust. What else?”

The two young men exchanged a look of mutual disdain before parting ways.

From a distance, Vivienne was surprised to see Aaron and Kenneth together.

“Are those two playing nice again?” She asked.

Percival found Aaron’s presence irritating, but he could not show it too openly, given that Aaron was a friend of Vivienne’s. Thus, he said calmly, “Who knows? Let them be.”

Vivienne did not press any further.

Richard followed the rehearsed plan to the letter, entering with Vivienne at his side, ensuring she was the center of attention.

Vivienne, albeit reluctantly, complied. After all, the birthday boy calls the shots.

While they waited, Fiona approached them.

“Grandpa, Vivienne,” she said, holding a box that contained her latest jewelry design. “Grandpa, after your speech, I hope Vivienne can wear this set to showcase it. What do you think?”

Richard’s displeasure was evident, though he remained silent.

He intended for Vivienne to be seen purely as part of his entourage, to underscore his status, not as a billboard for the company.

Fiona hastily added, “I just think the jewels would look stunning on Vivienne. That’s all.”

Fiona’s motivations were for the company’s good, Richard could not bring himself to reprimand her. “Vivienne will simply accompany me for the entrance. You can wear

had no

Charles, combining it with her jewelry concept to create

piece in Fiona’s hands. It was eye-catching at first, but

leading her

“How did that go? Got shot down, huh? Looks like it’s up to

icy as she warned, “Don’t you dare mess up my

was supposed to be an excellent opportunity that could have been used to take

Percival was onto something. She was confident that any move she made during the gala would end in utter

time, her focus was not on taking Percival down. Instead, she aimed to cement

think you can win Grandpa’s favor for our family branch? You spend your days fiddling with those trinkets; it’s messed with your brain. If you keep at this pace, Percival will take over the Ellington family sooner or later. Then, let’s see if you’ll

cause,’ Jeffrey had not taken him seriously. What could

focused on battling Paul, which had left

had lost

exhibition debacle, had

recent events within the Ellington family had

lost cause? It

was all to pit him against Paul, to reap

not act

down. At the very

glance, her eyes momentarily flaring with malice before she turned away. “This is your last warning. If you ruin my

walked away, leaving Jeffrey to spit after her in disdain. “Pretentious much? The Ellington family won’t

was out of

room, the master of ceremonies delivered the opening remarks, inviting Richard

Vivienne by his side, signaling the importance

Vivienne’s standing in

the influential families knew she

Vivienne would now have to weigh their stature against the might of the Ellington