Chapter 121
Elara sat across from Beatrice and Carla, her gaze calm but hinting at the underlying threat and storm if anyone dared to provoke her or tried anything that would ruin this signing process.
She was done with their schemes.
“Let’s congratulate Director Han for securing three new members in the cast. Mr. Mason, acting as Lu Shin; Miss Elara, acting as Francesca; and Miss Carla will be the assistant singer in the drama,” Producer Li said.
The director leaned towards his assistant to ask where Mr. Mason was. When the assistant said he couldn’t reach the high-tier actor, the director pressed his lips into a thin line.
The media was present for this new addition, something he had arranged, to let the world know how big this project was.
If Mr. Mason didn’t arrive, it wouldn’t look good.
Director Han looked at Elara to ask her if she could contact Mr. Mason when the man entered the auditorium.
The way he walked towards the center table in long, slow strides with his manager and assistant walking behind him was enough to define his aura as a superstar.
Elara noticed how the media started clicking his pictures as soon as they spotted him. He was like a wave of a tsunami, a sensation in himself.
And Elara finally realized what her second checkpoint was going to look like.
Her first checkpoint was to complete this drama and return home successfully, and the second was going to be this… this kind of popularity, fame, and craze among netizens and the media for her presence.
Andrew noticed the way Elara was looking at Mason with so much envy, and his jaw hardened subtly before he averted his gaze. Though Beatrice, who had been observing him, didn’t miss the subtle change.
She looked at Elara, and her fingers tightened around the pen she was holding.
The signing process didn’t take long. After the announcement, the three of them were given the contracts, and they signed them.
The media wanted to interview them individually, but Director Han only allowed Mason’s and Carla’s interviews because they were already famous and knew how to handle such situations and what to say to the paparazzi beforehand.
In his eyes, Elara still had a long way to go to learn everything.
Elara, however, didn’t mind. She didn’t want to speak much during the interview because she didn’t have much to share.
Producer Li, who now knew the truth about Elara, pursed his lips, wondering what kind of shock Director Han would get when he knew who Elara was.
“What are you doing after this?” Elara heard a voice and turned to see Trevor standing there with a bouquet of white roses.
She couldn’t help but arch her brows before looking around. Thankfully, the media was busy with Mason and Carla, or they would’ve definitely made a fuss about this, not because she was famous, but because Trevor definitely was.
“What are you doing here?” Elara asked.
“Bringing flowers to congratulate you,” Trevor said as if it were the best answer.
Beatrice, who had been keeping an eye on Elara and Andrew to ensure the two wouldn’t reconcile, walked to Trevor with wide eyes.
“Trevor? What are you… Oh my, who are these flowers for? Don’t tell me you brought flowers for Andrew because he is the main investor and this day is big for him,” Beatrice chuckled in a low voice.
Andrew, who had been drinking juice, walked to them shortly and looked at the roses, his gaze shifting to Elara for some unknown reason when he remembered that encounter with George, who had bought a black rose for her that day.
“Why would I bring flowers for Andrew? He doesn’t like them. These are for Elara,” Trevor said without hesitation.
Beatrice gasped dramatically.
“For Elara? Don’t you think it’s strange for you to bring flowers for your friend’s wife? And not your friend?” Beatrice blinked innocently, quickly adding the last few words to show that she didn’t mean anything wrong by pointing it out.
However, even a stupid person could tell what she was trying to imply here.
“My friend has a lot of supporters supporting her.” Trevor smiled at Beatrice before looking at Elara.
“Why would it be wrong? She deserves appreciation and support, something Andrew never gave her,” he added.
“And you want to give her the support and appreciation in place of Andrew?” Beatrice asked before clearing her throat to indicate she didn’t mean to say that.
She thought Trevor would become awkward after hearing that, and his cold and calm demeanor would break for once, but to her surprise, the man shrugged.
“They are getting a divorce, aren’t they?” He asked.
“Trevor, if I were you, I would watch what I am saying,” Andrew gritted out, his eyes holding a warning.
“Well, you are not me, are you?” Trevor asked with a smirk, not backing off.
Beatrice quickly got between them and pushed Trevor a step back.
“Trevor, what has gotten into you? Don’t you see the place is flooded with media? What kind of impression would it give if they saw you guys arguing like this? And why the hell are you arguing in the first place?” Beatrice asked.
She focused her steel-like gaze on Elara, who stood there like some viewer getting entertained with the drama unfolding before her.
“Seriously, Elara? What are you doing? Is this your new strategy? Are you sowing discord between friends now? You first eliminated Sean from the group and now took Trevor to play with your schemes too,” Beatrice accused.
Elara was about to open her mouth when she received a message from an unknown number.
“Lady boss, save us!” The message said.
Elara furrowed her brows.
What kind of message was this really? And who was calling her a lady boss now?
She was about to message and ask who this was when another message popped up.
“Your husband will eat us alive today,” the following message said, and under it was a photo attached.
Elara clicked the photo and saw Daniel sitting in the head chair in the boardroom, his eyes cold and dark, unyielding, radiating the kind of danger she felt through the screen.
She remembered the last message she had received from Daniel, and a soft smile appeared on her face.
The man no longer looked dangerous to her. He seemed rather cute sitting like that.
“Are you seriously smiling now? After everything you did?” Beatrice continued.
If it had been other times, Elara would’ve surely enjoyed the show for some more time, but now she had a reason to end this short.
“You think I am the reason Sean is in hiding?” Elara asked.
Beatrice nodded, bobbing her head up and down.
“Beatrice, stop spouting nonsense. Don’t accuse her of something she didn’t do. Besides, I am sure she didn’t call Trevor here or even is in contact with him. Stop causing trouble,” Andrew said, and Elara arched her brows.
Did the man really take her side? Well, that was something she didn’t expect from him.
“Don’t you see it, Andrew? He clearly mentioned it was her and—” Beatrice continued, but Elara’s following words stopped her.
“Since you believe I was the one responsible for the ambush and made him bark for the entire world, what stops you from thinking I couldn’t do anything to ruin you?” Elara asked.
Beatrice paused. Not because she actually believed Elara would do something like that, but because for the first time, she felt a weird clawing at her insides when she looked at Elara’s smile.
“Andrew, she is threatening me right before you. I think she still hates me and thinks I came between you and her and—” Beatrice clung to Andrew’s hand, her lips lifting into a mocking smile.
But to her surprise, rather than being affected by it, Elara smiled in return.
“Dumbness is infectious, you know,” Elara said to Andrew.
“Thank you for the appreciation, Miss Beatrice, Mr. Andrew. May God bless your bond.” In hell p>
Elara mouthed the last words to Beatrice before smirking, which confused Trevor.
However, his answer was soon answered when the media suddenly turned in their direction.
“Mr. Andrew, is it true it was you who got Miss Beatrice this role p>
“Does it confirm you two are seeing each other p>
“Mr. Lloyd, please, a word about your relationship p>
“Is she really just your best friend p>
The media started asking one by one, and Elara wore her sunglasses before turning to leave.
With only a couple of days left before the divorce, she was keen to let the world know about their relationship so Andrew wouldn’t play any cards to withdraw, and if he did, he would face the kind of backlash he wasn’t prepared for yet.
“You have seriously stopped loving him?” Trevor asked when he saw her walk out indifferently.
“Uh-huh,” she answered and tapped on Antonio’s shoulders, who seemed to be playing a simulator shooting game.
“Umm Antonio looked at her with contemplation, his eyes almost pleading.
Elara chuckled at his behavior, reminded of her pets.
“How many?” She asked.
“Only eight enemies left. It’ll hardly take 2 minutes,” Antonio said, and Elara rolled her eyes.
“Get it over with,” she said before leaning on the car.
Seeing her smiling so carefree and calm, Trevor realized maybe they had never seen Elara for who she really was.