Chapter 82
Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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56–vouchers
Stella stood still, watching the car disappear into the distance. She couldn’t shake the feeling that after this meeting, it might be difficult to see Sebastian again.
“Are you coming back tonight?” Ernest asked.
The sudden question snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned and met his gaze–deep, intense–but this time, it didn’t stir any emotions in her. “No,” Stella replied, her tone cool and detached.
She was about to walk away, but Ernest called after her, “No matter what, you’re still Irene’s mother. You have a responsibility.”
“Haven’t I done enough?” Stella shot him a cold look. “All these years, I’ve worried about her, making sure she’s okay. Tell me, have I ever missed anything? As her mother, I know I’ve done my part.”
After a brief pause, her expression grew more serious. “And before I’m anyone’s mother, I’m still a person. I have a responsibility to her, but my life doesn’t revolve around her.
“And don’t forget, you’re her father too. Before you go on, maybe you should ask yourself if you deserve that
title.”
Before he could respond, she walked away. Under the moonlight, her figure looked even more resolute. She walked forward with confidence, never once looking back.
Ernest stood there, watching, his emotions swirling in his eyes. “Has she really changed?” he murmured. His words were lost in the wind.
The next morning, Stella had just sat down at her desk when Jeremy called her over. He was already firing questions at her, treating her like she was on trial.
“You’ve really changed, Jeremy. Back in the day, weren’t you the one who spoiled me the most?” Stella teased.
“Enough with the flattery,” Jeremy laughed, rolling his eyes. “If I hadn’t called you in today, would you have kept quiet and hoped I wouldn’t notice? Thinking I’d just let it go like always?”
“Okay, you win,” Stella sighed, giving in. She recounted what had happened, finally saying, “Honestly, it was just dinner with Sebastian. Nothing else, I promise. I went home right after.”
“Alright, that’s all I needed to hear,” Jeremy nodded, clearly relieved. He just didn’t want her running into any trouble. Since she said that was all, he trusted her word.
“Well, and one more thing,” Jeremy said, suddenly remembering something. “What’s going on with your family?” he asked.
“My family?” Stella echoed, raising an eyebrow in confusion.
Jeremy went on, “I heard that Harvey made some kind of deal with the Jansen and Crawford families. They’re giving the Spencer family a lot of funding to help with the business transformation. Did you know about
18:23 Wed, Oct 15
Chapter 82
this?”
“Yeah, I know,” Stella said calmly, not going into any further explanation.
She didn’t want to give too many details–fewer people knowing, fewer risks.
Jeremy didn’t press any further. After getting the information he needed, he waved her off. “Alright, you can
get back to work now. If you stay here much longer, I’ll get a headache.”
“Okay” Stella smiled playfully and hurried off.
As soon as Stella stepped into the design department, Jessica was already there, clinging to her as usual, holding out the same breakfast she always brought. “Stella, I brought this just for you.”
“I already ate. Stella replied.
Jessica’s smile froze. Seriously, I just want to bring her breakfast, is that really so hard?‘ she thought, feeling a bit defeated.
Luckily, that wasn’t her main reason for coming, so she just shook it off and switched gears. “Hey, Stella, you got plans tonight? ”
You need something?” Stella turned to Jessica, her eyes guarded and skeptical.
“Actually, yeah, I do have a little something,” Jessica answered, oblivious to Stella’s suspicion. “I was thinking maybe I could take you somewhere fun, as a thank you for your help with that design last time.”
“Where’s this fun place?” Stella asked.
That’s a secret, Jessica teased, flashing a mysterious grin.
Jessica had originally planned to buy Stella a fancy, yet not overly expensive gift. But then she heard about a wild party happening in their circle tonight. The party would be full of people–guys and girls just letting loose and having fun.
Jessica thought that, considering Stella’s tightly wound personality, she might actually enjoy this kind of experience. So, she decided to take her to the party instead of buying her a gift, saving herself some money in the process.
“We’ll see,” Stella replied, playing it cool.
Jessica just took that as a yes, grinned, and bounced off happily.
Stella glanced at her, shook her head with a faint smile, then dove back into sketching ideas for the Auroral Tiara project.
If she wanted to blow everyone away, she’d have to take some real risks and break new ground.
‘Maybe I can actually try out that new cutting technique I just thought up this time, Stella mused to herself. ‘I
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Chapter 82
just don’t know if the company has the right equipment for it:
While having lunch. Jeremy didn’t even hesitate when Stella mentioned the cutting equipment. Absolutely. we’ve got it. And if we don’t, I’ll have our team order it right now. Anything you need, just let me know
It wasn’t just because they were close–now Stella was Lumière Group’s top designer, and the lead on the upcoming Thorns Collection.
Her designs were going to be featured in the big jewelry exhibition, and they wanted to make sure she had everything she needed.
“As long as the company has compatible equipment, that’s enough. No need to order anything new,” Stella shook her head. “I’ll only use it once. It’ll just go to waste after that.”
From day one, the Auroral Tiara was always meant to be a high–end masterpiece.
Basically, it was one of a kind–there was nothing else like it anywhere, ever. Once it was snatched up at the exhibition, that was the end of the story.
Even if someone showed up flashing all the cash in the world, Stella wouldn’t make a second one.
Of course, there’d be future tiaras in the Kiss of Dawn Collection, but those would only have a similar vibe- nothing could ever compare to the real deal.
“Whatever you decide is fine,” Jeremy said, not insisting. “Just let me know what you need so I can get it sorted out for you as soon as possible.”
Stella did have a request. “The design for the Auroral Tiara is nearly finished, so it’s time to move on to the actual crafting.
“I’ll probably spend most of my time in the workshop until the exhibition opens. That means I won’t really be around for the design department for a while.”
Lumiere Group actually had their own master artisans to craft high–end bespoke jewelry pieces like this.
But Stella just didn’t want to hand it off–she insisted on making it herself, even if it meant some things in the design department would have to be put on hold for now.
“Don’t worry about it,” Jeremy said with a reassuring smile. “I’ll talk to the team and smooth things over. You just focus on your own work”
Stella nodded lightly. “Alright.” ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ ⓝovelFind.net