Free Web NovelChapter 199: Chapter 199
Aria’s POV
Sophia raised her phone and images flashed. Gasps rippled through the crowd. I recognized it instantly.
My pupils constricted. It was my sketch.
An attendee leaned forward eagerly. “Project it on the screen!”
Sophia hesitated, her fingers tightening around her phone. Then she nodded, her wounded gaze locking onto me like she was the victim here.
The image expanded across the massive screen behind us.
My design.
My lines.
My soul, laid bare.
Jonathan, standing beside me, felt the shift in my breathing. His fingers brushed my sleeve in silent reassurance.
I lifted my hand and pushed aside part of my veil.
The fire in my eyes was no longer hidden.
Jonathan exhaled softly. His concern vanished.
“How did you get Selina’s design sketch?” I asked. My voice trembled with fury held too tightly.
Sophia’s eyes flashed, triumph flickering beneath her tears. “Sister... why can you be Selina, but I can’t know her?” she said gently. “I never imagined you’d publicly claim her identity. As her fan, I couldn’t stand by and watch you go further down the wrong path.”
The crowd stirred again. Sympathy bloomed like mold.
“How can sisters be so different?”
“Ms. Sophia, don’t cry.”
“Someone who steals designs deserves scorn.”
The words hit like stones. I let them.
From the corner of my vision, I saw Nathan’s hand clench, then loosen. His gaze never left me.
The room trembled with speculation.
Then...
The screen changed.
A video began to play.
The camera zoomed in on pale, slender hands, my hands, moving swiftly over blank paper. Lines bloomed, fierce and elegant. The footage sped up, design after design forming with ruthless clarity.
The camera pulled back.
My face appeared.
I looked focused and calm.
The video also showed fabric selection and stitching. How crimson pearls were sewn one by one along the hem like drops of blood under moonlight.
It showed the entire creation of the dress.
The room fell into absolute silence.
Sophia froze.
I lifted my head lazily, my eyes sweeping across the stunned crowd.
“Now?” I asked mildly. “Is this enough proof?”
I removed my hat.
Light flooded my vision.
Gasps followed.
Under the spotlight, my face very different from what everyone was used to. A wore a beautiful makeup and red lipstick that looked like spilled wine. I looked elegant, bold and asserive like a wolf queen stepping into her territory.
Even Nathan’s gaze narrowed.
Beside me, Alpha Jonathan inhaled sharply, baskibg in confidence and pride.
“Sophia,” I said coolly, “now it’s my turn to ask. How did you get my design sketch?”
The red beads on my gown glimmered like frozen blood.
“I wasn’t aware Selina knew you,” I added with a soft, mocking laugh.
Doubt spread like wildfire.
The crowd’s loyalty wavered.
“I... I...” Sophia stammered. “The sketch was sent anonymously. I said I knew Selina because no one would’ve believed me otherwise. I only didn’t want to see you make a mistake...It is relief you are actually Selina...”
But it was too late.
People felt played.
“If you were so close, why didn’t you confront Aria privately?”
Questions crashed down on her.
Sophia’s eyes darted, then landed on Nathan as though she was begging him to help her.
He looked at her his gaze cold. Being the drama queen she was, she collapsed. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
Nathan caught her instinctively, frowning, handing her off to Collins. Collins nearly dropped her, panic written all over him as he rushed her out.
Silence returned.
Then Nathan stepped forward to the stage.
He stood between me and Alpha Jonathan as a wall. Every gaze in the room was on him as everyone wondered what he was about to do.
“Over a year ago, Aria’s case was mishandled,” he said coldly. “The Hemsworth Group will reopen the investigation with the original team.”
His voice was like a winter moon, distant and merciless.
Shock locked my body in place.
I stared at his back.
Of all the outcomes I’d imagined which included supporting Sophia, humiliating me, walking away...this had never crossed my mind.
He spoke again, ending the party with finality, "The party is over. As for the charity event, please remain, Alpha Jonathan and see it through. My assistant will handle Hemsworth Group’s donations.” He set the microphone down, and then—
He took my hand in a firm and possessive manner.
The room erupted in silent disbelief as he led me away.
I glanced back briefly at Alpha Jonathan, Even though his face remained calm, I could smell the frustration on him like ozone before a storm and see his hand curl up in a fist.
By the time the car rolled to a stop before Hemsworth Villa, the moon was fully out.
Strangely enough, I wasn’t angry.
That realization unsettled me more than rage ever could.
Nathan’s grip had been forceful back at the gala, his presence overwhelming, yet now my emotions churned like mist under moonlight. My wolf prowled restlessly inside me, pacing in circles, ears flicking at every unspoken tension.
When we got inside, Nathan shrugged off his suit jacket and tossed it over the couch, loosening his tie with indifference. He moved like an alpha that he was, every gesture steeped in entitlement, as though the world had always bent to make room for him.
I didn’t retreat to my room.
Instead, I stood there, staring at his back, frowning. For the first time, I realized I didn’t understand him at all.
He was the last person who should’ve reopened the wound from a year ago, yet he’d done it publicly, decisively. Why? When had he started doubting the version of events he once believed so firmly?
Sensing my stare, Nathan rubbed his temples and spoke first. His voice was low, heavy, like distant thunder.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
