Free Web NovelChapter 399: Chapter 399
Aria’s POV
Gina’s accusation hit harder than I expected. My brows knit together instinctively, confusion flashing before my wolf could smother it.
Nathan’s displeasure rolled outward in a cold wave. Even without looking at him, I felt it, an alpha’s temper restrained only by courtesy.
“Gina,” he said, his voice cutting and frigid, “if you’re determined to ruin Grandma’s day, I can have someone escort you out right now.”
The threat carried weight. Gina paled. Her scent wavered, fear leaking through the bravado, her nose reddening as tears threatened to spill.
“Nathan!” she cried. “I’m not lying! You’re defending her, even after your divorce!”
Her anger couldn’t be aimed at him. Not safely. So it turned on me instead, sharp and resentful.
I glanced at Nathan briefly, then looked away, as though he were no longer part of my world. Gina was right about one thing.
We were divorced.
Why he was defending me now, I couldn’t say. Perhaps he truly only wanted to keep the peace for Jennifer’s sake.
“All of you, calm down,” Jennifer said, her voice firm but unhurried. The tension eased immediately, as if an invisible hand had pressed it flat. “What are you making such a fuss over? Aria hasn’t even reacted.”
She turned to Gina. “You said Aria is lying. What do you mean by that?”
Encouraged by Jennifer’s patience, Gina straightened, her confidence flooding back. She spoke quickly, almost eagerly.
“When I looked closely at the brooch, I realized it’s done in the style of Anderson Turner—Chanel’s former chief designer. Since his retirement, no one has been able to replicate this level of movement with diamond inlays. The wing outlines, the dynamic flow—those are his signatures.”
She finished with a pointed glance at me, dripping with condescension.
“She didn’t have this custom-made,” Gina declared. “She bought one of Anderson Turner’s earlier designs.”
Her eyes gleamed with triumph, daring me to deny the accusation.
I frowned slightly. My wolf tilted her head, I had listened to the rhythm of Gina’s heartbeat and the steadiness of her breath when she spoke.
She wasn’t lying.
My gaze drifted back to the brooch pinned to Jennifer’s chest.
Anderson Turner...
The name echoed in my mind. I had commissioned the piece through Jonathan. If Anderson Turner had truly been involved, it could only be through Jonathan’s connections.
The former designer was rumored to be living quietly in Asterfell now, close to the current CEO of Chanel’s Asterfell division.
It was... possible.
The realization unsettled me more than Gina’s accusation ever could.
I stayed silent, weighing the implications, my wolf uneasy.
Gina mistook my quiet for defeat.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” she sneered, folding her arms. “If you’ve run out of excuses, just admit it.”
Her lips curled in disgust. “Some people like to pretend they’re thoughtful by giving store-bought gifts and claiming it is custom made. It’s nauseating.”
I lifted my eyes to meet hers at last, my wolf calm and steady.
Nathan’s POV
The moment Gina’s words crossed the line, my expression darkened.
I felt my wolf bare its teeth beneath my skin, a low, warning growl curling in my chest. I was already preparing to tell Gina to leave when my gaze flicked to Aria and softened against my will.
She stood there in quiet contemplation, unruffled, her scent steady and cool like moonlit snow. There was no fear, no defensiveness. Just composure. It unsettled me more than any argument could.
Then she spoke.
“This piece was indeed specially designed by a friend of mine,” Aria said calmly. “Even the packaging was custom-made by him. If it were a collector’s item I had acquired, it would still be an appropriate gift. There would be no reason to lie about it.”
She shook her head lightly, as if Gina’s accusations weren’t even worth the effort of irritation.
My wolf stilled, listening.
Grandma nodded, clearly in agreement. “You are right Aria. Now that should be enough, Gina—”
“Your friend?” Gina cut in sharply, her voice rising. “Is your friend Anderson Turner?”
I felt the tension snap tight.
“Only Anderson Turner could make something like that,” Gina continued, eyes flashing. “And he hasn’t designed anything in years. Are you saying you can just summon him out of retirement?”
Her lips curled. “Or are you claiming...” her eyes narrowed “...that you had someone forge a fake?”
Silence crashed down on the room.
This was no longer about manners or jealousy. Accusing someone of gifting a counterfeit, especially to Grandma, was an outright insult.
My wolf surged forward, furious.
Aria’s gaze hardened, steel replacing frost as she looked directly at Gina. I could tell she was done tolerating the noise.
“Ms. Carlson,” Aria said coolly, a hint of sarcasm slipping through despite Grandma’s presence, “your insistence is making me think you want to meet my friend.”
Gina lifted her chin, defiant. “Fine. Let him come forward. I’d like to see whether he’s Anderson Turner’s student. Even if he is, he must be someone important in the design world.” Her eyes raked over Aria. “How could someone like you possibly be friends with a person like that?”
The contempt in her tone made my wolf snarl outright.
“That’s enough, Gina.”
“Gina, if you continue, you will leave.”
Grandma’s voice and mine overlapped, sharp and final.
Gina froze.
She had been ready with more venom, but the combined weight of our gazes pinned her in place. Tears welled in her eyes as she bit her lip.
She wasn’t used to being stopped, she was a spoiled brat.
“Why should I?” she snapped weakly, clinging to the last thread of defiance. “If she can’t prove it, then she gave Grandma a fake! Why should someone like that even be here?”
Her stare locked onto Aria, feral and hostile, like a wolf on the verge of lunging.
Collins, who had arrived, shifted nervously beside me, wiping his brow. I felt my alpha pressure bleeding into the room, heavy and dangerous.
Then...Aria spoke.
“Alright.”
The single word cut through everything.
I turned sharply. Aria nodded once, calm as still water. For a heartbeat, no one spoke.
Gina blinked, stunned. “What did you say?”
Aria smiled faintly. “I said alright. You want to meet my friend, don’t you? Since you insist, I’ll call him.” frёeωebɳovel.com
The confidence in her voice made my wolf pause.
