Empire 39

Chapter 39 

Jacklyn refused. 

“Jackie, what’s wrong?” Eugene slipped an arm around her waist, his gaze warm and lingering. “I backed you going to Fashion Week. Even if it messes up my geomancy still got you that necklace. So why can’t you do this one thing for me?” 

His voice grew more wounded with every word. 

There was a time when Jacklyn would’ve bought into it. But now, as she looked at him, all she felt was disgust. 

She swallowed the bitterness in her throat and forced herself to hug him. “I’m on my period.” 

Eugene hesitated, suddenly remembering it was Jacklyn’s time of the month. 

He used to keep track without being told, always ensuring he had everything ready for her ahead of time. He used to take care of her with painstaking attention. These days, though, Penelope was mostly on his mind. 

Guilt stabbed at him, and he straightened up abruptly. “Work’s been insane. It totally slipped my mind. Let me make you some chamomile tea.” 

Jacklyn didn’t say anything, but her heart stayed cold. The woman who used to be comforted by a cup of chamomile tea wasn’t there anymore. 

That night at Fashion Week, Jacklyn arrived in style, wearing a gemstone necklace. She’d barely stepped inside when a flock of socialites and wealthy wives descended on her. 

“Oh, Mrs. Lloyd, you’re so lucky. That necklace caught my eye the second you walked in.” 

“It’s identical to the one the Princess of Wimborne wore–the only one in the country. And truly, no one wears it quite like you, Mrs. Lloyd.” 

Jacklyn offered them a thin, polite smile. 

She used to tolerate these women for Eugene’s business. But now? Even pretending to smile at them felt exhausting. 

“Jackie.” 

Penelope moved through the crowd with a slow, deliberate sway of her hips. She wore a strapless gown, and with her hair pinned up, the gemstone necklace at her neck was fully visible. 

When she caught sight of the stone on Jacklyn’s throat, a smug laugh rose in her chest. 

“Oh, Jacklyn. Your man belongs to me now,” she thought. “The real necklace is around my neck, and here you are, just a sad little fool wearing a fake. What do you even have left to compete with me?” 

She glided up to Jacklyn with a smile. “Jackie, you’re Mrs. Lloyd now. Shouldn’t you know better than to show up in a knockoff? Isn’t this embarrassing for the Lloyds?” 

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. 

“Huh? Mrs. Lloyd wouldn’t do something like that, would she?” 

“Exactly. Mrs. Lloyd would never wear a fake. Everyone knows Mr. Lloyd bought this at an auction. There’s no way it’s a knockoff.” 

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Chapter 39 

Eyes flicked back and forth between the two necklaces as the crowd edged closer. 

+25 BONUS 

Jacklyn glanced down at her own necklace, a faint smirk flashing in her eyes before she brushed Penelope’s hand away. “I’m Mrs. Lloyd. Why would I bother with a fake?” 

Penelope thought Jacklyn was just putting on a brave act. She hooked her gemstone necklace with her sharp red nail. “You might be Mrs. Lloyd, Jackie, but the real necklace still belongs to me.” 

She leaned in, her lips nearly brushing Jacklyn’s ear, and whispered, “Jackie, guess how I got this necklace?” 

Jacklyn’s eyes flicked to Penelope’s neck, her faint smile lingering. She knew hers was the real deal. As for whatever was hanging around Penelope’s neck… 

She kept quiet, and the others took it as her having no comeback. 

The murmurs started fast, slipping through the crowd like a current. 

“So, it’s actually fake.” 

“All that media buzz for nothing. How is it even possible?” 

Penelope’s grin only widened as she listened to the whispers. She folded her arms and laughed. “Even the necklace is fake. Guess Eugene wasn’t as into you as everyone thought.” 

“What a scene we have here.” 

Just then, a tall figure stepped forward from the sea of onlookers. 

A voice piped up in recognition, “Isn’t that Abel Thorne, the designer from Perienne?” 

Abel was huge overseas, but a few years back, he left all that international fame behind and decided to settle in Cyrelia, opening his own studio. Plenty of young designers would kill for a chance to work under him. 

When Penelope caught the whispers around her, her eyes lit up at the sight of the foreigner. She stood and greeted him politely. “Mr. Thorne, you’re a legend in the design world. You must be able to tell whether my necklace or Jackie’s is the real one?” 

Abel gave her a brief glance and nodded, replying in lightly accented Cyrelian, “Naturally.” 

Penelope’s excitement flared. The thought of Jacklyn being humiliated publicly after being exposed by Abel himself for wearing a fake sent a thrill through her. 

What she didn’t know was that Eugene had already switched her necklace. And now there she was, practically shoving her face into Abel’s, waiting for her moment of “triumph“. 

Abel waved his hand and backed away. “Miss, I could examine your necklace a hundred times, but it won’t change the fact that it’s fake. Cylerians value honesty.” 

Penelope went stiff, rooted where she stood. “W–What did you just say?” 

Abel approached Jacklyn with a smile and shook her hand. “Mrs. Lloyd, your necklace is stunning. The shine and polish are absolutely perfect. You have incredible taste. It goes beautifully with your gown.” 

Jacklyn dipped her head graciously in acknowledgment. 

“You lying country fool! Mine is the real one! Mine!” Penelope shrieked, her face twisting in outrage. 

She lunged wildly, but Jacklyn dodged with easy grace. Then, she looked down at Penelope, her expression dripping with condescension. 

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Chapter 39 

+25 BONUS 

“A knockoff like yours still costs thousands of dollars, Penelope. Frankly, that’s more than your kind should be wasting on jewelry.” 

The onlookers started jeering. “See? When Mrs. Lloyd had Her birthday, Mr. Lloyd put that necklace on her himself. There’s no way it’s fake. Penelope’s only making a fool of herself!” 

Penelope’s face flushed red with fury. Fashion Week hadn’t even begun, and she was already utterly humiliated. 

Unable to stand the crowd’s scornful stares any longer, she turned and stormed off, boiling with anger as she disappeared from the event in a haze of shame. 

Once Penelope was gone, Jacklyn made her way back to Abel’s side. “Mr. Thorne, I should thank you for today.” 

Abel winked at her with a knowing smile. “You should be thanking someone else.”