Chapter 4

There wasn’t much to prepare for their upcoming civil wedding, so Kya was able to spend some time with her family.

“Dad, are you sure you don’t want to go with us?” she asked her father while putting her cellphone and wallet into her bag.

She was wearing a white bateau top and a black tulip skirt. Her beautiful figure was clearly visible. She matched it with three-inch cutout sandals.

Patrick immediately shook his head and handed her a black card. It had unlimited funds, and she could buy whatever she wanted. She had returned the black card to her father before she left their house two years ago, and now he was giving it back to her.

“I have my other card, Dad. I don’t need—”

“This is yours. Julian left it for you last night. You already went to your room, and he didn’t want to bother you.”

She took the card. “But we’re not married yet. He has no responsibility to me.”

Her father shrugged. “Ask him why. For the meantime, have fun with your mother and sister. I’m glad to have you back, Kya.” He hugged her and gently patted her back.

“Me too, Dad. It’s good to be home.”

An hour later…

“What do you think of this one?” Kate asked her. 

They were still in the blouses section and hadn’t even reached the dresses and pants corner, but Kya was already dizzy from the number of things her sister wanted her to try on. Among the three of them, Kate was the most excited about shopping.

“How about you pick one of each? I like the nude color, black, white, maroon, and baby blue.”

Her mother and she exchanged glances when Kate suddenly squealed and quickly grabbed tops in the colors she mentioned.

“Fine. Just rest for now, and I’ll call you in a bit.” She turned to their mother. “Anything you want for yourself, Mom?”

“I’m fine, sweetie. I’m buying some jewelry for the both of you later. I’m good with clothes.”

Kate’s smile widened, and she left to look for more clothes. Kya was left with Rose on a bench.

Kya cleared her throat. “Mom, do you think all our shopping bags will fit in the car?”

Rose laughed. “How about having everything delivered to our home? You know Julian owns this mall, right?”

Kya furrowed her brow. “Since when? I thought the Carney family owned this.”

“Not anymore. They sold it to Julian last year. He just didn’t rename it, so it remained The Diamond Square.”

Suddenly, Kate’s head popped up from a rack. “Kya, what’s your waist size again?”

“I’m a size two.”

“Size two. Got it!” Kate disappeared again with a saleslady, and their cart was already full.

Kya just shook her head because she didn’t know where she would wear all the clothes Kate was picking out.

“You used to be a size four. But you look good, Kya. Just a little on the thin side. Are you feeling okay though?”

“Yes. Just a little lightheaded from stress, but otherwise, I’m good.”

“Maybe we should see our family doctor. When’s the last time you had your check-up?”

Kya grimaced. “Over two years ago.” She quickly avoided her mother’s gaze.

“Kya, you shouldn’t take your health for granted. You’re twenty-six now. You need to be healthy, especially when you get pregnant with your first baby with Julian.”

“Mom, we’re not even married yet, and we’re already talking about babies.”

Her mother laughed. “I’m sorry, sweetie. I’m just really excited that you’re going to settle down with the right man this time. I didn’t even see you marry Sebastian, so I’ll make it up to you. The sky is the limit, Kya. Just tell your dad and me what you want, and we’ll give it to you.”

She rested her head on her mother’s shoulders and sighed. “I don’t really want anything, Mama. I’m just glad we’re back in each other’s lives.”

Rose kissed Kya’s hair. “Me too, sweetie. I’m very happy you’re here with us.”

They visited a few more stores, and just as Rose said, their purchases would be delivered to their home, so they didn’t have to carry anything. The items should arrive before dinner.

Their last stop was the jewelry store. After Rose picked up a pearl set for Kate and Kya, Patrick called and asked if they were done because they had somewhere to go in a couple of hours. They had nothing else to do, but Kya didn’t want to go home yet. Kate saw her friends in the mall, so she said goodbye to them and left. Now Kya was going to be by herself.

“I can take a cab home, Mom. Don’t worry.”

Her mother immediately shook her head. “No cabs. Why don’t you call Julian and ask him to join you?” Rose teased her with a smile.

“Mom, he’s busy. Besides, shopping is not his thing.”

Rose laughed. “Shopping is not his thing, but the man owns the mall. How ironic!”

Kya couldn’t help but laugh with her mother. “Fine. I’ll call him in a bit. I’ll see you at home later, okay?”

“Alright.”

But instead of calling Julian, she called her best friend.

“Hello,” her best friend answered after a few rings. It sounded like she was driving.

“Sadie.”

“Who is this?”

“Oh come on, Sadie. I know you have my old number saved on your phone even if you’re really, really angry with me.”

There was silence on the other end. Sadie Roman had been her best friend since they were toddlers, but when she chose Sebastian, their friendship ended. Sadie hated Sebastian. She believed that Sebastian was only using Kya until he became successful.

If her parents were right, then her best friend was right too. She was such a fool for thinking Sebastian was more than meets the eye.

“I miss you. I’ll buy you anything you want if you come see me at The Diamond Square right now. I’ll send you my location.”

She heard her friend laugh. “I can’t believe you’re still bribing me with shopping up to now.” She sighed. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”

She stayed at the jewelry store while the saleslady followed her. Her mother introduced her to the manager as Julian’s fiancée, so everyone treated her specially. They even offered to take her to a private showroom to see their latest collections, but she declined. She wanted to stretch her legs too.

She saw a beautiful necklace, and when the saleslady noticed it, she spoke up.

“This is the Van Cleef Frivole in 18K rose gold with forty-three round diamonds. There’s also a bracelet, earrings, and ring to go with it if you want to see them.”

She was about to respond when she heard a woman laughing nearby. When she glanced in the woman’s direction, she saw Maya with another woman she didn’t recognize.

“Are you really going to look at that? I doubt you can even afford the box it comes in. You’re as poor as a rat, Rylee Scott. Have you forgotten that?”

The saleslady was suddenly puzzled when Kya was called by a different name by the newcomer. And why was the woman saying Kya was poorer than a rat when she was the fiancée of the mall owner and also from the Byrd family?

“Do you know her, Maya?” the woman with her asked.

“Addison, this woman is Rylee Scott— Sebastian's ex-wife. Did you know she rejected the settlement my fiancé offered?” 

One of Addison’s eyebrows raised as she looked at Kya, but confusion also showed on her face because of the jewelry Kya was wearing.

“Are you sure, Maya? She doesn’t look poor to me.”

"Don't be fooled by her looks."

Kya shook her head. “I don’t want any trouble, Maya. This is a large jewelry store. You can look on the other side, and I’ll stay here. Enjoy your day.”

She had no time to argue with Maya, especially in a public place. It would be a waste of her breath because she wasn’t on the same level as her anyway.

“Are you really planning to kick us out? What if I tell you that I want that jewelry you’re looking at?” asked Maya.

“Then you can buy it if you like,” Kya replied.

“How much is the set, Miss?” Maya arrogantly asked the saleslady.

“The necklace is $13,600, the earrings are $24,000. The bracelet is $5,850, and the ring is $32,800. The total would be $76,250. How would you like to pay, Ma’am? We only accept credit."

Maya paled while Addison fell silent. Neither of them could spend that much on jewelry alone. 

Even though Maya had a wealthy ex-husband, she only received fifty thousand dollars in her settlement because she didn’t follow one of the conditions of her marriage. As a result, she lost millions of dollars. She was saving what little money she has in the bank, so she was forced to work at Sebastian’s company, but her pretense was that she was just helping him. 

Addison, on the other hand, had a limited credit limit on her card, with only ten thousand dollars as her maximum spending money for a month.

“If you’re not going to buy the set, I will sell it to another customer. Excuse us.” The saleslady left before Maya could answer.

Kya followed the saleslady and paid for the set using the black card from Julian.

“Where did you get that black card?!” Maya exclaimed in shock. Even she had never had a card like that. “Miss, you should check the card. Maybe it doesn’t belong to you and was just stolen.”

The manager arrived and the saleslady explained what was happening.

The manager cleared his throat. “Ma’am, thank you for your concern, but the card is registered to this client’s name. Please stop harassing our valued customer or we will have to call the security to escort you out.”

Maya was horrified while Kya secretly smiled. 

One point for Kya. Zero for Maya.