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홈 / Romance / He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge / Eighty one: part 2

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Eighty one: part 2

작가: Ranya Vale
last update 최신 업데이트: 2025-08-05 18:45:32

The morning of the forum began with rain.

Not the kind that rattled windows or flooded sidewalks, but a fine, steady mist that softened the city’s edges. From the car window, the buildings looked blurred at the corners, as if the day itself had not fully decided what it wanted to be. Julian drove without speaking, one hand steady on the wheel, the other resting quietly on the space between us. I watched the water trail across the glass and let the silence settle in my chest like something sacred.

The forum venue was a repurposed gallery space, all white walls and high ceilings, with narrow skylights that let the morning light fall in deliberate streaks across the polished floor. Claudia was already inside, wearing black and moving with quiet precision, her headset slightly crooked and her clipboard full. She greeted me with a nod, not a smile, and I was grateful for it. This was not a morning for pleasantries.

The schedule had been updated.

My name was listed third on the panel, b
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  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 140

    The street outside was still damp from the rain that had passed through during the night. The kind of rain that darkens the brick and leaves the shopfronts gleaming under the early light. I arrived before anyone else and let myself in, locking the door behind me and pausing in the middle of the boutique for a moment before touching anything.It was always quiet at this hour. No footsteps overhead. No hum of voices. Just the faint ticking of the clock in the back room and the muffled sound of traffic from the main road. The air still carried the familiar mix I had grown used to over the years—cotton, cedar polish, and the faint sweetness drifting through from the café next door.I turned on the lights one by one. The racks lit up first, then the display table by the window, then the soft glow above the counter. The kettle went on automatically, a habit I never questioned. While I waited for it to boil, I stacked the fabric swatches Claudia had left out yesterday. She had been experimen

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 139

    I was standing behind the counter with a pen in my hand, trying to remember whether I had already signed the last invoice, when Claudia called my name from the front door. Her voice had that half-distracted tone she used when her hands were full. I looked up and saw her carrying the mail, a loose bundle of envelopes and a couple of small padded packages balanced against her hip.She dropped them on the counter, muttering something about the delivery guy being in a hurry, and went back to helping a customer by the display wall. I started flipping through the stack without thinking, the way you do when most of it will probably be bills or catalogues we never asked for.Halfway through the pile, there was an envelope that didn’t look like the others. No return address, just my name written in handwriting that looked careful but a little uneven, like the person had taken their time but still felt nervous. The paper was thicker than usual, not glossy or bright white, more like the kind you

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 138

    The wind was stronger near the waterfront that night, the kind that carried the salt smell from the bay and pressed the loose strands of my hair across my face. Julian had suggested we walk after closing the boutique, and I had not asked where. I just let him lead, his hand in mine, as we wound through streets where the lamps threw long golden shapes across the wet pavement. It had rained earlier, not heavily, but enough to make the air feel soft and clean.We passed the shuttered front of a bakery, the scent of bread still clinging to the doorway. Somewhere down the street a busker was playing guitar, not loud enough for words to carry but just enough for the chords to find us in snatches. I thought about the long day behind us, about the orders stacked up on my worktable, about the quiet pressure that had been building since Claudia’s proposal to expand into Asia. It had been a flattering offer. The numbers made sense. The opportunities were obvious. And yet something in me resisted

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 137

    It was late afternoon when Claudia came into my office, her laptop balanced in one hand and a folder tucked under her arm. The light outside had that soft, fading quality, the kind that made the gold lettering on the boutique’s front window glow against the street. She didn’t knock, just leaned her head through the doorway and asked if I had a minute.Her tone was even, but there was a brightness in her eyes I recognized immediately. Claudia only got that look when she had been thinking about something for long enough to convince herself it was worth saying aloud.“Come in,” I said, closing the sketch I had been working on.She set her things on the edge of my desk, sliding into the chair opposite me. “I’ve been running numbers,” she began. “And I think we’re at a point where we could expand. Not just another local space. I’m talking about opening in Asia. Singapore, maybe Seoul. Somewhere that would fit with what we’re doing but still open a completely new market.”The words hung in

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 136

    The rain had stopped just before sunset, leaving the streets with that soft, reflective sheen that makes the city feel as though it has been polished. I could smell damp stone in the air as I made my way to the little French place Lena had chosen. She had sent me a short message earlier in the day, asking if I could meet her for dinner. There was no hint of urgency in her words, but something about the way she had phrased it—no extra sentences, no playful remarks—made me think it was more than just a casual meal.The restaurant was tucked into a narrow side street, its doorway framed by two tall planters filled with rosemary and lavender. The air around them smelled green and sharp. Inside, the light was low and warm, spilling from shaded lamps onto white tablecloths. The sound of cutlery and soft conversation seemed to settle over me the moment I stepped in. Lena was already there, seated at a small table near the back, her hair pulled into a loose twist and her phone turned face dow

  • He Chose my Cousin, so I Chose Revenge   Chapter 135

    After the decision was made, I called the staff into the workshop. Some of them were still mid-task, and I could see the hesitation in their faces, the small glance toward the clock that meant they thought this was going to be another routine announcement.Claudia stood near the back, arms crossed, not in defiance but in quiet solidarity. Julian stayed by the doorway, letting the space belong to the people who worked here every day.I told them about the test results, about the supplier switch, about what it meant for the next few months. I didn’t soften it or try to dress it up as an “opportunity” or a “creative challenge.” I just told the truth.There was a moment of silence when I finished, the kind that feels heavy because everyone is measuring what it means for them. Some of them were probably thinking about the overtime they wouldn’t get, or the projects that would stall. But no one asked why we were doing it. They already knew.One of the younger seamstresses, Alma, was the fir

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