Chapter 2

Julia froze when the gloves hit her.

A few seconds later, she let out a piercing scream.

"You hit me? You actually hit me! Do you even know who I am?!"

She turned to the camera, tears spilling on cue like she had flipped a switch, her acting worthy of an award.

"Guys! Did you see that? He started it!"

The livestream exploded, the screen filling with insults aimed at Ethan.

[Let's dox him! Who does he think he is, hitting Ms. Stone?]

[You can tell he hates rich people. He's disgusting!]

[Call the cops! Get him arrested!]

Seeing the crowd turn in her favor, Julia got even more arrogant. She pointed right at Ethan's face.

"If you don't drop to your knees, clean my shoes, and apologize properly, neither of you is walking away from here today!"

The two bodyguards cracked their knuckles, clearly ready to jump in.

Ethan was about to snap, so I quickly stepped in front of him and blocked his arm.

Don't get me wrong. I wasn't protecting Julia. I just didn't want Ethan throwing a punch and sending her straight to the ICU. If that happened, she would latch onto us and never let go.

"Hold on!" I called out, pulling out my phone. "If you're really the Stone heiress, let's verify that right here."

In front of everyone, I dialed the contact labeled "Dad."

He picked up after two rings.

"Hello? Sweetheart! Why are you calling me right now? Are you running low on money? I just transferred four million into your account. Go buy yourself something nice…"

On the other end, the richest man in Avensville sounded absurdly eager to please, like an over-the-top butler.

I put the call on speaker, his voice echoing clearly through the street.

Ethan's expression darkened even further.

I cleared my throat and asked loudly, "Dad, quick question. Did you secretly have another daughter out there without telling Ethan and me?"

"Another what?" my father sounded completely confused. "Honey, what are you even talking about? Your mother's the only woman I've ever been with. Where would I get a secret daughter from? I swear I'm telling the truth!"

I glanced at Julia, whose face had gone pale, and pressed on.

"That's weird. There's a Julia Stone standing right in front of me, claiming she's your only daughter and that you really spoil her. She even said she's going to take Ethan as her personal servant and make sure we can't survive in Avensville."

There was a three-second silence on the other end.

Then came my father's cold laugh. "Impersonating my daughter? And she's bullying Ethan, too? That's interesting. I'll look into this right now. Where are you? Just come home first. Don't waste your time on a lunatic."

I hung up and smiled at Julia. "Did you hear that, 'Ms. Stone'?"

Julia's face shifted between pale and flushed. A flicker of panic flashed in her eyes before greed and stubborn denial took over.

She lifted her chin and sneered at the camera.

"Please! Anyone can hire some old guy to act. You think a phone call is enough to scare me?"

I just stared at her.

I used to think people this dumb only existed in scary movies. As it turned out, they were real.

When I didn't respond, Julia took it as fear. She smugly flipped her hair, her gaze sliding openly over Ethan.

He was wearing a simple white dress shirt today. It was stained now, but his broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs, and that cold, untouchable face still made him stand out.

Julia swallowed, her expression turning slick.

"Hey, handsome." She reached out, trying to touch his chest. "I was a little harsh earlier. Hope I didn't scare you. Be my personal attendant. That hundred bucks I offered was just a tip. Stick with me, and I'll make sure you've got luxury cars and mansions."

Her fingers moved toward the buttons on his shirt.

"Don't touch me." Ethan stepped back, disgust flashing in his eyes, as if he was looking at something filthy. "You're disgusting."