Chapter 4

Caelan's demeanor was cold and distant. When he told her to leave, it wasn't a joke. Jade didn't want to provoke him, so she quickly got dressed.

Her figure was well-proportioned with graceful lines—a perfect, slender body that any woman would envy. However, Caelan's gaze showed no sign of desire. Seeing that she was dressed, he jutted his jaw toward the door and coldly uttered a single word.

"Leave."

He seemed like an intimidating king looking down at her, evoking awe. Suppressing the swell of emotions in her, Jade nodded lightly in gratitude and made her exit.

Just as she reached the door, she heard a commotion outside.

"What, did she really do such a thing?" The speaker was none other than Jade's father, Melvin Severin.

Hearing Melvin's voice again fueled Jade's resentment. In her previous life, she had trusted him so much that she had treated him like her biological father, only to be deceived and lied to in return. Their supposedly deep father-daughter bond had been merely a ploy for Melvin to exploit her talents for the Severins’ benefit. This time, she wouldn't repeat the same mistakes.

Beside Melvin, Jade's adoptive mother, Gemma Fraser, said, "People have seen it. How could it be fake?"

She shot Neve a look while she spoke, giving her a signal.

Understanding the cue, Neve said in a soft tone, "Jade just had a bit to drink. She wouldn't shamelessly go to a room with a man. It must be fake."

"Fake? People clearly saw Ms. Jade enter a room with a man," someone retorted.

"Kick the door open!" Melvin ordered, sounding enraged.

Jade stood behind the door with an icy gaze. If she walked out now and was seen with Caelan, it would lead to another scandal.

"Still here?" Caelan's voice came from behind her.

Startled, Jade turned around, only to get a close-up view of his handsome face. His masculine aura overwhelmed her, leaving her flustered.

She forced herself to stand still. Just as she started to feel trapped in a dilemma, the door was suddenly pushed open. Propelled by the force, she fell into Caelan's arms.

"Oh my, Ms. Jade is really messing around with a man..." someone commented maliciously. However, before their sentence was complete, everyone’s eyes widened in horror.

No one had expected the man in the room to be Caelan Fitzgerald—the man at the pinnacle of Amerisia. The dream man of countless women and the epitome of money and power. Anyone who called him a scumbag clearly had to be blind.

"This is the scumbag you were talking about?" Melvin lowered his voice, glaring at Gemma, his expression extremely awkward.

Gemma, who had an equally dumbfounded expression, was wondering how Jade had gone from being with some random men to being with Caelan.

Neve exchanged a glance with Gemma, both of them expressing their confusion. Neve’s eyes were filled with disbelief. Their plan to tarnish Jade's reputation seemed to have backfired.

"Jade, why are you in Mr. Fitzgerald's room? And why did you change clothes?" Neve was the first to break the silence.

Her words drew everyone's attention to Jade, who was now wearing a different outfit. Not only that, but there were also suspicious red marks on her neck.

She was alone in a room with a man, and there were visible marks on her—this was enough for people to let their imagination run wild. Even if Jade hadn't engaged in any illicit activities with a random man, these two factors alone would suffice for people to label her promiscuous.

All eyes were fixed on Jade, filled with mockery and scorn. Almost everyone was eager to witness her humiliation.