جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 595

Celeste’s POVThe Atelier hummed with its usual rhythm, machines whirring, jewelry pieces being inspected, Rachel and Jenny discussing a new chain design. I was leaning over my drafting table, adjusting a wax model of a ring, when the sound of the front door opening drew my attention.“Celeste?”I looked up and froze for a split second. Vivian. She didn’t usually drop by unannounced, not in the middle of the day, not without some pretext. She stood there, the sunlight catching the faint gold in her hair, and her expression was serious, almost determined.“Vivian! What—” I started, but she cut me off with a small gesture.“I need a minute. Just you.”Her tone was unusual, steady, sure, and unflinching. That made me tense. Something in the way she looked at me told me this wasn’t a social call. Not at all.I set the wax model down carefully and gestured toward the back office. “Okay… let’s talk there.”We walked in, and she shut the door behind us. For a moment, the only sound was the fa

Celeste’s POVThe morning air at the International Jewelry Association headquarters carried that crisp, electric energy only a city in motion can have.I adjusted the lapels of my blazer, feeling the weight of the title I had earned, Chairman of the IJA, settle over my shoulders like an armor I had grown into.Across the polished conference table sat Ryan, representing Aurora, Crown Luxe reborn, the man I had built a life with, my partner, my anchor. Our eyes met briefly, and I could feel the unspoken acknowledgment: rivals in name only.The boardroom hummed with voices, designers, directors, and industry insiders, each vying for influence, each aware that two of the brightest forces in jewelry design were in the same room.I took my seat, straight-backed and poised, Molly’s laughter still echoing in my mind from the night before. She was safe, happy, and ours, a joy that made the gravity of this position easier to bear.“Chairwoman Sinclair,” Liu began, his eyes sweeping the room befo