With a wave of her hand, Ashlyn closed the door and left.
She had just gotten into her car when Jessie called. She connected her phone to the car via Bluetooth and answered the call before she started driving. “Hello?”
On the other end of the phone, Jessie browsed the tablet in her hands as she said excitedly, “Ashlyn, you finally got over it! Did you finally decide not to hide your identity anymore?”
Ashlyn smiled and said, “Jessie, stop saying that.”
Jessie replied with a smile, “Denise made a public apology. Now all the upper-class ladies in this city are curious about how you are the daughter of the richest man in Bluepond. I’ve just sent you a screenshot. Check it!”
That was quick. Denise apologized so soon.
Ashlyn was driving, so she had no time to check her phone. Her smile widened as she said, “I just dropped my parents back at the hotel and I’m driving back. Safety first, so how about I call you back later?”
To Ashlyn’s astonishment, Denise apologized. It was unlike her.
Denise first apologized to Ashlyn on Line Moments. After all, she had falsely accused Ashlyn of being Stevie’s mistress, posting pictures on Line Moments.
Denise’s apology shocked the men and women of Courtbush’s upper class.
Ashlyn belonged to the Ramos family, the richest in Bluepond. The family was not only known locally but also one of the ten richest families in the country.
Ashlyn was Stevie’s daughter.
When she married Gordon, she took him for who he was and not for what he could offer her. He was no match for Ashlyn, in fact. But no one knew about this until now.
The upper class was very small, and there were only a few at the top of the social pyramid. Everyone in the circle knew that the Ramos family was not only rich but also powerful. Besides, the family of Ashlyn’s mother wasn’t inferior to the Ramos family.
Stevie wasn’t always wealthy. He married Vivien while he was still building his company. She was from the Palmer family and was way out of his league. However, he soon grew in wealth and power, but the wealth and power of the Palmer family still made Vivien his match, if not more.
The news that Ashlyn was the daughter of Stevie, the richest man in Bluepond, spread like wild fire.
Denise wasn’t surprised that her and her brother’s friends reacted the most. For she had given them the impression that Ashlyn was not worthy of her brother, Gordon.
When Gordon married Ashlyn, everyone in Courtbush looked down on her. They considered her not good enough for Gordon.
The divorce of Ashlyn and Gordon still didn’t change people’s impressions of her. Even when there was a rumor that Gordon might be having a love affair with Arabella, Ashlyn was still the laughing stock.
So, it wasn’t surprising that the news about who her father was left them dumbfounded.
Aiken was not very surprised when he stumbled upon Denise’s post on Line Moments. He thought she was playing truth or dare. He took a screenshot of the post and sent it to her, wanting to hear from the horse’s mouth.
Normally, Denise would have denied the authenticity of the news, casually waving it off as a joke.
But she hadn’t. This left Aiken more confused.
As Aiken contemplated Denise’s message, he was distracted by a knock on his door. Without Aiken’s permission, the door was pushed open, revealing Gordon and Keenan.
When Aiken saw them, he didn’t mind the interruption. Without hesitating, he demanded an explanation from Gordon. “What is your sister up to? She just apologized to Ashlyn and Stevie on Line moments. Listen to her latest update. ‘It’s my fault Ashlyn is subjected to so much mockery. She is not Stevie’s mistress, but his daughter.’ Tell me this is one of her random pranks.”
Gordon was clearly irritated. He wasn’t here to talk about the mess he was already involved in. “Shut up,” he barked at Aiken. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Aiken shuddered at Gordon’s angry voice. His heart skipped a beat because only a real situation could make Gordon react this way. “So, it is true then,” he mumbled.
“Yes.” Keenan cast a glance at Gordon. “Otherwise, Gordon wouldn’t be this mad.”
“Damn it!” Aiken hit the table very hard. “Ashlyn isn’t a good-for-nothing after all. She is a very rich and powerful lady. I’m not surprised you insisted on marrying her. You must have known that she is a Ramos.”
Hearing Aiken’s words, Gordon felt his heart sting. “I didn’t know she was Stevie’s daughter,” he said as he took a sip of his wine.
Aiken bit his lip, stopping himself from praising Gordon as a wise guy who went for the best.
He now understood how complex the situation was and this rendered him speechless. His face went pink.
After apologizing on Line Moments, Denise made the same apology on other social media apps. She also apologized on Twitter, while tagging the Fairway Group’s official Twitter account.
In the snap of a finger, almost everyone knew that Ashlyn’s father was the richest man in Bluepond.
Elvin couldn’t sleep the whole night once he came to know that Ashlyn was the daughter of the Fairway Group’s CEO.
The next day happened to be a weekend. Ashlyn and Jessie dropped Stevie and Vivien off at the airport together.
On the way back, Ashlyn received a call from Elvin.
But Ashlyn declined the call as soon as she saw who was calling.
Jessie, who was sitting beside her, thought that the call was from Gordon. “Let me guess. Now that Gordon knows that you are the daughter of the richest man around, they want you back. Am I right?”
Ashlyn stopped the car at a red light and turned to look at Jessie, her expression stoic. “That was Elvin.”
“Oh, that old man!” Jessie snorted. “He caused so many troubles for you and now that he knows your real identity, he probably couldn’t fall asleep last night.”
“I don’t care. I’ve got nothing to do with him,” Ashlyn said with a shrug.
Jessie nodded and then changed the subject. “Louisa said she wants to treat us to lunch today.”
“Great,” Ashlyn said, smiling.
It was rare for Louisa to be so generous. The last time Jessie and Ashlyn had tried to help Louisa get customers, all they had gotten in return was a membership card each.
It was already eleven o’clock when they arrived at the location that Louisa had sent them. As soon as Ashlyn got out of the car, she saw Gordon and his friends.
Jessie, who had just finished sending a text, followed Ashlyn’s gaze. She immediately looked back at Ashlyn and asked, “Do you want to say hi?”
Ashlyn spared Jessie a dry glance and said, “I don’t think so.”
Then, she turned around and walked into the restaurant.
Aiken had seen Jessie and Ashlyn too. He was about to make his way over to them to greet Ashlyn, but her reaction stunned him. “Come on! We don’t eat people!” he called.
He couldn’t believe she left without saying hello.
The expression on Gordon’s face darkened at his words.
Aiken saw this and added deliberately, “No contact after divorce. Ashlyn keeps her word.”
Gordon’s eyes narrowed as he watched the figure disappear in the distance. “Just shut up, will you?”
“Don’t be so angry, man. You are the one who wanted to divorce her.”
“Aiken.”
Aiken stopped at the look on Gordon’s face. He felt a chill down his spine as he watched Gordon’s eyes glitter menacingly. “Relax. I’m just talking to myself,” he said hurriedly.
Louisa had been generous in inviting Ashlyn to lunch, but she obviously had a purpose. Her bar was doing well now, and she also earned well. She had become a success and wanted to open a new branch.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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