The Double or more Life of the Fake Heiress (Mirabella)

James' lips twitched with amusement, clearly finding no fault in that interpretation.

He smoothly closed the window and walked back to his desk, settling down before speaking again. "This necklace would go perfectly with that jade pendant

Catherine gave you."

Mirabella had thought the same, but before she could say anything, James continued.

"Catherine mentioned the jade is meant to keep you safe; we can't just ignore her kind intentions," James said softly, remembering how Catherine had called him a few days ago to mention it.

Mirabella pinched the bridge of her nose, a gesture of resignation, and retorted, "Spreading superstitious beliefs isn't exactly wise." Yet, as she spoke, she couldn't help but pull open a drawer and take out the jade pendant.

The sound of the drawer opening reached James through the phone, prompting a suppressed chuckle from him. "Make sure to wear it," he reminded her.

"Got it," Mirabella replied in a drawn-out manner, placing her phone on the desk and threading the pendant through the necklace.

The elegant necklace paired with the delicate jade pendant surprisingly didn't look tacky at all, Mirabella noted with a raised eyebrow, impressed by his choice.

Thinking it over, she put on the necklace and made a point to check her reflection in the mirror. The jade's luminous quality against her fair skin almost made it seem as though it was a part of her.

Touching the pendant with her fingertips, she quickly tucked it under her clothes, her thoughts drifting to the herbs Curtis had sent over before she left the room.

*

A few days later, Mirabella was about to head out for her driving lesson and decided to give Grady a call, asking him to find a spot where she could hand over the herbs.noveldrama

Grady was unexpectedly thrilled to receive a call from the young miss herself, especially her initiating a meet-up. After a moment of excitement, he suggested they grab lunch together after her driving session.

Hanging up, Grady's gentle demeanor hadn't faded when he walked into the boardroom, leaving the two dozen department heads staring at him as if they'd seen a ghost, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

Was this their usually stoic chief executive?

Such a benign look was almost unheard of, making everyone question if they had walked into an alternate reality that morning.

Grady, noticing the bewildered stares from his team, quickly regained his usual composed and cool demeanor. "...Any other matters to report? If not, let's adjourn the meeting."

The room remained silent, as no one had actually started reporting yet.

His assistant, Atlas, cleared his throat and leaned in to whisper, "Sir, the meeting hasn't started yet."

Grady's response was a calm acknowledgment, "Then let's proceed."

An hour later, the executives left the room feeling unexpectedly light-hearted. They had braced themselves for a barrage of criticism, but the chief was surprisingly lenient today, sparing them any harsh words.

This shift in demeanor led them to speculate about that phone call Grady received during the meeting, sparking curiosity about who was on the other end.

As Atlas was the last one tidying up the documents, he was quickly cornered by his curious colleagues.

With a slight lift of his eyebrows and a posture that commanded respect, Atlas solved the mystery for them. "Isn't it obvious? It was the young miss."

Realization dawned on the others.

"It seems the young miss saved us today," one remarked.

"Wonder if mentioning the young miss in the future could make the chief a bit more humane?"

"Judging by today's events, it's quite possible."

The group casually joked amongst themselves, half-seriously anointing the young miss as their new talisman.

Atlas, keeping his thoughts to himself, headed to Grady's office, leaving the others to their musings.