Love's Change of Heart

Chapter 61

At the end of the day, all Ron wanted was money and not Jethro's life. When the shouting behind him fainted, he instructed his men to stop.

Sweeping his gaze past Jethro, who was half-dead, Ron then turned to Leanna. "I didn't expect you to be quite ruthless. You're just watching, even though he's your father."

Leanna's throat felt a little dry, and after a few seconds, she uttered, "If he still had me and my brother in his heart, he wouldn't have done something like this today."

This point was difficult to disagree with and Ron was quiet. "So, what do you plan to do now?" he asked instead.

Taking a breath, she answered, "Take this 50,000. As for the rest, no matter if you're asking him to repay you through labor or any other way, that's between the both of you and nothing to do with me."

Only by making one clean break like this would Jethro's other creditors know that it was useless to look for her for the money he owed.

After thinking for a few seconds, Ron looked at Louis, who was quiet the whole time. "What about you? Are you washing your hands off this, too?"

With a stone-cold face, Louis said, "He reaps what he sows. I don't care." Then, he grabbed Leanna's hand. "Let's go."

Watching them as they walked out of the room, a man asked, "Boss, are you going to let them leave like this? What about our money?"

Turning his head, Ron gestured to Jethro on the floor. "Isn't there another person here?"

Previously, Jethro was hounded by creditors as well, but he managed to catch hold of two million from somewhere afterward. Since he had channels like that, Ron didn't have to worry about not getting the money.

Crouching down on the floor, he said to Jethro, "I'll give you a few more days, but you better consider it carefully because the interest grows daily. Don't even think about escaping. I'll have someone follow you all the time, and if you make even the slightest move… Since I won't get my money, anyway, so don't blame me for not keeping you alive at that time."

After walking out of the main entrance, Leanna suddenly felt weak at her knees. If Louis wasn't there to hold her, she would have stumbled to the ground.

A long while later, she croaked, "Louis, I shouldn't have done this, should I? After all, he's—"

"Didn't you already say that if he still cared about us, he wouldn't have done this? If he could have no bottom line, why can't we do the same?" Louis argued.

Leanna kept quiet and didn't say a thing. Although she and Louis were numb to the things Jethro did, when she saw him being walloped to a pulp by a group of people, she couldn't help but feel very uneasy in her chest.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine," Louis assured. "Didn't you already give them money?"

Even though 50,000 wasn't a big amount, it was enough to guarantee his life.

"I hope so."

The past few days, she had asked for information about Ron. He was a loan shark, so he was smart and meticulous. So, he would never kill someone because he was mad that he couldn't get his money, which was a bad and uneconomical deal.

When they arrived at Leanna's place, Louis took out a card from his backpack and passed it to her.

Leanna was taken aback, and she didn't take it from him. "What's this?"

"There's some money in this card. I don't usually need this, so you can take it."

"Isn't the semester starting soon? You'll need money for everything, and you should keep it for yourself. Why are you giving it to me?"

Despite what she said, he stuffed the card into her hands. "I've set aside money for classes, and this is for you. You're pregnant, and there's no one by your side to take care of you. Just buy yourself whatever you want to eat."

However, Leanna wanted to return it to him. "I don't need it, really. You—"

Before she could finish her sentence, he already spun around and ran away. As she watched him from behind, a faint smile appeared on her face.

…

Ever since Queenie hit the jackpot offered by the Pearson Group, she had been in a good mood for several days. It seemed like Aidan was only kidding when he said that he didn't know her. If the Pearson Group didn't hold her in high regard, they wouldn't have sent her abroad to study in Aeras for three years or even focus on training her.

One should know that the Pearson Group provided all the top-notch resources, something that many designers couldn't have even after working hard for more than a decade.

In spite of that, this good mood of hers only lasted until she accidentally overheard people speaking in the pantry. As it turned out, this opportunity by Pearson Group was originally meant for Leanna, but she had rejected the offer, and that was how it ended up with Queenie.

All of a sudden, Queenie's face turned sour. Leanna McKinney again!

Three years ago, Leanna was the one who turned down the first spot in The Emerging Designer Competition, and thus, the chance to study abroad went to Queenie instead. Unexpectedly, things were the same three years later!

Why was she always the one tagging behind Leanna and receiving charity from her?

Back to the office, she whisked out her cell phone and called a number. "I asked you to find out about Leanna McKinney's ex-husband. How are things going with that?" ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

"I can't find anything. Are you sure that she was married? Could it be just a cover story?"

"That's possible, too."

Even though Leanna had clarified this with the media before, a homewrecker wouldn't admit that she was one. If she was really married, why would she hide it from others? People who had no idea might assume that her husband was some real bigshot.

In the afternoon, she went to Harvey's office with the design drafts for the new jewelry series.

With the best resources, she had studied design abroad for many years, so of course, she had the ability and competence, but she was a little eager for quick success because it could be seen in her designs that she wanted to overwhelm Leanna with all aspects.

Massaging his temples, Harvey said, "There's no problem with your designs, but Lux Jewelry already has the 'First Love' series, so you can give some other styles a try."

Obviously, Queenie had come prepared, and she answered, "I have to admit that the popularity of the 'First Love' series is quite high now, and this goes to show that the market likes this type of style. Furthermore, the style isn't completely the same. Once the finished product is released for sale to the public, we can also see which one receives a better response. Then, we'll know what's the choice of the market."

"So, you mean to say that if your series receives a better response than 'First Love', then we can stop the production and sale of 'First Love'?"

"Of course. It's the survival of the fittest."

Out of the blue, Harvey broke into a chuckle. "Queenie, I know that you want to surpass McK in everything, but you have to be clear about one point. This is Lux Jewelry, and we're in the jewelry

business, not a competition between employees."

His tone was calm and gentle, but his words were a little piercing.

"Lux is a top-tier magazine in the country. Because of this, all the more, you should know that you can only improve yourself by constantly surpassing others. Those who can't keep up will be eliminated," she argued instead.

"Then, did it occur to you that you might be the one getting surpassed?" Harvey asked.

"That's impossible. I—"

"Just because you've studied abroad in Aeras for three years, you think that you're more outstanding than McK in all aspects?" he interjected harshly. "Honestly speaking, there are times when no amount of hard work can be compared to natural talent."

The look on Queenie's face fell a little, and he continued slowly and casually, "That's the survival of the fittest. Do you understand it now?"