All the sounds in the world seemed to quiet down.
She could only hear Logan’s soothing voice.
"Little one, you’ve suffered enough."
Selina felt as if something struck her heart—both sore and numb.
When Angelica falsely accused her, when Shareholder Taylor betrayed her, she hadn’t felt hurt.
But being held in Logan’s embrace and comforted like this, an indescribable wave of emotion suddenly surged within her.
Selina felt lost. Why?
She had survived all those years without anyone to console her, without anyone to rely on.
Yet now, the older she got, the more delicate she seemed to become.
"Logan, I’m not upset."
But Logan gently touched her forehead.
"With me, you can be."
"You’re being falsely accused, stabbed in the back by people you trusted—that is something to feel upset about. So you’re allowed to be."
Any girl in her position would feel wronged. Selina never cried, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t comfort her.
Selina blinked.
So... it was okay to feel wronged? It was okay to speak up?
She had gone through so much growing up that this kind of situation felt ordinary to her.
She had never thought about it before.
But now, here was a man telling her: "If they treat you like this, you’re allowed to say it hurts."
Selina’s voice was muffled.
"Even if the person hurting me... is your so-called lifesaver, I can still complain to you?"
Logan promised her, "Of course. Mrs. Reid, let me be clear—she may be my lifesaver, but you are the one I want to spend my life with. No one matters more than you."
Her heart softened into a puddle.
For a moment, she didn’t know what to say—just nodded blankly.
...
When they got home, Jack reported that the student who had caused the commotion refused to admit any fault, insisting that he was just "seeking justice for his idol."
The boy, relying on his status as a City A University student, assumed that Selina wouldn’t dare do anything to him.
Even at the police station, he continued shouting insults, while his parents demanded that Selina apologize instead, claiming their son was just "standing up for what’s right."
"Assaulting someone and calling it ’justice’? Looks like I need to take a trip to City A University and have a word with their principal about their education standards."
Just then, a male voice interrupted from behind.
Selina turned around. "Gavin? What are you doing here?"
Gavin scoffed. "If I didn’t come, who knows how much more you’d be bullied? Mr. Reid, Selina doesn’t need to apologize to people like that. You understand what I mean, right?"
Logan had never intended for Selina to apologize. "Of course."
"Good."
Gavin then turned to Selina. "I need to talk to you. Come with me."
Selina followed him into the backyard, confused.
"Gavin, did Logan offend you somehow?"
Otherwise, why did he seem so fired up the moment he saw Logan?
Gavin let out a long sigh. "Are you really that clueless, or are you just pretending? Angelica is only this arrogant because she has Logan as her backing."
James was so furious he felt dizzy. "Do you even realize how much effort I put into securing these deals? And you ruined everything with your plagiarism!"
Selina almost laughed out loud.
She wondered what kind of expression James would have once he found out who the real plagiarist was.
"Oh, so what’s the point of this call, Mr. Clark? Surely, it’s not just to yell at me?"
Katie shot James a look, signaling him to calm down. He took a deep breath. "Actor Damien is returning to the country. Clark Group has managed to establish a connection with him, and he’s willing to collaborate with us—but only if we clear our name of this plagiarism scandal!"
"I’ve decided to remove you from Clark Group and appoint Angelica as the official heir. Tomorrow at the gala, you will publicly admit that the plagiarism was your doing and had nothing to do with the company!"
Selina feigned surprise. "Mr. Clark, you’re kicking me out of the company, forcing me to take the blame, and asking me to attend the gala just to be humiliated? Do you think I’m an idiot?"
"Then what do you propose?!" James roared. "Unless you have a better solution?! Even if Angelica isn’t my biological daughter, she’s the one who secured Damien! That alone makes her more qualified to inherit Clark Group than you!"
Selina never expected the Clark Family to be this confident.
"You said... who secured Damien?"
Katie, unable to hold back any longer, interjected smugly, "Oh, obviously Angelica! Selina, don’t be jealous. Angelica has been in the entertainment industry for years—it’s completely normal for her to know an A-lister like Damien."
"He heard that our Angelica was wronged in the country, so he came back to support her! Isn’t Angelica just blessed? First, she has Mr. Reid, and now, she has actor Damien—both of them are big names."
Katie relished the thought of stepping on Selina.
"Selina, if you hadn’t plagiarized, Angelica wouldn’t have needed to bring in Damien, and James wouldn’t have transferred the inheritance to her. At the end of the day, you brought this on yourself by trying to take shortcuts."
"Plagiarists never have a good ending. That’s just how the world works—you should take this as a lesson."
Selina actually laughed this time.
The corners of her lips curled into a lazy smirk as she asked, almost playfully,
"Oh, you’re absolutely right—plagiarists never have a good ending.
But tell me, Mrs. Bryant... wouldn’t you know better than anyone whether I actually plagiarized?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Married First, Loved Later : A Flash Marriage with My Ex's 'Uncle'