"I'd love to wait until you finish the design, Ophelia. Seeing the final piece will definitely be stunning."
Ophelia raised an eyebrow, her fondness for her niece growing by the second.
She was a highly tactful person who knew the unspoken rules of the design industry.
Even though Ophelia had sincerely invited her to look at the drafts, the girl hadn't been the least bit tempted, proving her stellar character.
“There's no harm in showing it to family."
Ophelia was now even more eager for her to see them.
Unable to decline, Claire let Ophelia persuade her.
It was just a preliminary sketch, but it showcased Ophelia's deep foundation in design.
It had a vintage feel without losing its modern flair.
"This is a retro jewelry piece, right? I think it's going to spark a huge trend over the next couple of years."
Claire clearly possessed high-end taste, even offering Ophelia a few minor suggestions.
Ophelia was pleasantly surprised.
"If you weren't so dead-set on studying medicine, I'd want you as my apprentice. How about a minor in jewelry design in college?"
Claire smiled and shook her head. "I studied a bit of design before, Ophelia, but it was fashion, not jewelry."
"Aesthetics probably share common ground. That's why we can appreciate each other's work."
So that was it.
Ophelia nodded. "Your mother always had impeccable taste in clothes. Her fashion sense was completely on point."
"Padgett hid all the photos she left behind, so we haven't seen them either, but you can always ask him."
"Every single outfit your mother put together was meticulously matched and absolutely gorgeous."
Melissa truly loved beauty, but no one expected her to choose such a grueling, unadorned path after starting college.
Ophelia often felt it was a heartbreaking shame for Melissa.
“Then I guess I inherited that from my mom," Claire chimed in with a bright smile.
After their chat, the two stepped outside, where the three men were waiting for them.
"It's a shame Karla is tied up with work, otherwise the whole family could have gone out and had ais proper vacation," Ophelia said, feeling a pang of regret after hearing about Karla's situation.
Karla
thrrently bogged down in
trouble, Even though she didn't need
to leverage the family's network they still worried about her .net
"Ophelia!"
Claire was supporting Padgett, just about to agree with Ophelia, when she heard the shout.
She paused and looked toward the distance.
Wasn't that Tiffany?
And Yolande was there too, along with a middle-aged woman Claire didn't recognize.
"Tiffany, what brings you to Apex?"
Ophelia was practically startled.
The moment she saw Tiffany, she wanted to turn right back to the hotel.
Sometimes, Tiffany was like a clingy leech.
In the past, they loved bringing Yolande along to play, but Tiffany always insisted on tagging along.
They only liked the sweet girl, not her mother.
But since she was the biological mother, it felt awkward to ban her from joining them.
This time, for Claire's Ivy Gala, everyone had a tacit agreement to skip inviting Tiffany's family.
Padgett didn't seem to remember them either.
It might have seemed like a snub on
their par
but in reality, Tiffany was
notoriously stingy. Not inviting her
was actually a blessing, Content"
It saved everyone a massive headache.
"I heard you were all in Apex throwing The Ivy Gala for Claire. Why didn't anyone tell us so we could come together?"
"Even if you didn't want me, you should have at least brought Yolande along, right?"
“Yolande has been missing Claire.” Tiffany pinched her daughter's arm. “Isn't that right, Yolande?"
"Yeah." Yolande looked entirely too embarrassed to speak.
She had really wanted to attend, but showing up uninvited just felt wrong.
“We were just worried about making you spend too much money," Ophelia explained with a polite smile.