Chapter 2
On the day of the jewelry design competition finals, I didn't even show up.
Emily sent me a live video from the scene. On screen, the host was on stage, announcing the champion, "The gold winner of this year's national jewelry design competition is Vanessa Reed, designer for Azure Jewels."
Vanessa, in a flowing white gown, elegantly glided up to claim her prize. I stared at the screen, my heart beating wildly. In my previous life, that trophy was mine—Vanessa only managed to snag the silver back then.
My fate was already turning.
"You missed the big moment," Emily complained over the phone. "CEO Evans Holdings handed out the award himself, and he announced he's investing Vanessa's own jewelry brand."
I gave a cold laugh. "They are a good match."
"Honestly, you seriously missed out. Charles is insanely hot—like, billionaire, the city's most eligible bachelor."
"Money means nothing to me. He's just not my type," I replied, my voice cool.
Emily let out a heavy sigh. "So what's your plan now? Without the competition, there's no way you'll get into Azure Jewels. Are you really okay with that?"
"I want to start my own studio," I said calmly. "I'm taking the road less traveled."
After hanging up, I fired up my laptop and searched for William Shaw's information. His academic profile came up, along with several papers—all focused on ancient jade and gold or silver artifacts.
I sent him an email: [Professor Shaw, this is Claire Winters. I'm really fascinated by the ancient jewelry and artifacts you mentioned. Would it be possible to arrange a tour sometime soon?]
To my surprise, he got back to me just ten minutes later. [3 PM Tomorrow, I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of Deverton University Museum. .]
The next afternoon, I hopped on a train heading to Deverton. William was already waiting for me outside the museum. He was dressed down in a simple shirt.
In the warm sunlight, his eyes gleamed with an amber softness that somehow put me at ease.
He flashed a friendly smile. "Didn't think you'd actually come."
I followed him inside. Every ancient piece of gold, silver, and jade on display totally blew me away.
"This here is a jade hairpin from thousands of years ago," he said, pointing out a glass case. "Look at how the wings curve. What do you think makes it different from modern designs?"
I leaned in for a closer look. "The ancient craftsmen really cared about how the lines flowed. Nowadays, designers are all about sharp geometry."
He nodded. "You nailed it. Even without fancy tools, sometimes the ancients understood beauty on a whole different level."
We spent the whole afternoon weaving through the museum halls, marveling at the brilliance of artisans from centuries past. William's enthusiasm was infectious—he opened my eyes to a side of jewelry design I'd never really considered before.
"You know a lot about historical jewelry," William blurted out, genuinely surprised. "Most designers just care about whatever's trending."
"I've actually studied the jewelry styles from different eras," I replied. "Every period had its own distinct way of seeing beauty."
By the time we stepped out of the museum, it was fully dark outside. William shot me a grin. "Are you hungry? I know a local restaurant around here. That's super good."
Beneath the cozy lights, we sampled the local food and talked about how ancient designs had crashed into today's trend.
William kept things light and real, cracking jokes without any pretense. That craving for knowledge sparkled in his eyes was so different from the scheming coldness I saw in Charles' calculating gaze.
"Why did you drop out of that competition?" William asked, curiosity all over his face. "No pressure if you don't wanna answer it."
I set down my fork. "Not every promising road leads somewhere good; some just send you off a cliff. I chose to walk a different path this time."
William paused, looking thoughtful. "Life is all about choices. Last year, a big tech firm tried to poach me, offering three times what the university pays. But I turned it down."
"Why?" I asked.
"I just couldn't let the lure of money turn ancient relics into mere commodities," he answered, eyes unwavering. "There's always something we just can't walk away from."
We traded a smile—right then, it felt like we'd finally found our kindred spirit.
On the train back to Flarmings, Emily's message popped up: [Claire, you won't believe this. Azure Jewels is teaming up with Vanessa for a new collection, and Charles is personally producing it. But get this, he's been asking around about you!]
My fingers froze. [How does he even know about me?]
Emily replied: [He checked out the past competition entries and couldn't stop raving about your designs. He's dead set on meeting you. Should I give him your contact info?]
I replied: [Absolutely not! Just tell him you can't get in touch with me.]
In this life, I would never step into that trap again.
Just then, my phone buzzed—it was from William. He said, "Hey, I just checked that there's an ancient jewelry exhibition in Flarmings next month. I'll be the academic advisor. If you're interested, we could team up and work on the exhibition design together."
Without a second thought, I agreed.
As I stepped out of the train station, a warm early summer breeze brushed against my cheeks. I took a deep breath. Finally, it felt like the shadow of my past life was fading. This was the start of something new. And for once, I'd actually dodged that first encounter with Charles.
But as I headed for the taxi stand, a black Rolls-Royce eased up to the curb in front of me. The window slid down, and there was Charles—arms resting on the edge, looking every inch the predator.
He asked, "Ms. Claire Winters, right? I've been wanting to meet you. I'm Charles Evans. Care to join me for dinner?"
My heart dropped. Was fate really this relentless? No matter what I did, it just wouldn't let go.