Chapter 3
At seven o'clock, the Reed family Estate was glowing with lights.
It was Mrs. Reed's sixtieth birthday, and the place was packed with relatives and friends.
When I arrived, Jonathan was standing in the middle of the living room, chatting with a woman in a white dress.
I knew her.
Emily Stone.
The one in the photo, with her arms wrapped around Jonathan's neck.
Back in my last life, she was the so-called consultant for the new restaurant Jonathan opened.
She was also the one Jonathan always said really got what he was about.
Emily spotted me and spoke up first.
"Grace, you made it! Jonathan was worried you wouldn't come because you weren't feeling well," Emily said, her voice so warm and familiar it almost felt like she owned the place.
Mrs. Reed was sitting on the sofa.
"If you're not feeling well, you should've just stayed home. Why come here and show attitude? There are so many guests today, don't let anyone say the Reed family has no manners," she said.
Everyone in the living room turned to look at me.
In my previous life, I held back my feelings and handed Mrs. Reed the carefully chosen brooch.
She barely looked at it before having the maid take it away.
Later, when Emily gave her a hand-knitted shawl, Mrs. Reed put it on right then and there, going on about how thoughtful Emily was.
This time, I set the gift box down on the coffee table.
Mrs. Reed didn't even reach for it.
"You bought another one of those fancy but useless things again?" she scoffed.
I shot Jonathan a look.
"You told me to buy it," I said.
Jonathan's face darkened.
"Mom, just open it and see," he said.
Emily flashed a smile, trying to smooth things over.
"Auntie, Grace really went all out for you. Just take a peek," she coaxed.
Mrs. Reed finally nodded for the maid to open the box.
Inside was a gold bracelet, thick, gaudy, and so bright it practically screamed for attention.
Mrs. Reed's expression soured in a heartbeat.
"I've told you before, I can't stand this kind of tacky stuff," she said.
One of the relatives snickered and said, "Grace means well, but her taste is a bit off."
Another one chimed in, "She's always cooped up at home, how would she know anything about this?"
Emily pulled out her own gift.
It was an old wooden box, and inside was a simple scarf.
Mrs. Reed's eyes brightened.
"This color is so elegant," she said.
Emily said in a gentle voice,
"Auntie, Jonathan told me you used to love simple, elegant things, so I asked a friend to find this scarf just for you."
Mrs. Reed pulled out the scarf and draped it over her shoulder right away.
"Emily just gets me," she said.
Everyone started gushing over how thoughtful Emily was.
Jonathan just stood there, not even bothering to speak up for me.
I fixed my gaze on the scarf and spoke up, "Ms. Stone, are you sure you had a friend track this down for you?"
Emily turned to look at me.
"Grace, what exactly are you getting at?" she said.
I walked over and pointed to the tiny embroidered letters in the corner of the scarf.
"I bought this scarf last year when I was in Silverlake. I was planning to give it to Mom, but she said the color was too dull and not auspicious, so I just left it in the storage cabinet at home," I said.
The living room went dead silent for a moment.
Mrs. Reed's smile froze on her face.
"Don't talk nonsense!" she snapped.
I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my purchase history.
"The store name, the date, the payment record, it's all right here. And see this embroidery? The shop owner stitched it for me," I said.
Emily quickly pulled her hand back.
Jonathan finally spoke up.
"Grace, today's Mom's birthday," he said.
I nodded.
"That's why I didn't accuse her of stealing. I'm just curious which friend helped her find it," I said.
Emily's eyes started to well up with tears.
"Jonathan, I really didn't know this belonged to Grace. I was at your place picking up some files, saw it on the table, and thought you'd picked it out for Auntie," she said, her voice shaky.
Mrs. Reed quickly cut in.
"Alright, it's not a big deal. Emily meant well," she said.
I gave a sarcastic laugh.
"Is that what you call 'meaning well', using someone else's things as your own gift?" I shot back.
Mrs. Reed tossed the scarf back into the box.
"Grace, are you really going to make a scene today?" she snapped.
"I'm not making a scene," I replied.
I slid the gold bracelet forward.
"If you don't like it, just return it. The receipt's inside, exactly 70,000 dollars," I said.
The relatives who'd been laughing about how tacky it was a minute ago now couldn't take their eyes off the bracelet.
70 grand.
Tacky or not, that was real gold.
Mrs. Reed's face kept changing, her expression shifting from one emotion to another.
Emily stood there, looking like she'd just been slapped in the face.
If Sophie had been here, she'd probably be laughing so hard she'd be pounding the table.
Jonathan stepped up beside me, his voice low and tense.
"What exactly are you trying to pull?" he asked.
I lowered my voice too.
"I spent your money buying a gift for your mom. Isn't that what you wanted?" I shot back.
"You know that's not what I'm talking about," he said.
"So what are you talking about, then? Is it Ms. Stone passing off my things as her own gift, or is it that your whole family thinks I'm just a pushover?" I fired back.
Jonathan stared at me.
I looked up at him.
"Jonathan, if you want me to play nice, just send me the money," I said.
A vein throbbed at his temple.
But with everyone watching, he couldn't lose his cool.
He pulled out his phone and sent me 150,000 dollars.
As soon as the money hit my account, I smiled and hooked my arm around Jonathan's.
"Mom, happy birthday," I said sweetly.
Mrs. Reed was so stunned she couldn't say a word.
Emily looked down, straightening her skirt, her nails quietly scraping against the fabric.
She couldn't stand it.
I knew it.
In my previous life, it wasn't just Jonathan who drove me over the edge.
It was also Emily, always popping up right when it mattered.
She snatched away my gifts, my recipes, and even my husband.
In the end, she stood right next to Jonathan and sighed softly, like she had it all figured out.
"It's such a shame about Grace. If she hadn't been so dramatic, Jonathan wouldn't have had to work so hard," Emily said, her voice full of fake sympathy.
Everyone was busy feeling sorry for Jonathan back then.
No one ever bothered to ask if I was hurting.