Ch. 396..400: The Adorable Twins and Their CEO Daddy Chapter 396-400
Chapter 396
Eliana naturally felt the man’s restless hand, and she felt extremely disgusted in her heart. She quietly avoided his touch.
The man didn’t succeed the first time, but he didn’t give up. He even tried to touch her bare back.
This time, Eliana was in a panic.
“Sir, please behave yourself,” she said in a low voice.
The man thought that Eliana was just trying to play hard to get, so he said in a frivolous tone, “Miss Pierce, sometimes it’s not good to act too much. Aren’t you wearing this dress to attract men?”
He didn’t restrain himself. Instead, his hand continued to slide down.
The man’s rudeness made Eliana furious.
Maybe he thought she was a pushover.
She lifted her foot and stepped hard on the man’s foot with her four-and-a-half-inch stiletto.
“Ahhh!” the man growled, immediately withdrew his foot in pain, and let go of her.
Eliana took two steps back to escape from his control.
“How dare you!”
The man’s face turned pale, and his voice was filled with anger.
But Eliana just ignored him. She turned around and ran away.
At this moment, the dance music suddenly changed. Then a big hand pulled her away irresistibly.
Eliana was dizzy for a moment. Then the next thing she felt was that she slammed into a broad chest, immersed in a warm embrace, and a fresh woody scent penetrated her nostrils.
There was only one person she knew, who owned this scent.
She raised her head and exclaimed in surprise, “Eli! What are you doing here?”
Eli looked handsome and elegant in his Armani white printed suit. And there was a playful smile on his face.
“Of course, I’m also invited to this banquet.”
The music went on, so Eli held Eliana, and they danced trippingly on the dance floor.
He noticed that she was so skilled in dancing, so he couldn’t help praising her, “I didn’t expect you to dance well. But your dress…”
Eli wanted to say something but stopped on second thought. However, Eliana blushed with shyness, although he did not finish his sentence. “I’m sorry. My dress is too revealing today. And I met some bad guys. Thank you for helping me just now.”
“Eliana, why are you so embarrassed? You look great in this dress. Even though you met some people with bad intentions, it was their problem. It has nothing to do with your dress.”
His words made her feel a lot better.
As they danced, Eliana accidentally caught a glimpse of Eli’s left hand wearing a plain gold ring.
“This… This is the lucky ring I gave you. I didn’t expect you to really wear it.”
She was moved.
As soon as she got the ring, she immediately sent it to Eli. When Maurice found out about it, he was quite unhappy. But she was still very happy to see Eli wearing it.
Eli smiled brightly and said, “Thank you for giving me this lucky ring. I’ve been really lucky since I started wearing it. There are so many brands asking me to shoot commercials for them.”
Eliana secretly breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this.
It seemed that Maurice didn’t make things difficult for him anymore.
She then said playfully, “You are just so lucky to have escaped from Maurice.”
And when she thought of her current situation, she couldn’t help curling her lips.
The dance music became more and more intense. It was Eli and Eliana’s first time dancing together, but they had very tacit cooperation. Their dance steps amazed everyone around. The handsome man and beautiful woman in the middle of the dance floor were so eye-catching that the light was directly focused on them.
When the dance was over, Eliana was tired and panting. But most of the sadness in her heart seemed to have disappeared after such a hearty dance.
She politely bowed to the crowd and ended the dance with Eli.
The crowd suddenly burst into thunderous applause.
Looking at Eliana cutting a dash on the dance floor, Harriet was shocked and angry at the same time.
How did things turn out like this?
She should be the one in the spotlight. Eliana was supposed to be looked down upon by everyone.
She could no longer bear such humiliation, so she turned around and left angrily.
At this moment, a young woman walking over didn’t notice Harriet and bumped straight into her.
Chapter 397
With a crisp sound, the wine glass in the young woman’s hand fell to the floor and shattered into pieces.
The red wine splashed onto Harriet’s snow-white dress, leaving ugly red stains on it.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry.”
When the woman saw that Harriet’s dress was stained, she was panic-stricken. She kept bowing and apologizing.
“Are you blind? Look at what you’ve done. How dare you stain my dress! Do you know how precious this is?”
Harriet was so angry that she pushed the woman to the floor.
Unfortunately, the woman fell on the tiny pieces of broken glass.
“Ahhh!”
The woman couldn’t help screaming in pain as the broken glass pierced into her right arm and hand. Bright red blood immediately gushed out of her wounds.
She raised her right arm, dripping with blood.
Harriet was also startled when she saw this.
People around were all looking at them now, whispering to each other.
The noise also attracted the attention of the head waiter.
He rushed over only to see a mess on the floor and the woman’s ghastly pale face. The woman struggled to stand up, still trembling. The blood flowing from her arm dripped to the floor and mixed with the red wine. The scene was very frightening.
“What the hell is going on here?”
The head waiter’s face darkened, and he almost fainted. Just now, he was distracted by Eli and Eliana’s dance. How could such a thing happen all of a sudden?
The woman was a harp player and was supposed to do the last performance tonight.
Now that she was wounded, how could she perform?
The woman was in unbearable pain. Tears streamed down her face like a waterfall. She choked, “I…”
Before she could say anything, Harriet’s loud voice interrupted her.
“How rude!” She turned to the crowd and said, “This woman suddenly ran into me, so she fell to the floor and cut herself on the broken glass. Now she’s crying as if I hurt her.”
She falsely accused the woman instead of admitting her own mistake.
“No, I didn’t. Yes, I bumped into this lady. But she pushed…”
With tears in her eyes, the woman tried to explain. But Harriet interrupted her again.
“Liar! You fell on your own. You just want to blackmail me.”
Harriet sternly scolded the woman who had no way to defend herself. She looked around and found no one was willing to speak for her. So she had to look at the head waiter expectantly.
“Sir, please believe me. I really didn’t fall on my own.”
The head waiter looked at the woman who was crying and then at Harriet who he couldn’t afford to offend. All he could do was comfort the woman. “Don’t cry. You bumped into this lady. As for your wounds… You can go and bandage it.”
The woman stared at the head waiter in disbelief. She stood there helplessly, shivering.
The noise attracted the attention of all the people present, and they gradually gathered around.
Eliana and Eli were standing far from them. They heard the noise, but the crowd blocked their view, so they didn’t know what was happening.
The banquet was very lively. The smell of women’s perfume mixed with the smell of men’s alcohol in the air. Eli disliked the smell, and those hypocritical courtesies made him feel tired.
“Eliana, it’s too noisy here. Let’s go out and get some fresh air.”
That was just what Eliana wanted, so she agreed, “Okay, let’s go for a walk.”
Just when the two of them stepped out of the hall, someone suddenly appeared and draped a black coat over Eliana’s shoulders.
“It’s cold outside. Don’t run around.”
Eliana turned around, and her eyes widened when she saw the man.
“Maurice… You’re here.”
Maurice was the host of the banquet, but he arrived late.
His brows furrowed as he stared at her dress. His inner possessiveness surged wildly.
When he saw her figure from a distance just now, he felt something was wrong. It was not until she turned around that he saw her outfit clearly.
How could she dress like this?
Was she deliberately going against him? How dare she wear such a revealing dress!
When Maurice thought that everyone here had already seen Eliana dressed like this before he arrived, he was furious.
“Eliana, you take no account of my words, right? You wear such a dress to this banquet to go against me. How dare you!”
When Eliana heard his accusation, she suddenly got very angry.
Maurice was the one who chose this dress for her, and he insisted that she should wear it. Now that she did as he ordered, he still found fault with her.
“Maurice, don’t be unreasonable. It’s you…”
Eliana suddenly stopped.
Something seemed not right.
The anger on Maurice’s face didn’t seem fake.
She had been with him for so long, and she knew him well. He would not deny what he had done unless he didn’t do it at all.
Eliana suddenly recalled the scene when Harriet came to give her the dress. She was now enlightened.
This was not the dress Maurice gave her.
Harriet must have deliberately changed it.
Chapter 398
The longer Eliana thought about it, the more she was convinced that her guess was right.
Just when she was about to ask Maurice if her guess was right, Harriet walked up to them.
“Mr. Moran, you’re finally here!”
Harriet was now wearing a lime green dress, her hair neatly brushed, looking like nothing had happened.
When she saw Eliana and Eli, she couldn’t help teasing, “Eliana, your dance with Mr. Goodwin was a splendid sight to see! You two were so well coordinated that it almost looked like you were a couple! I never knew that you were romantically involved with an idol.”
Harriet seemed to be concerned that Maurice might not have noticed the unordinary relationship between Eliana and Eli.
Obviously, Eliana was not having it. She immediately corrected her, “Don’t say such nonsense, Miss Stone. Eli and I are just friends.”
However, Harriet wasn’t willing to back down either. She continued with a hint of sarcasm in her voice, “Oh come on, Eliana! Don’t keep secrets from me and Mr. Moran. I really think that you and Mr. Goodwin make a great match. If you’re worried about the paparazzi, don’t be. The paparazzi aren’t allowed to get into the Moon Lake Manor. You two can have your romantic time in peace here. Your privacy is guaranteed!”
When Maurice heard that, his eyes darkened.
Not only did Eliana wear such a sexy dress, she also danced with Eli?
“Eliana, you are really testing my patience!”
Maurice was completely irritated. He grabbed Eliana’s hand and was about to pull her away.
Clearly, Eli was not going to let him do that. He quickly grabbed her other hand and pulled her the other way.
“Let go of her!” Maurice warned, glaring at Eli.
“No!” Eli was unfazed.
Neither of them seemed to be willing to let go of Eliana, and she was understandably embarrassed.
Two men fighting for a woman attracted the other guests’ attention.
“Look! Isn’t that the CEO of the Moran Group and the idol fighting over a woman?”
“Who is she? Why haven’t I seen her before?”
“Look at her! She was dressed like a slut. Maybe she’s a tramp from a nightclub!”
“Well, she has an amazing body! Look at her plump breasts and long legs! No wonder they’re both into her. I am pretty sure that she’s great in the sheets too…”
People were commenting lewd and unpleasant things about Eliana.
Hearing their words, Eliana was very embarrassed and her eyes turned red.
She did nothing wrong. Why was she the one suffering?
“Let go of me, both of you!” she snapped, shaking off their hands. “I am begging you. Please, just leave me alone, okay? Do you really have to make things difficult for me?”
Unwilling to give up, Maurice clenched his fist and tried to force her to come back to him, but when he looked at her teary eyes, his heart sank to the bottom of his stomach, and he couldn’t utter a word.
Eli also felt guilty. He walked up to her and gently patted her on the shoulder as he said, “I’m sorry… Please, don’t cry.”
He then stepped aside quietly, letting her walk away.
Lowering her head and sniffling, Eliana suppressed her sadness.
Neither of them stopped her.
She walked to a quiet corner to get a breath of fresh air. All of a sudden, she heard a sobbing voice.
Her hair stood on end. She was terrified and froze in fear.
Who was crying? Why was someone crying there?
Was… Was that a ghost?
The Moon Lake Manor was a few hundred years old, and in most horror movies, such places were always haunted.
Oh, God! Could she even run away now? Or was it too late?
Gradually, the sobbing voice grew louder and louder until it sounded like it was coming from right beside her.
Hearing that, Eliana turned her head stiffly and saw a girl in white, squatting in a corner, wailing, her right hand covered in blood.
Chapter 399
“Ahhh!”
Eliana was so scared that she screamed.
But her scream also frightened the crying woman.
“Ahhh! Ghost!”
Two screams echoed in the corner.
Eliana patted her chest and stared at the young woman in front of her in shock.
The young woman was wearing a white sleeveless dress, making her look pure and delicate. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her face flushed.
Eliana only breathed a sigh of relief when she finally saw the young woman’s shadow in the dim light.
“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to scare you.”
The young woman kept apologizing, which made Eliana very embarrassed.
“I’m fine, miss. You don’t need to apologize.”
The young woman finally calmed down. She lowered her head and sobbed softly.
When Eliana saw the young woman’s pitiful appearance, she suddenly felt a little sympathetic.
“Miss, don’t cry. Why are you here? Why is your hand full of blood? My surname is Pierce. If you don’t mind, can you tell me what happened?” Eliana comforted the young woman in a gentle voice.
The young woman mumbled, “My name is… Jennifer Lawson. I’m the harpist for tonight’s symphony. I bumped into a lady at the banquet hall just now, and the wine glass fell to the floor and shattered. My
hand got injured, so I came out to find the first-aid kit. I have to stop the bleeding before my performance.”
Eliana looked at Jennifer’s bloody right hand and said, “Miss Lawson, I think it’s best not to go on stage since your hand is badly hurt.”
However, Jennifer suddenly became anxious. “I can do it. I must go on stage tonight. Otherwise, I will lose a lot of money.”
The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she became, and her tears fell again.
Eliana was taken aback. She wondered why Jennifer cried so easily.
Eliana couldn’t bear to see Jennifer cry so sadly, and she wanted to help her.
“Let me help you bandage your wound.”
She walked over and took Jennifer’s arm. She only glanced at it casually just now. But now that she carefully examined it, she found that Jennifer’s injury was more serious than she thought.
Shards of glass pierced deeply into Jennifer’s arm. Although she had clipped the broken glass out, one of the wounds was deep and long. And it was bleeding terribly.
Eliana couldn’t help gasping.
Just looking at Jennifer’s wound made her feel like her right arm was aching too. She couldn’t imagine how hard it would be for Jennifer to treat the wound by herself and continue to perform on stage.
“No, you can’t perform later. Your injury is too serious. You need to go to the hospital for immediate treatment.”
Eliana really wanted to take Jennifer to the hospital.
“No. If I don’t perform today, I will not only lose a lot of money, but I will also be banned from the industry. So I must do it.”
Jennifer shook her head frantically. She picked up her musical score and was about to leave.
The blood on her hand stained the pure white sheet of paper.
“Wait!” Eliana ran over and stopped Jennifer. “Miss Lawson, why are you so stubborn? It’s not good for you to play on stage in your current condition. Once your wound gets worse, your future career will be completely ruined.”
“But… I really have no choice.”
Jennifer covered her face and cried bitterly.
Eliana couldn’t bear to see it.
“Well… Let me help you.”
Jennifer suddenly raised her head and looked at Eliana in disbelief.
“Miss Pierce, can you play the harp?”
Harps were not as popular as pianos, so it was almost impossible to find another person to replace Jennifer in a short time. This was one of the reasons why she must perform.
Eliana took a quick glance at the musical score in Jennifer’s hand, said the title of the song, and crooned.
If Maurice was there, he could tell that the tune she hummed was the background music of the music box he had redeemed before.
“Miss Pierce, you really know how to play the harp!” Jennifer exclaimed in surprise.
Eliana smiled. “Now you believe that I can replace you, right?”
Jennifer looked at Eliana’s determined eyes with hesitation.
Was Eliana really good enough on the harp to replace her on stage?
Chapter 400
While Jennifer was still hesitating, someone came out of the banquet hall, looking for her.
It was Wilson Green, the head of the orchestra. And he was so anxious.
“Where the hell did that Jennifer go? If she ruins the show, the whole orchestra will be doomed. Go find her!”
As soon as Wilson gave the order, all the members of the orchestra, except for the ones who were going to play on stage, went to look for Jennifer.
Eliana heard the commotion, so she quickly took Jennifer to hide in the bush.
Then she said, “You see? You’re in a critical situation now, so there’s no room for hesitation. Don’t worry. I used to play harp before. I only stopped when my family went bankrupt. But I was really good at it. My harp teacher was a famous professor. Her name is Leah Hamilton. Have you heard of her?”
“Wow! Professor Hamilton? She is my teacher too,” Jennifer exclaimed.
She didn’t expect that she and Eliana had the same harp teacher. “If Professor Hamilton was your teacher…
And your surname is Pierce…” Jennifer thought for a while. Then her eyes lit up. “Miss Pierce, are you Eliana, the daughter of the Pierce family?”
“Wait, how do you know?”
Eliana was a little surprised.
“Professor Hamilton told me about you. She has been teaching harp for many years and has a lot of students, but you’re the only one she remembers well. She said that your mother was also a famous
harpist. Miss Pierce, you are so talented. Why didn’t you continue to play?”
As she spoke, Jennifer looked at Eliana admiringly as if she was a fan.
When she heard this, Eliana was stunned. Sad memories flooded her mind, making her feel bitter. She closed her eyes and said with difficulty, “It’s nothing. I just… I just wanted to quit. You’d better think of what to do now.”
Jennifer saw the sad look in Eliana’s eyes, so she didn’t say anything anymore.
Since their teacher had never forgotten Eliana after all those years, it meant that Eliana must be really good at playing the harp. Eliana must be better than her.
And she had no time to think of another way. Someone must show up on the stage now.
“Okay. Miss Pierce, please perform on stage on my behalf,” Jennifer agreed through clenched teeth. However, she thought of another problem. “But we look different. Won’t they find out?”
This was indeed a problem.
Eliana looked at Jennifer’s sleeveless dress and said, “It’s okay. Let’s just change our clothes, and I can wear some disguise. No one will recognize me.”
Now that things had reached this point, Jennifer had no other choice.
The two of them rushed backstage and quickly exchanged dresses. Fortunately, they were about the same size.
To avoid being recognized by Maurice, Eliana added a white veil to cover half of her face, exposing only her mouth.
After dressing up, she looked at herself in the mirror. And she was satisfied. She had perfectly transformed from a sexy lady to an elegant harpist.
She looked like Jennifer now.
The show was about to start.
So Eliana hurried to the stage. When Wilson saw her, it was as if he saw a savior.
“Jennifer, where have you been? We’ve been looking for you everywhere. You know how important this performance is, right? Come on, get on the stage now. Let’s talk again later after our performance.”
Eliana lowered her head and didn’t say anything.
Without realizing that he was talking to a different person, Wilson pushed Eliana to the stage.
Under the spotlight, everyone focused their eyes on the stage. The symphony orchestra began to play, and the melodious music wafted throughout the banquet hall.
Eliana had never held a harp for a long time. And now, she was so nervous that she sweated profusely and made a few mistakes when she first started playing.
Below the stage, Maurice and Harriet were quietly listening to the music. When Eliana hit the wrong notes, Harriet laughed and said, “It seems that the harpist is a terrible one.”
Maurice remained silent, but he frowned. His sharp eyes were fixed on the harpist on the stage.
He didn’t know if he was only being delusional, but he felt that the harpist looked very familiar. He seemed to have seen that rosy mouth somewhere.
Slowly, Eliana regained the feeling of performing in the past. Then she gradually immersed herself in the music. Her slender fingers danced between the strings, and the gentle and ethereal sound flowed from her fingertips like the sound of nature. She played the harp very beautifully.
In the middle of the performance was a harp solo, and everyone had already immersed themselves in the music. They couldn’t help admiring the harpist’s performance.
The whole time, another person in the audience had been staring at Eliana.
She was Rosamond. Looking at the harpist on the stage, who was wearing a white dress and a veil, she couldn’t help murmuring, “Ingrid, is that you?”