Ch. 1..10
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 1
“Ouch…”
As Maisie gradually regained her consciousness, all she could feel was her splitting headache and the throbbing pain all through her body, as if she had just been hit by a car. She furrowed her brows at the unease, but she could not find the strength to shrug it off.
She could barely make out the silhouette of the man in the dark but could smell the unique fragrance of Gucci cologne, lightly wafting through the air.
The man stayed silent the entire time while he pressed his body against her, kissing and nibbling her slender neck…
As dawn crept up, the morning sun shone in.
Maisie suddenly opened her eyes. She was astonished to find herself naked in bed with a stranger lying next to her. He had his back turned against her.
Maisie’s face turned pale as flashbacks of the night before suddenly came back rushing back to her. It was not a dream after all!
How had she ended up here?
All Maisie could recall from last night was that she had been celebrating her birthday with Willow. After taking a few sips of the sangria Willow had brought to her, she passed out!
Could it be that her drink had been spiked!?
Maisie gnashed her teeth and walked out of bed. With every ounce of composure within her, she tried to remain as calm as she could. She swiftly slipped on her clothes from last night, tidied herself up, and fled. She needed to get home immediately so that she could talk to Willow and find out what had happened!
*****
When Maisie reached home, she saw her father sitting on the sofa waiting for her. Stephen asked with a calm expression, “Where were you last night?”
Maisie pursed her lips, thinking about the events of last night before finally replying, “I fell asleep in a friend’s house.”
‘Bam!’
Slamming a picture on the table, he roared furiously, “I know you spent the night with a man in a hotel room! How dare you lie to me?”
The sight of the photo made the blood drain from Maisie’s face. It was a picture of a man she did not recognize, helping her into a hotel room.
Willow rushed down the stairs in her high heels. “Dad, calm down.” As she continued to talk, she walked toward Maisie and pretended to nag at her. “Zee, how could you embarrass the family like this? Even if you are in love with the man, you should know not to cross the line before getting married.”
Maisie was completely startled. What did she mean by that?
She had clearly been unconscious at the time!
Just as she suspected, Willow would never be so kind as to celebrate her birthday for her. It had all been a set-up! Maisie tried to explain herself, “Dad, listen, I was out celebrating my birthday with Willow. There was something in the drink that Willow gave to me—”
“That’s enough!” Stephen stood up, pointed his finger at her, and growled, “Willow is your big sister. Don’t you dare blame her for your own actions!”
‘Sister?’
Listening to her father’s accusations, Maisie clenched both her fists tightly until they trembled. Her mother should have known that her father was an unfaithful man. He had been keeping a woman on the side from the very start.
Who could have guessed that within a year after her mother’s passing, even before her ashes had turned cold, he would remarry so quickly with Leila Scott? What had come as a greater surprise to Maisie was finding out that they had long given birth to a daughter of their own!
Maisie had always known that Willow was trying to win over their father for years now. She would act a certain way in front of their father and turn into something else behind him. Never did it ever occur to Maisie that Willow would try to sabotage her on her very own birthday!
“I was planning to pass on Vaenna Jewelry to you when you finally came of age, but y-you… I can’t believe you pulled such a stunt to tarnish the family name! I never want to see your face again! The Vanderbilt could do better without a shameless wretch like you for a daughter!”
Maisie stuttered, “Dad, a-are you… kicking me out?”
Stephen smashed the mug he was holding right at her feet. “Get the hell out of here!”
Trembling uncontrollably, Maisie lifted her head only to catch Willow sneering back at her along with her father’s untrusting grimace. She could not help but feel a chill in her heart.
As Maisie was dragging her luggage out through the front yard, Willow came up to her. Pretending to be sweet, she reached out an arm and offered to help with the luggage. But instead, her reaching hand was slapped away by Maisie. “Get lost.”
Seeing Maisie’s hostile attitude toward her, Willow finally showed her true colors. “I’ll be honest with you. I did add a little something into that drink last night. I’m guessing it must feel horrible to be tainted by a man.”
With much dismay, Maisie chewed on her lips. “You and Leila got what you wanted by worming your way into our home. What more do you want?”
“What I want is your status!” Willow walked right up to her and stared fiercely into her eyes. “Why am I the illegitimate child when you get to be the crown jewel of the Vanderbilts? You were born noble and proud, weren’t you? Well, now you’re nothing but a used, torn-up shoe. By now, you should know where you stand. So, why don’t you just move along.”
Willow waved her phone in front of Maisie’s face with much delight.
“If you don’t want this video leaked to the media and risk ruining your life forever, then hit the road.
“And don’t ever come back!”
Maisie stared back blankly. She loosened her clenched fists. She hauled her luggage off the ground with a stiff look on her face and headed straight into her car without a second glance.
Willow watched as the car drove farther and farther away. A smug smile spread across her face. Not only did the Vaenna Jewelry now belong to her, but everything else under the Vanderbilt was hers for the taking!
Just as she was about to turn around, a Rolls-Royce stopped right at their front door. Four bodyguards in black got out of the car and stood in a line next to it. With a long leg forward, a man stepped out. He was tall and had an athletic build. He wore a black striped suit, elegant and simple, yet posh at the same time.
Willow was frozen in place, ‘Isn’t that… Nolan Goldmann, the successor of the Goldmann family from the royal capital of Bassburgh?’
The CEO of Blackgold Group, also known as the youngest king of business and commerce in the patriarch of Zlokova. Nolan Goldmann had a net worth of hundreds of millions. Not to mention, he was a very powerful man within the royal capital!
What was he doing here at the Vanderbilt manor?
Nolan Goldmann’s unfeeling eyes swept over her. He uttered coldly, “Are you, Willow Vanderbilt?”
Her heart skipped a beat. He recognized her!
She nodded gleefully and chimed, “Yes, that’s me.”
“Were you the woman who spent the night with me in the Empyrean Hotel, Room 6228?”
Willow pressed her lips together.
Empyrean Hotel, Room 6228!
The room she had purposely reserved for that shameless b*tch? Could it be that the man Maisie had slept with last night was not the old fart she had intended? But rather, it was Nolan Goldmann!
‘That darn b*tch! I can’t believe she lucked out!
Maisie could have all the luck in the world, but so what? In the end, she was nothing more than just a stepping stone. Oh, Nolan. Who in their right mind would ever pass up on the chance of becoming your lover?’
Willow nodded with a grin. “Why, indeed. I’m the woman you were with.”
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 2
At the airport of the royal capital of Bassburgh…
Among the sea of tourists, a mother and child walked out. At that moment, all eyes were on them.
To be precise, it was actually a mother with three exquisitely beautiful children.
The woman was glamorous and poised. What made people stop and stare was the stunningly gorgeous little girl she was carrying in one arm. The girl had thick, curly locks, which made her look just like a doll.
The two similar-looking boys following alongside her had excellent features, a pair of sparkling amber eyes, dark brown hair, and milky-white skin. They seemed so surreal!
The woman standing in front of the BMW took off her sunglasses. Watching Maisie Vanderbilt carrying a child in her arms and the other two following closely behind, she gasped in shock. “Holy cow, Zee! You had three kids in just one pregnancy?”
She was rendered speechless by the sight of them! Forget the fact that Maisie had triplets, what was truly unbelievable was how they looked like angels sent from Heaven, and they were still so young! The woman could not help but wonder who was this handsome celestial being that Maisie had slept with!
Maisie put down the little girl in her arms. Touching all three of their little heads, she said to them, “Meet your godmother, Ryleigh Hill.”
Ryleigh was Maisie Vanderbilt’s best friend. After getting kicked out of the Vanderbilt manor, she had gone abroad. Ryleigh had stayed by her side the entire time.
Not long after settling down, she had realized she was pregnant. She had considered abortion. It was Ryleigh who had kept trying to persuade her otherwise that she finally decided to keep the babies.
In order to allow her best friend a comfortable life abroad, the headstrong daddy’s princess pawned one of her father’s antiques, which was worth $6,000,000, and gave Maisie the money.
Maisie’s bank cards had been frozen when she got kicked out of the Vanderbilt manor. If it weren’t for Ryleigh, Maisie would have been sleeping on the streets.
“Nice to meet you, Godmother!” The three rugrats bowed down in an unsynchronized manner as they greeted her with their honey-soaked kiddie voices.
Overwhelmed by their cuteness, Ryleigh felt the blood rush to her head. She smiled and waved back at them. “Aww, you sweethearts are such angels!”
The second eldest, Colton Vanderbilt, turned his head to his eldest brother, Waylon Vanderbilt, and garbled, “Our godmother sure looks silly!”
Maisie placed each of her hands onto the two boys’ heads. “What are you two whispering about?”
“Umm…” Colton hesitated.
The youngest among them, Daisie Vanderbilt, proudly sold them out. “Waylon and Colton were wondering why Godmother looks so silly!”
The two boys were dumbfounded. She was undoubtedly their sister.
As Ryleigh was driving, she glanced through the rear-view mirror to see the little rugrats snuggling up to one another, fast asleep. Finally, she asked, “Zee, why did you decide to return to Zlokova now?”
Maisie, who was leaning against the passenger seat window and curling her hair playfully on her fingertips, gushed with a giggle. “Vaenna Jewelry paid $7,000,000 to poach me so that they could hire me as a designer.”
“Doesn’t Vaenna Jewelry belong to your family?” Ryleigh tutted and shook her head in disbelief. “Your cunning b*tch of a sister, Willow, is now the director of Vaenna. You’re saying, she paid $7,000,000 to hire you?” She let out a chuckle at the thought of that. “When she finds out that you are the world-renowned designer, Zora, from Stoslo, she’s totally going to flip out!”
Zora had caused quite the buzz in the international jewelry scene. Her work combined modern jewelry elements with vintage Victorian-style craftsmanship. Every one of her designs was known to people as the work of God.
Even the royal crown worn by the queen of Stoslo during her wedding last year had intricately been designed by Zora.
Ryleigh thought hard but still could not make sense of it. “You came back for just $7,000,000? You are worth way more than that. Aren’t you giving them too good a deal?”
When the jewelry company in Stoslo, Luxella, had wanted to hire her, they had offered a price of $90,000,000!
Maisie turned to look at her with a broad grin. “Which is why I declined their offer and made a new one for $150,000,000 instead. If the Vanderbilts wanted to pay me $150,000,000, I couldn’t possibly turn them down, could I?”
Now that Maisie came back, she was going to do whatever it took to get back her shares in Vaenna!
Ryleigh took a deep breath. Family out to get family. Brutal!
Boy, was she keen to see the look on Willow’s face when the sh*t hit the fan.
As the car pulled up to the entrance of Vaenna Jewelry, Maisie turned around to face her three angels. “Mommy needs to settle some matters. Godmother Ryleigh will take the three of you home first.”
Her three angels nodded obediently.
After Maisie got out of the car, the children glanced at each other, then scrambled over to Ryleigh’s side of the car.
“Godmother, tell us all you know about the Vanderbilts and Mommy!”
“Yes! You must tell us in secret. We promise not to let Mommy find out!”
Taken by surprise, Ryleigh’s gaze darted across their faces. “Why do you want to know?”
“Because we’re Mommy’s sweethearts, and we won’t let anyone bully Mommy!”
They had followed their mother back to the country because they wanted to get revenge for her. Nobody got away with bullying their mother!
Ryleigh felt a trickle of cold sweat down her spine. Were they really just a couple of 5-year-olds!?
Maisie stepped into the lobby of Vaenna headquarters. Although Vaenna belonged to the Vanderbilts, it was her mother’s blood, sweat, and tears. She couldn’t believe that her father had actually left Vaenna in the hands of Willow, an outsider!
During her years abroad, Maisie had stayed up to date with news related to Vaenna. Using her new-found status of Miss Vanderbilt, Willow had gotten rid of several high-level executives who Maisie’s mother highly valued. Thus, causing a decline in Vaenna’s reputation in recent years.
Vaenna had paid $150,000,000 to hire a designer from another country. Knowing the Vanderbilts, they could not possibly afford such an exorbitant amount. Maisie was curious to know who had helped pay this $150,000,000!
She made her way toward the receptionist. “Hi, I’d like to meet with Miss Vanderbilt.”
The woman working the desk asked casually, “Do you have an appointment?”
“Not at the moment, no. But it was Miss Vanderbilt who contacted me.” Maisie was annoyed by the treatment given by this lady.
It seemed that the personnel hired by Willow was truly unprofessional after all.
The receptionist gave her a passing glance. “If you don’t have an appointment, then I’m afraid I can’t help you. Our director is a very busy woman.”
Maisie smiled politely. “Does everyone here at Vaenna have such an awful attitude like you?”
“Excuse me? What do you mean by that? Can’t you see that I’m super busy right now? Besides, Miss Vanderbilt isn’t just anybody who you can meet as you please!”
“Oh, my. I was wondering who was causing a scene. I’m surprised it was you, Maisie. Didn’t think you’d be so bold as to show your face in this country again!”
The moment Willow walked out of the elevator, she happened to catch a glimpse of a familiar face. To her surprise, it was Maisie!
That shameless sl*t had actually come back!
Maisie slowly turned around. As Willow finally took a proper look at Maisie, a sense of gloom washed over her. It had only been six years since they last met, yet this b*tch has completely transformed. She looked like a seductive succubus!
“Weren’t you the one who invited me back to Zlokova?” Maisie chuckled softly.
Willow was taken aback yet seemingly arrogant as ever. “I invited you? It’s only been six years, and you’ve become so brash.” She walked toward Maisie with her arms crossed around her chest. “Haven’t these past six years in exile taught you anything?”
Upon hearing the mention of what had happened six years ago, Maisie’s eyes turned cold while she remained nonchalant on the surface. “Congratulations on becoming the director of Vaenna Jewelry. However, the company seems to be doing worse and worse under your care. Hopefully, the business won’t close down one day.”
“You!”
Willow lifted an open palm and slapped her in the face.
The loud smack left everyone in the hall astounded.
“What seems to be the matter?” A deep, cold voice came toward them.
The expression on Willow’s face changed almost instantly. The arrogance and tyranny that was there vanished as she walked over to the man with an aggrieved look.
“Nolan, it was all her! I would’ve forgiven her for humiliating me, but she went too far when she cursed that my company would close down.”
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 3
As Maisie turned around, she met the man’s sharp gaze. She was dumbfounded by the sight of this man’s face.
The man had pale white skin, exquisitely profound facial features, distinct amber eyes that seemed to hide a pool of unfathomable coldness, and tight, thin lips that could cut like a knife.
His face was so similar to both Colton and Waylon. Even his eyes were the exact same color!
Maisie had only found out she was having triplets when she went into labor in Stoslo. Neither her firstborn nor the second had inherited any of her features. However, her youngest had some resemblance to her, but with ink-black hair—just like that of the man standing in front of her now.
Maisie’s eyes filled with curiosity as she gazed at the man before her.
‘Who is this man? What is his relationship with Willow?’
Nolan Goldmann focused his gaze on Maisie’s face. He scrunched up his brows. ‘This woman…’
Catching Nolan as he studied Maisie’s face, Willow silently gnashed her teeth. ‘Sh*t, there’s no way Nolan would recognize her, right?’
No way was she going to let that happen!
She put her hands around Nolan’s arm, and with a pitiful gaze, she said, “Nolan, I’m sorry I shouldn’t have acted so impulsively. But my father poured his heart into Vaenna Jewelry. I only did it because I felt protective of the company.”
Nolan’s eyes turned cold as ice. Ignoring Willow’s explanation, he marched forward. “Vaenna Jewelry will go bankrupt, was it? What gives you the right to say that?”
Maisie scoffed. Her father had poured his heart into it? Please, all her father had done was bask in the shade of a tree planted by someone else. Willow really knew how to paint her own narrative.
Maisie lifted her head and looked right into Nolan Goldmann’s eyes. “So what if I said it?”
Hearing those words, everyone in the room inhaled sharply.
How dare this woman talk back to Mr. Goldmann!?
Did she have a death wish?
Seeing Nolan’s face turn gloom, Maisie crossed her arm and smiled. “How does that concern you? Are you sticking up for her just because you’re her man?”
Pfft. What a perfect douchebag couple!
A man who would fall for the likes of Willow could hardly be a decent fellow.
“Do you know what you’re talking about?” Nolan imparted coldly.
Maisie lifted a brow and retorted sarcastically, “Of course, I do. This company had me poached but is now deliberately making things difficult for me. The service of this place is just fantastic.”
Willow staggered. “What… What are you saying? When did Vaenna ever approach you?”
Was this b*tch crazy?
“Miss Vanderbilt, I’m afraid your memory seems to be a bit foggy. Didn’t you willingly offer $150,000,000, just last month, to have me poached from Luxella? If Vaenna Jewelry has no intention of respecting me, then we can forget about our collaboration.”
Everyone was stupefied!
Maisie turned out to be the internationally-renowned jewelry designer, Zora!
Willow looked shell-shocked. “Impossible. How could you be Zora!?”
Right at that moment, Nolan’s cold gaze swept past her. Willow was forced to hold back her words before she could finish speaking. Her face flushed with embarrassment.
Maisie directed her gaze toward Nolan. “I’m assuming you, sir, are the man who paid the $150,000,000 behind her back?”
Forking out that kind of money was not something her father, Stephen, could afford, and certainly, neither could Willow, which left this guy.
The truth was, Willow had indeed stowed away quite a large sum of money over these past few years.
Nolan looked at the woman before him. She gave him a strange sense of familiarity, but he just could not quite put his finger on it. It was as if they had met somewhere before…
Willow was afraid that Nolan would come to recognize Maisie. Hurriedly, she rushed to his side. “Nolan, she must be lying. There’s no way she could be Zora!”
How was it possible that Maisie and Zora—a world-renowned designer—were one and the same? She had lived with Maisie for such a long time. How could she not know that her stepsister had a knack for designing jewelry?
Even the media of the fashion industry had never seen this mysterious designer in real life. Anyone could easily pretend they were the infamous Zora, right?
“You claim that you are Zora. Well, then show us the proof. As far as I know, the infamous Miss Zora had received a commemorative badge from the royal family of Stoslo. That’s not something any plain jane can have!”
As Willow finished her sentence, smugness flashed across her eyes.
‘That’s right, she can bluff all she wants.’
If Maisie could not take out the badge, then it would prove that she was just an impersonator who, in addition, had offended Nolan Goldmann. She may as well forgo the thought of stepping foot in this country again!
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 4
‘Everyone knows that Nolan is a VIP who the royal family of Stoslo once received, and he’s also friends with the princess of Stoslo. It’s only natural that he’s seen the commemorative medal of the royal family. He’ll see through her tricks even if she were to be able to show him something!’
Maisie scoffed. “Why would I show you such a precious item?”
This implied that she was unworthy!
Willow was trembling from the wrath, but there was still a smirk on her face. “Does this mean that you don’t have the guts to do so?
“Just look at her, Nolan. She’s a liar. She clearly knew that you were once received by the royal family and would recognize the medal. That’s why she doesn’t dare to take it out.” Willow’s attitude toward Nolan was totally different.
Nolan’s thin lips were raised coldly. “The payment of $150,000,000 is my idea. Hiring Zora as our designer is also my idea. Hence, I’ll let today’s affair slide if you can prove that you’re indeed Zora.
“But if you were to fail to do so…” Nolan approached Maisie and uttered word by word, “You won’t survive another day in Bassburgh.”
A faint fragrance coming from a cologne stunned Maisie when Nolan approached.
‘It’s Gucci cologne!’
‘Why is he applying the same cologne as the man from that night six years ago?’
Looking at her pale face, Nolan straightened his posture and did not provide her with another chance. “Since you can’t prove it, then leave by yourself. Don’t make me ask someone to chase you out.”
Willow sneered triumphantly.
‘Maisie, oh, Maisie. It’s been six years, why even bother to come back here just to dig your own grave?’
Maisie lifted her head abruptly and smiled brightly. “Sir, are you sure about that?”
Nolan squinted as he stared at her silently.
“Sir, then what would you do about the slap that I just took cheek-on from Miss Vanderbilt if I can prove my identity?”
Willow’s expression changed again as she glanced at Nolan cautiously.
Although she was now Nolan’s lover, he had not even touched her throughout all these years. If it weren’t for her flawless scheme and her choice to reserve the room with her own ID from six years ago, he would have doubted her since long ago.
“Nolan…”
“I’ll get her to apologize to you,” Nolan replied indifferently.
Maisie’s hands, which were searching through her handbag, stopped moving, and she raised her head. “I just got slapped, and you’re only going to make her apologize?”
Nolan’s eyes dimmed slightly. “Then what do you have in mind?”
Maisie raised her eyes. “We’re all born and raised in a country of etiquette and courtesy, and we uphold the teaching of returning gifts. So don’t you think that I should slap her in return in order for me to feel reconciled?”
The people around did not dare to speak. They were even a little suspicious.
‘This woman has the guts to make such a promise to Mr. Goldmann, could she really be…’
Seeing Maisie’s arrogant attitude, Nolan pressed his thin lips together.
‘This woman is the first person in Bassburgh who dares to speak to me with this tone.’
After a split second, he opened his lips with slight embarrassment. “You, don’t push your luck.”
“Then, you should find yourself another designer. I’m not someone who lets things slide so easily.” Maisie took the medal out and showed it off in front of him. “Since you’ve seen the royal commemorative medal, take a good look at it.”
She then placed the medallion back in her bag and walked away unconcernedly.
Willow lowered her head and gnashed her teeth hatefully.
‘How could this be? How could that b*tch be…
‘Zora is the designer that Nolan poached from Luxella through his own name. I wouldn’t be able to offer the price if he hadn’t offered the payment of $150,000,000.
‘Who would’ve expected that the designer turned out to be Maisie!?
‘Did I just embarrass Nolan while I treated Maisie like that earlier?’
“Nolan, I…”
Willow stretched out her hand, hoping to wrap them around his arm. However, he retracted it away from her, turned around, and glanced at Willow indifferently. “You’ll solve this by yourself.”
He then left without looking back after saying so.
Nolan walked out of the building, and the bodyguard in black who was waiting for him beside a Rolls-Royce helped him open the car door.
He then said to the man sitting in the front passenger seat after getting into the car. “I want all the information you can get on the designer Zora on my desk in two days.”
At Seaview Villa…
“Hmph, Willow Vanderbilt is really detestable!”
Daisie held her doll in her arms, leaned closer to Colton together with Waylon, and stared at the computer monitor. They looked at the woman being displayed on the monitor with the same expression. “She looks so ugly.”
Waylon turned his head and glanced at his younger brother and sister. “This woman harmed Mommy. We can’t let her go.”
Daisie supported her chin with her hand. “But what are we going to do with her?”
“We have to think of a way to hide it from Mommy.”
Waylon cracked his brain, then snapped his fingers and said, “Didn’t Godmother tell us that she has a sugar daddy? Let’s start with the bigshot by her side!”
“What’s the man’s name according to Godmother?” Daisie looked up and thought.
“Nolan Goldmann!” Colton typed the name on the keyboard, and the webpage came out very soon.
The three rugrats froze in place for a long time as soon as they saw Nolan’s photo when Colton clicked on Nolan’s information. “This man… Why does he look so much like us?”
Waylon was very surprised as he stared at the photos for quite some time.
‘Mommy has never told us about Daddy. Could this man… be our daddy?’
Colton hummed, and a hint of slyness flashed across the bottom of his eyes. “If he’s indeed our daddy, then this will be a piece of cake.”
Waylon was puzzled. “But how can we approach this man?”
“Don’t worry, my brothers, leave it to me. Isn’t it a children’s clothing brand under the Blackgold Group looking for a spokesperson? I‘ll definitely be able to secure the position!” Daisie patted her chest. She had always been the quirkiest among the three rugrats, so the plan would surely be fail-safe.
“Sweethearts, I’m back!”
The three rugrats close the webpage on the browser immediately upon hearing their mother’s voice.
“Mommy! Your Royal Highness!” The three rugrats walked out of the room one after another and threw themselves on her.
Seeing that they stayed at home obediently to welcome her, Maisie squatted down with a smile. “You three didn’t cause your godmother troubles, did you?”
“Mommy, do you think that we’d bully Godmother?” Colton asked while tilting his head.
Daisie nodded. “That’s right, why would we bully our godmother? Godmother will even bring us cakes when she returns!”
Maisie smiled bitterly.
‘I’m the one who gave birth to these three rugrats. Can I not know them any better?’
The most mischievous kid among the three children had always been the second child Colton. He definitely had not inherited his cynical and scheming personality from his mother. The eldest had always been more dependable and warm-hearted, but he would still be brave while protecting his younger brother and sister.
And Daisie, the youngest, had always been the abnormal and unorthodox one. She was already on the brink of leading her brothers astray with her love for quirky ideas.
“Mommy, you look upset. Did someone bully you?” Waylon, who was extremely observant, realized that something was wrong with Maisie instantly.
Maisie was stunned. She had been wondering why the man that she met earlier today made her feel so familiar, especially his looks and the unique smell of cologne that she got from the man six years ago.
“Mommy, you’re hiding something from us!”
Maisie forced the corners of her lips upward, smiled, and stood up upon seeing that Waylon was able to see through her once again. “Children should leave such matters to the adults. I’ll go make you some food.”
She was about to go into the kitchen when her cell phone rang.
Looking at the unknown phone number, the corners of her lips twitched.
‘It’s indeed Willow Vanderbilt.’
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 5
Maisie took the cell phone to the balcony and answered the call. “What happened, is Director Vanderbilt regretting your action now?”
Willow gnashed her teeth furiously when she heard this. “Maisie, don’t try your luck. It’s your honor that we’re willing to pay $150,000,000 just to hire you!”
“Oh really? You make it sound like I’m in urgent need of your millions.” Maisie leaned against the rail of the balcony with a faint smile on her face. “Since this isn’t a sincere collaboration, then don’t call me again.”
“Wait a minute!” Willow yelled, sat on her office’s desk, and smirked coldly. “Maisie Vanderbilt, don’t you forget that I still have that video in my possession.”
Maisie’s expression dimmed gradually ever since the word “video” was mentioned.
Willow smirked when she did not hear any response over the call. “If you don’t want me to expose the matter that took place six years ago, I advise you to come over and have a discussion with me tomorrow morning.”
Maisie took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay, I’ll go over tomorrow.”
She then hung up the call as soon as she said so.
Daisie, who was eavesdropping from behind, ran back to the room with her tiny feet and said to her brothers, “That vicious woman called and threatened Mommy!”
Waylon then suggested immediately, “Then we’ll initiate our plan when Mommy goes out to meet her tomorrow.”
Colton showed an ‘okay’ gesture and uploaded Daisie and Waylon’s personal information and resume to the official “Young Faces” website, a children’s clothing brand under the Blackgold Group.
‘It just so happens that the brand was looking for two young models, and we’ll definitely be selected!
‘We’ll be able to get close to that man as long as the brand belongs to the Blackgold Group. We have to figure out whether Nolan is our daddy or not!’
The next day…
Maisie reached Vaenna Jewelry, and the secretary led her to Willow’s office. As expected, Willow was waiting for her on the couch.
Willow smiled, got up, and walked toward her as soon as the secretary went out. “I thought you wouldn’t come.”
“The video is still in your possession. Could I not come?” Maisie smiled. “By the way, I’m very thankful to you for not leaking the video through all these years.”
Willow looked slightly embarrassed.
‘It’s not that I didn’t want to leak the video. I was worried that Nolan would discover that the woman from that night isn’t me if I were to do so.’
‘However, judging from Maisie’s attitude, she probably doesn’t know that the man from that night is Nolan. Thus, I just so happen to still be able to threaten her with this video.’
“Okay, let’s not talk about anything else. I’ve prepared the contract for you, and the $150,000,000 will be yours as long as you sign it.” Willow went to her desk, picked up the contract, and handed it over to Maisie.
Maisie did not grab it from her. “It seems that you really need me.”
“Heh, do you really think that I want you to stay in Vaenna?”
“Yes, after all, the man who wants me to stay in Vaenna is the man who’s going to pay me that $150,000,000 on your behalf. You did find yourself quite a rock during these six years, huh?” Maisie mocked her sarcastically. “It’s a pity that you still owe me that slap from yesterday. Wouldn’t this be my loss if I were to sign it now?”
Willow’s face turned sulky as soon as she heard this. “Don’t you push your luck.”
Maisie walked up to her, leaned close to her, raised an eyebrow, and smiled. “I suffered such a loss in your hands six years ago. I won’t allow you to manipulate me into doing anything else six years later. Will you go down on your knees and apologize to me if you want me to sign this?”
Seeing Willow lifting her arm, Maisie intercepted her action swiftly by grabbing onto her wrist. “Still planning to hit me?”
“Maisie Vanderbilt, I would advise you to sign it now. Otherwise, I’ll leak the video so that
everyone in Bassburgh will know just how slutty the world-renowned Zora is.”
Maisie backhanded Willow on her cheek.
Willow was dumbfounded. She gnashed her teeth after returning to her senses. “You f*cking b*tc—”
“Does Miss Zora treat others like this in Luxella too?” A faint voice sounded from behind.
Nolan entered the room with his personal assistant and just happened to witness this scene.
He had experienced the arrogance of this woman first-hand, but he did not expect her to be so presumptuous.
Maisie murmured to herself, “What a coincidence.”
Willow was delighted deep down as Nolan had come at the right time and bit her lower lip to act pitiful. “Nolan, don’t blame Miss Zora. It’s all my fault. Maybe I’ve done something wrong.”
Nolan walked up to Maisie and warned her with an indifferent tone, “I have ways to eradicate all the opportunities that might lead you back to Luxella if you continue to give me this attitude.”
“Are you threatening me?” Maisie raised her head. She hated being threatened the most in her life!
Nolan frowned slightly upon seeing the abhorrence in her eyes. “So what if it’s a threat?”
Maisie burst into laughter. “You guys are the ones who want to hire me. But not only did you neglect me at first, but you also hit me after that. Do I look like easy meat to you?”
“She should apologize to you for her wrongdoing.” Nolan approached her. “But shouldn’t you apologize for your wrongdoing too?”
“What have I done wrongly?” Maisie spread both her hands out. “I was just returning her the hospitality and courtesy that I got from her yesterday. I’ve only gotten even with her with that slap. So why is it my fault?
“Isn’t this the same as you saying that I’m disrespecting the elderly when I want to lodge a police report after being conned by a granny who I helped cross the road?”
Nola’s glacial eyes looked stern. “Don’t justify your actions with excuses.”
Maisie snorted, turned around, and waved. “Then I’ll stick to what I’ve been saying all this while. There’s nothing worth discussing now.”
Maisie’s arm was abruptly hauled when she was walking toward the elevator. She was then dragged to the stairway.
Maisie struggled to break free. “What are you doing? Let me go!”
Nolan lowered his gaze and said sombrely, “You’d better go back and apologize.”
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 6
‘Apologize? He wants me to go back and apologize to Willow?’
Maisie scoffed and glared directly at him. “Over my dead body.”
Out of Nolan’s expectation, not only was this woman presumptuous and atrocious, but she was also very stubborn. His facial features stiffened. “If you don’t apologize, Zora’s name will disappear from the fashion and jewelry field tomorrow.”
He did not want to make it difficult for her at first, but Willow was considered his life savior. He would have been set up six years ago on that night if it weren’t for her.
Although he did not have any feelings for Willow, he had still been keeping her by his side these few years and had been satisfying her materialistic needs unconditionally.
Vaenna Jewelry had really been in a downturn these years, and that was why he would pay $150,000,000 to hire Zora on her behalf.
He knew that Willow was at fault for slapping her at first, so he was going to get Willow to apologize to her.
He did not care how they would resolve this issue in private, but he could not allow any other woman to make a move at Willow in front of him.
Maisie’s hand, which was being grasped, hurt as if it had been dislocated. Her eyes drooped, however, she would never shed a single drop of tear in front of her enemy despite her grievances! “I didn’t do anything wrong. I won’t apologize!”
Seeing that her attitude was still so rigid, Nolan snorted. “With the Goldmanns’ influence in the business circles, not only will your reputation go up in flame in Zlokova, but the people of Stoslo will also no longer hear of the name of Zora. Are you sure that you still want to do so?”
‘The Goldmanns…’
Maisie gnashed her teeth.
‘I’ve been wondering just how this man would have the ability to threaten me. It turns out that he’s from the Goldmanns!’
Maisie was not afraid of being banned or isolated in the field, but her children still needed to study in Bassburgh, and she had to regain her mother’s “Vaenna Jewelry”.
‘I should bear with such a petty setback for the sake of the bigger scheme. There’s no need for me to haggle over such a teeny-tiny humiliation with this man.’
“Let me go first.”
Nolan released his grasp and glanced at her. “You’d better think this through.”
“Isn’t it just an apology?” Maisie raised her brows, turned around, and walked out of the stairway.
She approached Willow when she returned to the office, and her bright red lips opened and closed in a split second. “I’m sorry.”
Willow did not expect Maisie would apologize, but she knew that Nolan must have acted for her.
She felt extremely complacent deep down but smiled politely on the surface. “It’s okay, as for the contract…”
Maisie took a glance at the man standing outside the door and signed the contract with a pen. However, no one saw the slight curvature on her mouth.
‘I’ve been forced to return to Vaenna Jewelry “without putting up any fight”, even though I’ve insisted that I don’t want to do so.
‘I’ll teach them a good lesson about what it means by “nurturing a snake in their bosom” from now onward.’
She then put down the pen and left immediately without creating any more stir after signing the contract.
Nolan strode up to the desk, picked up the contract, and took a glimpse at it while Willow walked to his side. “Nolan, thank you so much.”
“Don’t come into contact with her alone.” Nolan’s tone was faint. He then left with his personal assistant after putting down the contract.
Willow picked up the contract with a triumphant gaze after Nolan had left. “Maisie Vanderbilt, you’ll still die by my hands in the end.”
A Maybach was parked directly in front of the entrance, and Nolan’s personal assistant, Quincy Lawson, opened the car door for him.
Nolan asked immediately after getting into the car. “Did you gather all the information that I asked for?”
Quincy nodded, turned around, and handed a tablet to him. “Sir, it’s all saved in here.”
Nolan tapped on the screen to go through the information, but his attention was captured by the “Maisie Vanderbilt” that occupied the full name column. And the address found on her ID was exactly the Vanderbilts’ current address.
His eyes dimmed slightly.
At the Blackgold Group…
Daisie and Waylon stood outside the entrance and looked up at this iconic building, which looked extremely worthy of being the largest company in Bassburgh.
The two rugrats walked into the lobby while smart-looking men and women in suits hurried by. Some were holding documents while others were receiving foreign clients in different languages.
The two small figures attracted the attention of many people amidst this hectic scene.
The lady at the front desk noticed the two cute kids, so she stepped forward politely and asked with a gentle attitude, “Hi there, cutie pies. Who are you looking for?”
Daisie took her personal information out of her little yellow duck backpack and replied with her childish voice, “Miss, we’ve been selected as the endorsers of the brand ‘Young Faces’. The man at the entrance told us to come here for an audition.”
The receptionist almost fainted when she heard such an adorable voice. “Then didn’t your parents bring you here?”
Waylon responded immediately. “We don’t want to bother Mommy. We can do it ourselves.”
“Wow, you two are such sensible kids. Okay then, I’ll take you there now.”
“Thank you, Miss Beautipul!” The two rugrats bowed and thanked the receptionist.
The receptionist held their little hands and walked them toward the studio. ‘Young Faces’ was a luxurious children’s clothing brand under the Blackgold Group. It was indeed planning to recruit two young models, who were very photogenic and not afraid of being in the spotlight, to be their spokespersons.
The receptionist brought them outside of the studio. In addition to clothes hangers, there were also several cameras and background boards in the studio. Many children entered and exited the studio for the audition while they were waiting for their turn.
A stern-looking middle-aged woman, who was dressed very decently, seemed to be exceptionally dissatisfied with the results of all the photos and was losing her calm for a bit. “How am I going to shoot this? They have to be photogenic, photogenic! Do you understand me?”
“Sis’ Nova, these two children—”
“Argh, don’t bother me…” Nova Daniell was about to say something when she suddenly saw the two children standing next to the receptionist.
She was taken aback, her expression one of extreme shock. Her gaze was fixed on both of them.
‘How can these two kids resemble Mr. Goldmann so much!?’
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 7
“Madam Beautipul, we’re here to audition!” Daisie raised her head, her eyes looking crystal clear as if a star was hidden in each of them.
Nova took a deep breath and calmed her racing heart.
‘How could such adorable and lovable children belong to Mr. Goldmann? According to my acquaintance with Mr. Goldmann, there’s no way that he would’ve been able to give birth to such lovely kids.’
She knelt and rubbed their little heads. “What are your names?”
“My name is Daisie.”
“My name is Waylon.”
The two rugrats answered in unison.
Nova was fascinated by their cuteness.
‘Putting their cuteness aside, they also look incredibly gorgeous. If they were to be placed in front of a camera…’
Nova recovered from her trance, got up, and shouted to the staff around her, “You guys, hurry up! Bring these two little models in and put some clothes on them!”
She could not wait to see the results already!
The Maybach pulled over at the side of the road in front of the Blackgold Tower. The driver asked all the bodyguards waiting at the entrance to shove the surrounding crowd to the side and form two neat rows.
Nolan got out of the car and strode straight into the lobby with his long legs.
On the other side of the headquarters, Nova, who had taken a few sets of photos, sent two of the photos taken to Quincy without giving the photos any touch-ups.
Quincy slowed down, took the phone out of his pocket, and took a glance at it. He looked shocked and magnified the photo out of astonishment.
Quincy caught up to Nolan hurriedly. “Mr. Goldmann.”
“What’s the matter?” Nolan walked toward the elevator dedicated to him as the security guard pressed the button to open the elevator. He then entered the elevator while Quincy handed him his phone. “You should take a look at this.”
Nolan took a look at the screen of the phone, and his eyes dimmed.
If it weren’t for important matters, he would barely fix his gaze on a screen for longer than a minute. However, he stared at the screen for three whole minutes this time around.
“Nova Daniell sent me these photos. The brand endorsement department of ‘Young Faces’ has found these two little models, and they look rather similar to… you.”
When taking a closer look, the boy’s eyes looked exactly the same as those of Nolan. The facial features of the two children looked almost similar to him, especially the boy.
Nolan creased his brows and returned the phone to him. “Where are the two kids now?”
“They should still be in the studio.”
Nolan directly pressed the floor number to get himself to the floor where the shooting was taking place. For some reason, he wanted to see the two children.
Sitting in front of the computer, Colton invaded Blackgold’s control center and monitored the surveillance of the entire Blackgold Tower. He clicked on the screen to zoom in, saw Nolan walking toward the photography department, and called Waylon.
The smartwatch that Waylon was wearing vibrated, so he walked to the side quietly and answered the call. “Colton, how is it?”
“Nolan has come to look for the two of you now. Go and get Daisie to approach him. Remember to retrieve his hair!”
“Okay!”
Waylon walked to Daisie and whispered in her ear after ending the call. The whisper then ended with Daisie nodding while saying, “Roger that.”
Colton sat in front of the computer and chuckled.
‘One can’t expect to achieve anything if they risk nothing. We’ll get to know whether Nolan Goldmann is our daddy or not after we get our hands on his hair for DNA verification. We’ll get to the bottom of everything by then!’
Nolan appeared outside the filming department, and Nova greeted him with a wide grin. “Mr. Goldmann, why are you here?”
Quincy interrupted before Nolan could open his mouth. “Where are the two little models?”
“The models? They’re over there.” Nova pointed in the direction of the two rugrats.
The two little rugrats were stepping on the chair and looking into the lens of the camera as if they were very curious.
Nolan walked toward the two of them.
“Daisie, Waylon,” Nova called the two of them, and the two kids looked back only to see Nolan standing behind them.
Both of them raised their heads and exchanged gazes with Nolan. Waylon also stood in front of Daisie subconsciously, protecting her with a vigilant expression.
His appearance looked exactly the same as Nolan’s when he frowned.
“Who are you?” Waylon directed a question that he had already known the answer to Nolan while staring at him fixedly.
Nolan squinted his eyes. “Then who are you?”
“Is that even your business?”
Quincy and Nova were perspiring on their foreheads.
‘Isn’t this kid a little too bold and rigid?’
Daisie jerked at the hem of the corner of Waylon’s clothes, pretending to be very scared. “Waylon, I want to go home.”
Waylon rubbed her little head to comfort her. “Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”
A trace of helplessness flashed across the bottom of Nolan’s eyes.
‘Do I look too fierce and intimidating? Does this kid think that I’m approaching them with ulterior motives?’
“I’m the owner of this company. Where are your parents?” He softened his tone and attitude.
Quincy and Nova were shocked when they saw Nolan’s soft and gentle voice for the first time.
Daisie replied softly, “Our mommy is busy, and we don’t know where our daddy is.”
Nolan was deep in thought while Daisie suddenly walked up to him and stretched out her arms. “Mr. Handsum, I want a hug!”
Everyone present was shocked. This kid actually had the guts to ask Nolan to carry her!?
Waylon pulled Daisie deliberately. “Daisie, Mommy said that we shouldn’t let strangers carry us. We’ll be abducted if we do so.”
“But, he doesn’t look like a bad person, right?”
Daisie’s tiny and tender body was lifted into the air as soon as she finished saying so.
Everyone was dumbfounded once again.
Daisie wrapped her arms around Nolan’s neck and stared at him with her big cute eyes. “Mr. Handsum, your eyes look as pretty as my brother’s!”
Nolan had never tried to carry a child, so this hug gave him an unprecedented experience.
‘This little girl… She does resemble someone.’
“What’s your mommy’s name?”
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 8
“Mommy told us we can only tell anyone who asks her name that mommy is Her Royal Highness.” Daisie giggled.
Nova could not help but burst into laughter, but she quickly held it back.
‘Haha, aren’t these two pumpkins way too adorable? What kind of mother has been teaching them all this while?’
Nolan’s gaze moved away, and he glanced at Waylon, who looked exactly like him.
If it weren’t for the fact that Willow was the only person who had slept with him in the past, he would have to wonder if he was the father of these two children.
Daisie glanced at her watch and said, “Mr. Handsum, we have to go home now. Otherwise, Her Royal Highness will start to worry.”
Nolan put her down, turned around, and said to Quincy, “Send these two children back.”
Quincy was stunned for a short moment and then nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Goodbye, Mr. Handsum!” Daisie waved at Nolan, held her brother’s hand, and left the studio with Quincy.
The moment she went out, she showed Waylon a strand of hair triumphantly.
Daisie pulled the hem of Quincy’s clothes as they walked out of the entrance of the building. “Sir, our mommy is sick, and she’s in the hospital. Can you drive us to the hospital?”
Quincy was stupefied. He exclaimed inwardly that these two children were really quite thoughtful. “Okay, get in the car.”
At Seaview Villa…
Maisie returned home but only saw Colton practicing the piano alone. She looked around. “Where are Daisie and Waylon?”
Colton answered, “Waylon and Daisie have gone outside to apply to be child models. Godmother is with them.”
Maisie placed her bag on the sofa and was stunned as she heard the reply. “Applying to be child models?”
“Yeah, they claimed that you’re working too hard to make money, and they want to share the burden.”
Maisie walked to his side and rubbed his little head. Colton was extremely disgusted and complained, “Mommy, don’t mess up my hair.”
“Oh, is our young musical genius angry about it?”
“Hmph!” Colton puffed up his cheeks.
“Colton, you three don’t have to share the burden with me. Mommy can still raise and support all three of you.” Seeing that her children were all so sensible, Maisie felt rather guilty.
“No, Mommy. You’ve worked hard enough, and we can’t just ignore that. By the way, Mommy, I’ve been enrolled at the Royal Academy of Music of Zlokova. You don’t have to worry about the tuition. I have the money.
“And wait until I get a scholarship. You can then send Waylon and Daisie to international schools to study. Mommy, you should only work on whatever you want to do.”
Maisie was so moved that she burst into tears. “My little Beethoven is so amazing. He even knows how to earn tuition for his brother and sister now.”
She had only discovered that Colton had such a talent at the later stage of his toddlerhood. The Newlander Music Academy in Stoslo had even made an exception and wanted to recruit him, but she never sent him there because she was worried that he was too young.
However, Colton was five years old now. Although she wanted to wait until he was six before sending them to schools, Colton loved music and had good grades. Thus, she could not bring herself to ruin her children’s dreams.
“Mommy, Your Royal Highness, we’re back!”
Daisie returned home with Waylon, and Maisie welcomed the two running rugrats in her arms. “Colton told me that the two of you went for an audition?”
“Uh-huh, and we got selected. Aren’t we amazing?” Daisie blinked as she exclaimed.
Maisie kissed them on the cheeks. “You’re all great! Now give Mommy some time. Mommy will go and cook for you.”
No matter how bad her mood was, it would always dissipate when she was facing these three children.
The three rugrats got together as soon as Maisie entered the kitchen, and Colton asked in a low voice, “How did it go?”
Waylon responded immediately, “Don’t worry, it’s been taken to the hospital for an examination. It’ll take two days for the results to be out.”
Daisie patted her chest again. “It’s always fail-safe when I take action.”
At the Vanderbilt manor…
“What did you just say? Designer Zora is that b*tch Maisie?” Leila could not help but distort when she heard her daughter’s complaint.
‘Not only did that b*tch come back to her home country, but she’s also the world-renowned designer Zora? And she’s also the person Mr. Goldmann hired from abroad with very high pay to help my daughter save Vaenna Jewelry?
‘It was my daughter who took that b*tch’s place as the woman from six years ago. If that b*tch were to learn about the fact that Mr. Goldmann is the man that she slept with six years ago, wouldn’t she be fighting over him with my daughter?’
“Mother, what should I do?” Willow was very worried.
The corners of Leila’s lips were raised coldly. “So what if she’s Zora? Don’t forget that you have Mr. Goldmann as your ultimate cushion. She wouldn’t dare to create any stir when Mr. Goldmann is around.
“By the way, since the b*tch has returned to Zlokova, you have to make some progressions with Mr. Goldmann. It’s best to get pregnant or something like that. You’ll become Mrs. Goldmann as long as you get pregnant with his child.”
When speaking of getting pregnant, Willow’s eyelids drooped. “But Mr. Goldmann hasn’t even touched me at all for the past six years.”
‘I want to be touched too, but the thing is that I need him to cooperate with me.’
Looking at her daughter’s innocent thought, Leila said anxiously, “Are you dumb? How long do you plan to wait if you want to wait for him to take the initiative to get it on with you? You’re the one who should take the initiative. How many men are there in the world who can resist such temptations?”
Willow was startled for a split second after her mother pointed that out.
‘I don’t dare to act too presumptuously because Nolan hasn’t even touched me throughout the past six years. But Mother is right. I have to be the one who takes the initiative.’
She then smiled bashfully. “Mother, I know now.”
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 9
The next day, at Vaenna Jewelry…
Maisie sat in her own office going through the designs of the company’s jewelry collections over the years and flung the files on the desk. “Where’s all the creativity? From what I see, they don’t even know the definition of the word ‘design’. Are all the jewelry that Vaenna Jewelry has spent so much money to manufacture over the years there to only make up the number?”
The staff standing in the office looked embarrassed. “Miss Zora, Director Vanderbilt said that all new designs should only follow Vaenna’s original design concept.”
Maisie leaned against the chair with her arms crossed and smiled. “What’s the original design concept that you’ve been following?”
She lifted the pictures and jewelry database. “These are completely inconspicuous rubbish when you show them to the fashion and jewelry industry. Director Vanderbilt is truly capable, huh? She fired all the elites in the design department right after taking office. And when Vaenna couldn’t even make any of its own products, she could only sell the leftovers from other companies. She can’t even lose money like a pro.”
The clerk stopped speaking.
Maisie stood up and said, “Take me to the raw material warehouse.”
“Okay.” The clerk nodded.
Maisie and the clerk walked toward the raw material warehouse and happened to run into a man that she did not want to see at the entrance of the elevators.
Nolan’s eyes dimmed slightly upon seeing that she had straight-up ignored him, and he turned around. “Wouldn’t you greet someone when you see them?”
Maisie stopped and thought that he was a man who could afford $150,000,000, after all. Thus, she gnashed her teeth, turned around, and smiled faintly. “Yes, it’s nice to see you, Mr. Goldmann.”
“Where are you going, Miss Vanderbilt?”
Maisie was dumbfounded. ‘He actually knows that I’m a Vanderbilt?’
Nolan walked up to her. “Where are you going?”
‘This man is indeed very idle.’
Maisie grinned. “Why ask? Should I ask for your permission every time I head over to the raw material warehouse, Mr. Goldmann?”
‘Willow’s man is quite controlling, huh?’
“Great, I also want to know what you can discover when you get to the raw material warehouse.”
Maisie was rendered speechless.
The raw material warehouse was a place where the ores and raw materials used to manufacture jewelry were stored. When the female staff turned on the lights, boxes could be seen stacked in the corners of the huge warehouse, and the rough diamonds that had not been cut were placed on the shelves on the table.
There was a cutting machine on the table, and all the materials were complete.
Maisie walked to the shelf, grabbed an ore, and took a good look at it. She then brought the gemstone and moved toward the cutting machine.
The female clerk was alarmed and asked hurriedly, “Miss Zora, what are you doing?”
Maisie did not answer. Instead, she used the machine to cut the rough diamond open, and she noticed something as soon as she got into one of the ores.
“Wow, Vaenna has even picked up the falsification of gemstones now?” Maisie picked up the cut rough diamond and walked to the female clerk. “Who’s in charge of the raw material warehouse?”
The clerk replied nervously, “It’s Director Chester.”
Maisie’s expression dimmed. “Ask Director Chester to come to see me immediately.”
Nolan walked up to the cut rough diamond and ran the stone across the ring that he had on his index finger. A shallow yet obvious scratch could be seen on its surface.
Maisie approached him with her arms crossed, lifted her eyebrows, and smirked. “Mr. Goldmann, this is your girlfriend’s company, after all, so aren’t you going to do something about the adulteration of its gemstones?”
Nolan lowered his eyes, turned around, and stared at her. “Isn’t this also the company that your mother founded?”
As soon as this fact was mentioned, the corners of Maisie’s lips stiffened.
“Making a huge fuss out of this won’t do you any good too. Just resolve it privately.” He continued lightly.
‘Resolve it privately?
‘Heh, the acquisition of this batch of rough diamonds must have been approved by Willow. According to the current market price, the cost of genuine rough diamonds products is extremely high, but the cost of semi-adulterated rough diamonds is very low.
‘I’ll let it slide if Willow doesn’t know anything about this, but I won’t just sit back and watch if she’s purchased a batch of semi-adulterated rough diamonds just because she can’t afford the high cost.’
“If it really is Willow…”
“She doesn’t know anything about jewelry, so it’s excusable for her to be deceived.” Nolan turned to look at Maisie and said with a nonchalant tone, “Don’t come up with a conclusion so casually if you haven’t gotten to the bottom of this issue.”
Maisie chuckled inwardly. ‘He does sound a bit like Waylon when he’s trying to justify a fault… Wait a minute, what am I thinking?’
“Director Chester is here.” The female clerk brought Director Chester into the warehouse.
Director Chester was still talking confidently to the clerk originally, but his expression changed instantly when he saw Nolan.
“Mr. Gold… Mr. Goldmann, why are you here?” Director Chester’s face turned pale.
Nolan walked up to him. “What happened to these adulterated rough diamonds?”
Director Chester started sweating on his forehead.
‘Crap, these rough diamonds were all purchased according to Miss Vanderbilt’s orders. If it were to be found out…
‘Even if I were to bring up Miss Vanderbilt, she is Mr. Goldmann’s lover. I’ll be the only one who will go down in flames when it’s revealed!’
“This… I wasn’t the original person responsible for this batch of ores. Director Zaleski, who has resigned, was the person in charge of these ores. I don’t know that these rough stones have been adulterated.”
‘The person has resigned anyway. I can only put him forward as the scapegoat.’
“You’re lying.” Maisie asserted and then questioned sternly, “Vaenna had never seen any adulterated rough stones when Xander Zaleski was in office. He had worked for Vaenna for 15 years, so wouldn’t he have been fired long ago if he had made such a dumb mistake?”
Director Chester was taken aback for a moment.
‘How does Miss Zora know that Xander had worked for Vaenna before this!?’
“Err… I really don’t know about that.”
“From my point of view, are you trying to stand in as the fall guy for someone else?” Maisie stared at him with her cold and solemn eyes.
Nolan gave her a sideways glance but did not utter a single word.
Willow appeared outside the door at that moment.
The Three Little Guardian Angels Chapter 10
Willow had heard that Nolan and Maisie had come to the raw material warehouse, as well as that Director Chester had gotten summoned. Thus, she had hurried over in fear that something would be unveiled.
She suppressed the panic in her heart and asked as if she did not know anything about the matter, “What happened? Nolan, why are you here?”
‘D*mn it. This b*tch has come back here just to make my life difficult, huh? She even found her way into the raw material warehouse!
‘Back then, I did order them to acquire a batch of adulterated rough diamonds in order to save a significant amount of money. But I didn’t expect that this b*tch would deliberately bring up this issue as soon as she’s back!’
Nolan looked at her and asked indifferently, “What’s the matter with these adulterated ores?”
Willow could not help but clench her fist, but she still acted as if she was innocent. “I’m not sure. You should know that I don’t know anything about rough diamonds and gemstones. The acquisition of rough diamonds does go through my approval over the years, but I’ve always thought that they were the same as those that came in before.”
Her ignorance when it came to rough diamonds turned out to be beneficial to her.
Maisie chuckled. “Father is so magnanimous. He actually handed over the company to someone who doesn’t know anything about jewelry. He is just not afraid that the company would really go bankrupt, huh?”
“I… I really don’t know about it.” Willow had run out of ideas, so all she could do was stare at Nolan. “Nolan, you have to believe me.”
‘Maisie, you b*tch, I’ll chase her away sooner or later!
It was not that Nolan did not believe in Maisie’s suspicion. It was just that Willow had always been by his side these years. Even though she knew nothing about the fashion and jewelry industry, she was asking and learning from him all this while. He knew that Willow did not look like a pretender.
He shifted his gaze onto Director Chester. “You’ve been fired.”
Director Chester was stupefied, but he accepted that the other party was someone he could not afford to cross.
Willow bit her lip as she witnessed Director Chester being fired. It was fortunate that Nolan trusted her.
Nolan turned his head and said to Maisie, “You’ll be in charge of the acquisition of rough diamonds and other raw materials from now on.”
He then left the raw material warehouse after saying so.
While Maisie was walking back to her office, Willow caught up to her, stretched out her hand, and grabbed her. “Maisie Vanderbilt, you did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
Maisie turned around, glanced at her, and asked amusedly, “What did I do on purpose?”
“You… Did you approach Nolan on purpose? You even led him to the raw material warehouse, did you? Heh, do you think that Nolan would believe you?”
A hint of complacency flashed across Willow’s eyes. “You’ve seen it yourself. I’m the one that Nolan trusts, so don’t even bother to think about plotting against me anymore.”
“Oh, are you saying that I brought him to the raw material warehouse in order to sow discord between the two of you and told him that the rough diamonds were adulterated to make him suspicious of you?”
Seeing Willow’s upset expression, Maisie scoffed with her arms crossed in front of her. “What makes you think that I have the time to care about the relationship between the two of you? He’s the one who wanted to follow me to the raw material warehouse. Does that have something to do with me too?”
“Maisie, don’t you ever think that I’ll believe anything that comes out of you.”
“If you don’t believe it, then just don’t. Why bother to blabber all these to me?”
Maisie was really annoyed and added, “I’m not done with you when it comes to the batch of adulterated rough diamonds. If it weren’t for the fact that my mother founded Vaenna Jewelry and I could not bear to expose the matter, I couldn’t care less about the number of cushions that you have behind you.”
Nolan could indeed cover the sky, but Maisie was not a pushover that some random person could stop.
She was about to leave when Willow grasped her again. “Maisie Vanderbilt, don’t think that you can do whatever you want just because you’re back. Don’t you forget that your video is—”
Maisie could not bear it anymore, so she turned around and snatched her mobile phone.
“What are you doing?” Willow wanted to grab it back, but Maisie evaded her.
Looking at Willow’s fearful expression, Maisie smiled. “You’ve always loved to threaten me with that video, haven’t you?”
She walked to one of the windows of the corridor, stretched her hand out of the window, and let go of the cell phone all of a sudden.
Willow watched as her cell phone dropped from the 19th floor. It could only end up shattering into millions of pieces. “You!”
“You do love to threaten me with that video, don’t you? Let’s see how you’re going to threaten me in the future now that the video is a thing of the past.” Maisie went back into her office without looking back.
Willow was trembling with rage, but she also felt relieved and favored thinking that the video had been destroyed.
‘Let it be. Nolan will never find out who the woman was from that now.
‘Nolan is probably disappointed in me because of what that b*tch brought up today. I can’t wait any longer. I can only become Nolan’s woman after I’ve scored the jackpot with Nolan tonight!’
The dusk had arrived.
At the study of the Goldmann mansion…
“Sir, I’ve got it. Maisie Vanderbilt is the daughter that Stephen Vanderbilt had with his ex-wife. She’s the eldest daughter of the Vanderbilts. Maisie’s mother was a jewelry designer. Her mother and Stephen Vanderbilt founded Vaenna Jewelry. All the company’s shares had been in Stephen’s possession ever since the death of Maisie’s mother. The reason Maisie went abroad six years ago is still unknown.” Quincy’s voice came from the cell phone that was placed at the side.
Nolan had Zora’s information in his hands and was scanning through the documents. His eyes dimmed as soon as he listened to Quincy’s explanation.
‘Is she targeting Willow because she’s not reconciled with the fact that the company is now in Willow’s possession? However, if Maisie is a member of the Vanderbilts, why didn’t Willow recognize her from the very beginning?’
It was already getting late. Nolan placed everything behind him, went back to the room, and noticed that someone was on his bed. He then turned on the light and saw Willow sitting up from his bed in thin and revealing sleepwear.
His eyes turned cold, and he asked indifferently, “Why are you in my room?”
He might allow her to stay in the Goldmann mansion, but he did not allow her to sleep in his bedroom.
Willow wore this dress deliberately and had hinted at him so blatantly, but it seemed to have upset him.
She bit her lower lip as she felt a little unwilling. “Nolan, I’ve been thinking, you’ve never allowed me to get any closer to you ever since that night from six years ago. Did I do something wrong?”
Her expression looked very innocent, pitiful, gentle, and helpless.
‘Nolan is an ordinary man. It would surely be fake to say that he doesn’t feel anything.’
Seeing that he did not speak anymore, Willow took the initiative to get off the bed and hugged him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tiptoed, and tried to kiss him.
When Willow’s lips were approaching him, Maisie’s face flashed across Nolan’s mind, and he pushed Willow away abruptly with a hint of disgust beaming from his eyes.
“Nolan…” Willow, who got pushed away, was bewildered. “Nolan, I… Am I that abhorrent to you?”
‘Why? Why could he get all over Maisie on that night six years ago, but not when he’s with me?’
“What happened six years ago was an accident. I’m letting you stay by my side, and I can compensate you with whatever you want. What happened tonight is not to be taken as a precedent.”
Nolan thought of something when he turned around and turned back to look at Willow. “Maisie is a family member of the Vanderbilts, am I right?”
Willow was startled.
‘Why would he mention Maisie all of a sudden? Did he find out something?’
“She is my younger sister…”
“Then why did you not recognize her when she came to the company but slapped her in the face?” Nolan initially thought that the woman might have provoked Willow in order for the latter to do so.
He had only found out that she was from the Vanderbilts after looking into her background information. He also discovered that Vaenna Jewelry was founded in the name of that woman’s mother, and Stephen was just one of the company’s shareholders.
Willow bit her lip lightly and clenched her hands tightly, but she gave off an innocent look on her face. “Actually, my sister and I bear a grudge from before.”
“What’s the grudge about?”
Willow thought of something, and her eyes turned bloodshot. “She’s the person who drugged me on that night six years ago. I know that she’s been targeting my mother and me ever since we arrived at the Vanderbilts because I’m the illegitimate daughter. She was the candidate who was about to take over Vaenna Jewelry originally, but my father was very angry and drove her away because of that incident.”
Nolan’s face dimmed slightly.
’She was also drugged six years ago? Did that woman really do such a thing to Willow? However, judging from that woman’s arrogance, it’s not impossible.’
Nolan did not know the reason why he would feel irritated because of this.
“You should get some rest.” Nolan left indifferently.
Willow’s gaze gradually turned heinous after the door was closed.
‘Maisie, Maisie, it’s Maisie again! Maisie’s existence is simply a threat to me. I can’t let that b*tch stay in Vaenna, that’s for sure!’