Chapter 17: Chapter 17

Was it all just a joke?

She had pleaded with him for so long, and it was all just for laughs?

And no wonder the Martinez Group’s bid proposal was rejected first thing in the morning. It turned out Xan never actually spoke to Samuel on his behalf.

Matthew stared at Xanthea, who was all smiles just like usual, yet somehow completely different.

Before, he could read her like an open book, but now, standing so close, he couldn’t decipher her thoughts at all.

“I’m tired, I think I'll head up to bed early, Matt. Drive safe, huh~”

Xanthea stretched lazily and made her way upstairs.

Her change in demeanor left the family stunned.

Christopher set down his tea, thinking back to how thrilled Xan used to be when Matthew would ask her out. But today, she coldly turned him down, and from their conversation, it was clear that she hadn’t interceded for the Martinez Group.

Having witnessed Xan's change of attitude the night before, Samuel, catching his parents' surprised looks, smiled proudly.

Xan had grown up, no longer the little girl who constantly followed Matthew around.

Miranda frowned, puzzled by Xanthea’s cold demeanor towards Matt. Were they having a falling out?

“Xan!” Matthew called after her, “So what have you been up to lately? I heard you've already submitted your thesis.”

Xanthea paused on the stairs, then turned around with a secretive smile, “Lately I’ve been preparing a surprise for Matt and Miranda.”

Miranda and Matthew met her gaze and smiled faintly.

“Thanks, Xan.”

So, she was planning a surprise, no wonder she was so secretive.

On the way home, Matthew put the concert tickets back in his bag and tried to calm his troubled thoughts. It must be the stress from work, he thought.

Xan has liked him since they were kids, and there’s no way she’d suddenly be distant.

Suddenly, his phone chimed with a news alert - “Eighteen-year-old girl strikes a million-dollar gem at the event!’ He expected it to be just another clickbait, but his finger accidentally scrolled to a very familiar photo.

Xan?

How could it be her?!

Feeling shocked, he opened the article and was completely dumbfounded.

How was Xan at a gemstone gambling event, helping someone named Orion strike a gem? When did she get so close to Orion? And why would she deceive him? What was she thinking? A sense of unprecedented nervousness and caution washed over him as he clenched his phone and opened Xanthea’s chat window.

Meanwhile, Xanthea had reached her room and immediately found the old Canon camera, then dialed her Uncle Oliver Lopez.

“Well, well, if it isn’t my long-lost niece remembering her old uncle. Did that mutant iris seed I gave you finally sprout?”

“Not yet~” Xanthea cooed, “I always miss you, Uncle. Just need a little favor today.”

“I knew it, you never call unless you need something. What is it, princess?”

“Well, I want to compete in the finals of The Masked Singer.”

“The Masked Singer? Since when are you interested in that?”

“Haven’t you always said I have a good voice? I want to give it a try.”

“You’ve got more than a good voice – but also charm, poise and intellect – you’d be a star in the entertainment world. You want to join The Masked Singer, huh? The finals are on this weekend; it’s too late to enter normally but you can go as a surprise contestant in the final challenge. You’ll battle against the season's top three contestants. If you win, the championship is yours! You up for it?”

Absolutely.

If she could make Miranda an overnight sensation with one song, she could certainly do it again.

“Just wait and see, Uncle!”

After setting up her camera, Xanthea began writing her song. After appearing on The Masked Singer, she planned to sneak into the hotel to catch Matthew and Miranda in a compromising situation – killing two birds with one stone. She really was a genius!

My Beloved Has Risen from Death's Embrace Chapter 16 Revenge is Best Served After Reborn (James)

Chapter 1927 Falling For My Contractual Wife (Brian and Grace)

Chapter 782 As she worked, messages from Matthew popped up like spam, which Xanthea swiped away impatiently. How had she ever fallen for such a man in her past life?

Just before turning off her phone, she saw a financial headline - “Curtain Call! Timothy unexpectedly deceased, the Lockwood Group board announces Orion as the official successor of Twin Towers’ third generation leader!’

They announced it so quickly? Xanthea chuckled to herself. Although the outcome was the same, the public opinion this time was vastly different.

In her past life, after he lost a gemstone bet and survived a car crash with Timothy, the internet had suspected him of murder. This time, however, he was celebrated as a “national treasure’ and “life’s winner.’ He must be throwing a party now, she mused, wondering if he remembered to apply his scar treatment.

That night, in a sleek and minimally decorated three-story mansion in Sunset Hills Estates, the moonlight scattered through the large bedroom windows, casting a dappled glow on the man clutching a pink handkerchief, whose robust silhouette was heaving.

As the room heated up, the air filled with a potent mix of male hormones, accompanied by a series of husky, magnetic voices, making the stars outside shimmer with an extra hint of romance.

“Xan, Xan, Xan.”