Chapter 667 Not The Only One Jealous Yara dwelled on the matter as she knocked back more alcohol.
Iâm the best-dressed person at this charity event, yet I still lost to Natalie, whoâs just in a plain business suit! Everyoneâs talking about her, while Iâm just an accessory that no one cares about! How unfair!
Flushed scarlet with indignance, Yara sent a text message to Martin.
I want you to make sure that everything goes to plan tonight!
Soon, she received a message that read: Of course.
A malicious smirk crept up Yaraâs face as she quashed the churning hatred and jealousy within her.
Diane and Natalie talked about Nikolaiâs health and some Irethiel politics before finally returning to the main event.
The crowd swiveled to look at them when they made their entrance, and Natalie naturally became the center of attention for being with Diane.
Yara was not the only one jealous of Natalieâs popularity, it seemed, as the princess of the Lancaster family, Jacqueline Lancaster, was seen gripping her wine glass so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
âSheâs hideous! Who is she?â Jacqueline scowled in distaste.
âJacqueline, she probably has an influential background. Itâs best that you donât make such rude comments,â Cassidy cautioned.
âPlus, look at her interaction with Lady Diane. Sheâs not even trying to get close to Lady Diane! On the contrary, it seems like Lady Diane genuinely likes her and wants to keep her around.â
Cassidy was the illegitimate child of the Dawson family and also Jacquelineâs friend.
Jacqueline, on the other hand, was the youngest daughter of the Lancaster family.
Both ladies had grown up in prominent families and had learned to read the room as a result. However, their personalities were on two ends of the spectrum.
âCassie, with so many eyes on her, itâs only natural that she wonât go overboard! But how would you know what she did in the lounge when no one was watching them?â
Jacqueline lifted her chin haughtily, her eyes filled with contempt for Natalie.
âYou must be naive to think that she harbors no ulterior motives! She would never pass up on the chance to butter up to someone as important as Lady Diane, especially since Lady Diane rarely comes to Chanaea,â she remarked decisively.
âBut even if that were the case, it has nothing to do with us...â Cassidy countered.
âThatâs true, but I loathe despicable women like her!â Losing control of her emotions, Jacqueline ranted, âAll the prominent families who are attending this charity dinner poured in money to support this event. What right does that woman have to steal all the attention? Iâll make sure that she makes a fool of herself tonight!â
Cassidy felt uneasy about Jacquelineâs decision, but she had no way of convincing her friend otherwise. She stood rooted to the spot, her face twisted into a grimace.
Noticing Cassidyâs reluctance, Jacqueline scoffed, âYouâre useless! Youâre so cowardly that itâs no wonder your dadâs wife and your sister walk all over you! You only know how to stick to the rules. If thatâs the case, what difference do you have from the peasants?â
Jacquelineâs words were an arrow to Cassidyâs heart.
However, Cassidy recalled all the times Jacqueline had helped her when she and her mother were bullied by her fatherâs legitimate wife and daughter, so she quietly endured the insults.
Jacqueline glanced at Cassidyâs conflicted expression and waved her off. âDonât worry. I know that youâre a wimp, so I donât expect you to help me. All you have to do is enjoy the show.â
It was not that Cassidy was afraid of the consequences, but rather, she found no point in it.
That night, Diane had prepared a talent show of sorts to spice up the charity dinner.
This show was what separated the Shine event from other charity galas, which mostly consisted of auctions and award ceremonies. The way the talent show worked was that organizers would randomly pick three distinguished guests to perform in front of the audience without prior notice. It did not matter if the performance was stellar or horrible, as the purpose of the show was to liven up the atmosphere.
Unfortunately, the talent show had the opposite effect. There had been many iconic performances in the past Shine charity dinners, which added pressure to the current attendees.
Many guests, especially women, had spent countless hours mastering a skill before attending the Shine event in hopes of impressing the crowd if they were selected for the show.
When Diane mentioned this show to Natalie, she winked cheekily and said, âTo be honest, Iâm rather excited to see your performance.â
âThere are two to three hundred guests present tonight. Itâs hard to say if Iâll get picked,â Natalie replied tactfully.
âThatâs true,â Diane agreed with a nod. âItâs a one-in-a-hundred chance. The odds are not great. Being the founder of this event, I wish now that I had the power to choose the guest for the talent show.â