Silent Revenge of a Hidden Heiress Chapter 08
I stood on the stage and saw every bit of Nathan’sÂ
reaction clearly.Â
His face had already fallen when the headmasterÂ
started speaking.Â
When my identity was revealed, the papers in his hands went flying everywhere. His already swollen face went completely pale.Â
Further back, Sheryl huddled next to the kissingÂ
booth.Â
She squeezed the tear in her gown so hard her knuckles were white, and her stare at me was fullÂ
of disbelief and burning jealousy.Â
But I didn’t have time to stand around and enjoyÂ
their shock.Â
More business owners kept arriving, and I was busy running the event, logging donations, and posing for photos with administrators and guests..Â
Students swarmed my booth too–some donated money, others asked if they could donate books.Â
My booth was packed to the brim, while NathanÂ
and Sheryl stood alone by their empty kissingÂ
booth, looking like a couple of sad clowns.Â
The fundraiser wrapped up perfectly.Â
We raised a total of $3 million, plus more thanÂ
1,000 books donated by students.Â
Nathan’s booth only raised a total of $3,000 fromÂ
all the tiny $5 and $10 kisses.Â
College kids didn’t have a lot of spare cash toÂ
throw around, after all.Â
Some troll took a photo of Nathan lookingÂ
completely defeated and posted it to the campus.Â
anonymous wall.Â
[Campus hottie Nathan turns to prostitution–one kiss for only $5!]Â
The comments were all brutal.Â
[He kissed that many people? This isn’t a fundraiser, it’s a H. pylori sharing scheme!]Â
[Elaine went quiet for ages then blew everyone. away–her whole event ran perfectly without aÂ
single hitch!]Â
[Even if it was just a PR stunt, the money actuallyÂ
goes to poor kids. That’s way better than these two clowns!]Â
But none of this talk mattered to me anymore.Â
My mom and I booked a banquet at a hotel owned by Sinclair Group–everyone who helped with the fundraiser was invited.Â
I put on the gown my mom had complimented that day, held my glass, and followed her around to meet all the guests. Slowly, the nervousnessÂ
melted away.Â
Sometimes I didn’t even need her prompting. I could introduce myself naturally and confidently.Â
Everyone told my mom how lucky she was to raise such an impressive daughter.Â
But I knew this confidence was all a gift from myÂ
mom.Â
After the banquet ended, I ran into Nathan in theÂ
back hallway.Â
He’d changed back into his regular clothes, but his face was still a little swollen from all the kisses.Â
He stared at me for a long time before he finallyÂ
spoke, his voice rough. “Elaine…”Â
I gave him a cold glance.Â
He corrected himself immediately. “Ms. Sinclair.”Â
Then he gave a bitter smile. “Why didn’t… you tellÂ
me who you really were?”Â
I scoffed.Â
“You never asked.”Â
“I…” Nathan had no response.Â
Then he remembered something and rushed on. “IÂ
know I was wrong! I shouldn’t have been soÂ
inappropriate with Sheryl, I hurt you, and I ignoredÂ
all your hard work-”Â
I cut him off. “You don’t know you were wrong. YouÂ
just regret it. You regret not finding out who I wasÂ
sooner.Â
“Nathan, you never cared about me, so you neverÂ
bothered to ask anything about my life. I alwaysÂ
thought it was weird–how you could pretend toÂ
care about me but not care about a single thingÂ
about me.Â
“Sheryl is what made me realize it, Nathan. MaybeÂ
your love for me was just the same kind of pityÂ
you’d give a stray cat or dog.Â
“I looked like I needed someone to take care ofÂ
me, so that triggered your protective instinct andÂ
made you feel important. Am I right?”Â
Nathan’s lips trembled, but he couldn’t say a single word to refute me.Â
I looked at his completely broken expression, and suddenly I realized how stupid my years of liking him had been.Â
The motion–activated hallway light turned off. I had nothing left to say, so I just walked past him quietly toward the light at the end of the hall.Â
When I looked back, his whole body was swallowed by the dark.Â
And I had not belonged there for a long time.Â
I boarded a plane to go abroad.Â
There, my bright future was waiting.
