Chapter 15
When Grace said that, Sofia’s face fell.
“Antonio, is Ms. Parrish still mad at me for what happened last time? I’ll leave then. I don’t want to disturb you two.”
As she turned to go, Antonio quickly grabbed her and frowned at Grace.
“Sofia is trying to be nice. Grace, you love cute animals, right? Just take it.”
Seeing the annoyance in his eyes, Grace clenched her fists and turned to his secretary.
“I’m in heels and it’s hard for me to hold the puppy. Could you hold it for me?”
The people around them started to gossip again, saying Grace couldn’t tell when someone was being nice and that she was pretending to be difficult.
Antonio thought Grace was deliberately making things awkward for Sofia, so he took her into the private area with a stern look on his face.
Everyone left, and Grace was alone.
She poured herself a glass of water and drank it slowly to calm her
nerves.
She used to love puppies.
But five years ago, on a rainy night when the power went out and Antonio had a fever, she ran out in the storm to get help
A neighbor’s wolfdog chased her and bit her calf hard.
She was in so much pain, but she called a doctor and made sure Antonio was okay before she took care of her own wound.
Since then, she had been scared of dogs, but she never told Antonio about it because she didn’t want him to worry.
Even through her dress, she could still feel the scar.
The people at the party were all good at knowing what others wanted to hear. When they saw how Antonio acted, they made it obvious that they didn’t like Grace.
When it came to the celebration part, everyone crowded around Sofia like it was her birthday.
Antonio finally calmed down a bit and called Grace over to blow out the candles.
She walked over quietly, about to make a wish, when Sofia suddenly shouted in surprise, “Hey, what a coincidence!
“Ms. Parrish, you and Harley have the same birthday. Why don’t we celebrate together?”
Hearing this, everyone around them snickered, hands over their mouths.
Seeing the challenge in Sofia’s eyes, Grace dug her fingers into her palms.
She took a deep breath and said coldly, “Well then, let the puppy blow out the candles, and you can sing the birthday song for it. I won’t get in the way.”
As she was about to leave, Antonio’s forehead veins hulged, and he called out to her in a stern voice, “Grace! This is your birthday party What will
people think if you leave now?”
Esu Cirace ignored him and turned to walk towards the door.
Fed up, Antonio chased after her. He grabbed her arm, whispered something into her car, and then guided her back to the cake.
“Be good! Everyone here is from our circle. If you leave now and cause a scene, it’ll look bad for my family, and they’ll be even more against us.”
Grace wondered, “Against us?
“What does he mean? He’s already married to Sofia.”
Around them, people started singing the cheerful Happy Birthday song.
Grace forced a smile and stood there like a statue, feeling stiff and numb, with no real happiness on her face.
Someone suddenly shoved the puppy into her arms, and she got goosebumps all over.
Halfway through the song, the puppy got restless and bolted.
The tall champagne tower toppled over and crashed straight toward Grace
and Sofia.
People screamed all around. The falling glasses flickered in Grace’s eyes.
She watched as Antonio wrapped his arms around Sofia and moved away. and then saw glass and liquid smashing all over her
Her shoulders got cut by the shards, leaving long, bleeding scratches,
Blood dripped down and soaked her white dress rod
She fell to the ground, groaned in pain, and cold sweat poured down her Torchend
Hearing the noise. Antonio turned back and saw Grace was hurt.
He was about to go to her when Sofia screamed beside him, “Ah! Antonio, Harley scratched me! What if I get rabies?”
Looking at the small scratch on her ankle, Antonio hesitated for a second. then told his secretary, “Take Grace to the hospital and get her wounds treated.”
With that, he rushed off with Sofia.
The guests all left, and before they went, they couldn’t resist kicking Grace while she was down.
“Ms. Parrish is really good at naming a dog, isn’t she? Look at her. Isn’t she like a stray dog?”
“Don’t insult Harley! It’s so cute, nothing like those suck–up dogs trying to climb higher.”
Every word hit Grace like a punch.
She looked down at herself, all messy and hurt, and felt her nose twitch Tears started to fill her eyes.
The birthday sign wobbled and fell right in front of her.
She picked it up, looked around at the empty, messy room, and finally let the tears fall without holding back.
Her twenty–third birthday ended in such a miserable way.
