Chapter 2465
The crew would occasionally touch up on Ivy’s makeup or give her some costumes to try, so Balfour was not surprised by the noises.
“That outfit’s a bust, not nearly as sharp as the one you had on before,” Margot grumbled.
It was Ivy’s last scene of the day, and although her costume had been decided on ages ago, the director and a few big shots upstairs couldn’t seem to make up their minds. Margot, ever the outspoken one, had chimed in with her two cents.
Looking at herself in the mirror, Ivy had to agree; the previous ensemble was the winner. “But that one’s back in my lounge,” she sighed.
“I got you,” Margot volunteered with a wave of her hand. “You stay put-I’m done for the day, so I’ll run and grab it for you.” And with a pat on Ivy’s arm, she was off, darting toward the lounge.
Inside the lounge, Clara gazed at the man lounging with his eyes closed, her heart racing. It wasn’t every day you came across a man as handsome and capable as this. What kind of woman wouldn’t dream of a future with someone like him?
She knew the odds were stacked against her; he was a high-flyer, and she was, well, Clara. But she wasn’t without her charms and certainly no less fetching than Ivy. If Ivy could snag a catch like him, Clara was convinced she could, too.
Just as she leaned in to steal a kiss from the unsuspecting Balfour, the door flew with a bang.
open
Margot, in her rush to fetch Ivy’s costume, had barged in unannounced, only to freeze at the sight of a strange woman hovering over a sleeping Balfour.
“What the heck are you two up to?” she blurted out, her voice echoing around the
space.
Jolted awake, Balfour’s eyes snapped open, and he quickly scooted away from Cla tumbling off the couch in his haste.
Clara’s cheeks flushed a deep crimson under Balfour’s icy gaze, sending shivers down spine.
“I wasn’t doing anything! I just wanted to, I mean, I was just trying to…”
Margot let out a snort of disbelief. “What, get a closer look to see if Mr. Howard has a mole on his face?”
Despite the absurdity of the excuse, Clara latched onto it. “Yes, exactly! I mean, everyone knows about Mr. Howard of the Howard Group, right?”
She had just remembered why the man seemed so familiar; she had seen him before and then, amid the chaos, forgotten.
The revelation of his identity only deepened Clara’s resentment. Why on earth would a man of his stature be interested in Ivy? Did he have no taste?
Any sensible person would choose a match from their own social circle, or at least a lady of unblemished reputation. Why settle for Ivy, of all people?
Clara was flummoxed, convinced that Ivy must have some dirt on Balfour or that he was being blackmailed. Regardless of the reason, Clara couldn’t shake her fascination with the man. A catch like him was right there for the taking, and she wasn’t about to let him slip through her fingers.
If only she had seized the moment before and made an impression, surely, once he got an eyeful of her figure, he would be smitten, right?
