Ava jumped. Her heart skipped a beat, but as her eyes landed on the visitor, Ruby, a sigh of relief escaped her lips.

Ava touched up her makeup with a casual air, and her voice carried a hint of disdain, "Ms. Ruby, aren't you afraid your dad will clap a hand over your mouth with talk like that?" Ruby, taken aback, pressed on, "How do you my name if we've never met?"

Snapping her makeup compact shut, Ava retorted, "I haven't met you, true, but I've seen your picture on Billy's desk. If you're not Mr. Antonio's little princess, are you his secretary on the side?"

Ruby's expression darkened. She had a nagging feeling that Ava was up to no good at the company.

Ruby strode into Billy's office and shared her suspicions. Billy reassured her, "Don't worry. Ava's not out to scam us."

"Dad, how can you be so sure?"

"I had our designers check Ava's drafts for plagiarism. They've been at it for two days straight and can't find a single issue. They even rave about the fresh ideas, perfectly in tune with the current trends. Look at this, the presale numbers have already hit the roof!"

Billy's excitement grew as he spoke, and then he turned to Ruby. "You want to go to Harvard, right? I'll make some calls. As my daughter, you've got to shine."

Ruby felt stung by the unsaid implication, wondering why her father had to poke at her insecurities.

But with Billy so convinced, what space was there for her to argue?

Oliver was also clued into Josefina's company situation. He had people watching over Josefina's business, ensuring she got whatever she needed, no matter how grand.

No exaggeration, if Josefina wanted a plane to jet off to a fashion show abroad, a private jet would be ready to whisk her from the company's rooftop at a moment's notice. If Josefina's firm needed fabric, suppliers stood by ready to deliver whatever was required.

When Oliver heard about Ava's betrayal and Josefina's predicament of facing a presale without any new designs to show, his brow knitted in concern.

"George, get our designers over to Josie's place. Whatever style she wants, I want it sketched out on the spot!"

George glanced at Oliver's determined face and knew he wasn't bluffing.

"Sir, it's impossible for designers to come up with drafts on the fly, isn't it?"

Oliver looked up. His gaze was steely. "I want to see if they can deliver on their promises!"

As Oliver stood, George interjected, "You have an important meeting in five minutes."

"Cancel it. I'm going to see Josie."

Oliver arrived at Josefina's company. It was his first visit. He knew Josie preferred to keep a low profile, not wanting to draw attention to his own high-profile persona. Donning black shades that hid his piercing, charming eyes, he made his way to Josefina's office door and knocked.

Josefina called out, "Come in."

As Oliver entered, Josefina didn't look up, seemingly engrossed in her sketching.

"Josie."

At the sound of Oliver's voice, Josefina jolted, hastily covering her draft with a file. Oliver leaned over the desk, with his hand resting on the surface, and as he lifted his head, his doting eyes met hers.

They were close, too close. Josefina felt a shadow over her head and instinctively looked up. Their eyes locked, and their lips were merely an inch apart, on the brink of a kiss that could seal their fate in the next heartbeat...

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