“Looks can be an advantage, but if you’ve got
nothing but looks, that’s a disaster waiting to
happen.”
“You should look up what kind of car Blake
drives.”
The emergency meeting at work was about
the Clear Creek Resort project, the one we
were doing with Blake Enterprises.
Blake’s company was handling the
development, and Amway was in charge of
marketing.
I joined Amway five years ago, right out of
college It’s a global advertising company The
く
college. It’s a global advertising company. The
work is crazy, but the pay is great.
But I told my family I was just a grunt at
Amway, making peanuts.
Wendy and Jenny already look down on me
anyway, so they believed it.
The team lead was wrapping up her
presentation, saying, “Blake took over this
project. It’s his first big move as the heir.”
Then, she said that Blake wasn’t happy with
the plan, so we have to come up with backup
options.
We have to meet with him in two weeks.
“The guy is a stickler for details, and he cut
After the meeting, everyone was gossiping
about the Blake Family drama in the
breakroom.
“I heard Blake got disfigured when he was a
kid, which is why he stays out of the
spotlight.”
“Disfigured? Who would dare?”
“No idea. My mom was a reporter, and she
snapped a picture of him leaving the hospital.
The boss told her to delete it.”
“Power struggles can get messy. Blake’s
sister died under suspicious circumstances.
What little kid goes to the beach in the middle
of the night?”
“The old man has three wives and four sons.
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Blake is the youngest, and he’s the heir. He
has to be ruthless.”
“We should just focus on our jobs. Blake is
super picky.”
I was thinking about the face I saw through
the car window. Scars or not, he was
handsome.
There was something dark about him, too.
Something you can’t quite figure out.
He was not, as Jenny assumed, some easy
mark who’d fall for a pretty face.
I checked my Instagram. Jenny had posted a
new set of photos.
She was wearing a Chanel suit, drinking wine
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on a hotel balcony, surrounded by flowers.
She was flanked by a couple of guys who
looked like they were extras on a TV show.
The caption said, “The winery in Italy sent
over the vintage wine from ’82!
The fragrance goes straight to the roof of the
mouth, filling the entire oral cavity and nasal
cavity with a romantic taste.
Girls can really start stocking up on high–end
red wine.”
There were a dozen girls in the background,
all waiting their turn to be in the picture.
–
The finishing school has props – sports cars,
luxury goods, jewelry, beach houses.
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The goal is to create the image of a rich,
cultured person.
Rich guys who don’t know any better eat it
- up.
Also, they pretend to be career women.
Jenny’s so–called partnership and
professorship? All fake.
The realtor sent over two listings to look at.
I have enough saved up to buy a condo near
the office.
I need to cut ties with my family before I get
dragged down with them.
Three days later, the video of Jenny’s fender-
bender was going viral.
The comments were calling her the prettiest
girl, saying if she went into acting, all the
stars would be out of a job.
Then, someone posted Jenny’s Instagram,
bragging about her family’s wealth and
sophistication.
That meant Blake couldn’t miss it. And
publicity is the first step to marrying rich.
The finishing school was good at this.
After signing the purchase agreement, I went
back to the house to get my stuff.
Wendy opened the door, glanced at me, and
asked if I found a place to stay.
<
Dad didn’t even look up.
He was buzzing around Jenny, like she won
the lottery.
“It’s Blake. Blake messaged me.”
“My mentor says I’m one step closer to
sealing the deal.”
Jenny put her phone to her chest and after a
few seconds, she pressed the phone to open.
her message.
The three of them stared at the screen, quiet
for a while.
I put down my suitcase and went over to see.
Blake’s message said:
Г
“The car needs to be sent back to Sweden
for repairs. The total cost is $85,700.”
There was a repair report.
“What?! How can fixing a car cost that
much?”
Jenny zoomed in on the report, counting the
zeroes.
Wendy didn’t believe it either. She thought it
was a scam.
Blake’s sports car was a Koenigsegg,
handcrafted. It’s worth $500,000.
I knew because Amway had worked with
Koenigsegg before.
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A repair bill like that wasn’t unusual.
While they were arguing about the money,
Blake sent another message.
