Chapter 2

The person sitting in the front row nearest to the stage was the secretary of Prosper Stitch Group's CEO. He had been requested by his boss a few days ago to return to the country to attend the wedding of Refined Threads Co.'s founders. Little did he expect to see the bride become the bridesmaid instead. The wedding ceremony was still ongoing. Janice gave Amelia's hand to Simon and turned around to leave the stage. Soon, she heard Simon saying, "I do," behind her. She picked up the pace and wanted to leave this place she had once anticipated. She knew everyone there, and the people from big companies had only attended the wedding because of Janice. Greenfield City was an old city known for its crochet art. Janice and Simon's company, Refined Threads Co., was considered new in the industry. Janice had guided and trained all the seamstresses in the company. Hence, many companies had wanted to poach Janice with good offers, but she had turned them down. When Janice entered the fitting room for the bride, she saw the evening gown that she hung there. It was her late mother's work before she passed, and her mother had deliberately kept this for Janice. The experienced seamstress cared a lot about this. They would make a wedding gown for their own daughter. Some older ones would even start sewing the gowns as soon as their daughters were born. However, it was a lot of work to make a wedding gown. Back then, Janice's mother had been in such a bad state, so she passed away after sewing an evening gown and left behind Janice and her 15-year-old younger brother. Janice stood there in a daze for a long time. Then, she took the evening gown and wanted to leave with it. Just as she placed the gown on the table, her brother, Jacob Smith, called. Janice cleared her throat and walked out of the hall to answer the call. "Jay?" "Janice, you ended the call in such a hurry then. You didn't tell me which date the wedding was postponed to." After the wedding ceremony, Simon sent Amelia to the fitting room. "Take a break. I'll talk to a few business partners for a bit." "Okay." Amelia smiled gently, acting just like his wife. As soon as the door was closed, the evening gown that had yet to be kept in the box caught her attention. She took the gown to have a look. Amelia supposed it was the one prepared by Janice previously. The evening gown was much prettier than the one Amelia had. She had a thought in mind… Meanwhile, Janice returned to the fitting room after answering the call. She was overwhelmed with anger when she witnessed the scene. "Amelia, what are you doing?" Amelia was looking in the mirror. She was wearing the evening gown Janice's mother had sewn for her. "There was a scratch on my evening gown. It wouldn't be nice to wear that out to greet the guests. I'll embarrass Simon. Since you've left your gown here, I'll wear it." Amelia had replaced Janice and held the wedding with her boyfriend. Janice felt so aggrieved that her heart was bleeding. She had only put up with all this because Amelia was dying. However, she wouldn't give in when it had something to do with her mother. She hadn't even worn it before. "Take it off. Right now." Janice's face turned cold—the kind that even her business partners couldn't withstand sometimes, much less someone as pampered as Amelia, who was born into a rich family. Amelia frowned. "Why are you so mad?" Janice only had her eyes on the evening gown. Upon seeing that Amelia remained unmoving, Janice strode forward and grabbed the sleeve of the gown. "Take it off." She didn't yell or scold Amelia, but the latter was terrified by Janice's icy expression. "Let me go!" Amelia pushed Janice, but it was such a big move that the silk sleeve got stuck on the hanger. The next instant, a ripping sound echoed in the air. Janice was stunned instantly. Amelia hadn't expected to tear the gown. "I-If you didn't pull me, I—" Janice slapped Amelia right in her face, and the latter slumped to the ground. "Janice Smith, what are you doing?" Simon saw the scene as soon as he entered the room. Besides, a few business owners in Greenfield City who had just chatted with Simon stood at the door, too. They stepped back tacitly when they saw that. However, Janice blocked Simon's way. Her eyes were still fixed on Amelia. "I told you to take off the gown. Did you not hear me?" "Simon…" Amelia covered her face in tears. Just when Janice was about to pull Amelia to remove the gown, she felt her body sway, and her face turned sideways. Simon's palm landed right in her face. She could hear ringing in her ears. "What occasion is this? Janice, get yourself together!" As Janice's head hit the ground, she could clearly see Simon carrying Amelia. Every moment they had spent in the past seven years shattered like broken glasses. The agony she felt deep down was greater than the pain in her head and cheek. Tears rolled from the corner of one eye to another, blurring her vision. The scene of Simon worrying about Amelia was carved into her mind. Janice had a dream. In her dream, she was giving out flyers with Simon again. They started their company; then, their company was listed, and now he could sit at the same table with Edward Moore from Prosper Stitch Group to talk about collaboration. Her hands were covered with wounds. Sometimes, it felt like he was blind and couldn't see how hard Janice had been working, but he could see Amelia getting slapped. When she woke up in shock in the hospital, she caught sight of someone next to her bed from the corner of her eye—it was Harrison. She wondered why the secretary of Prosper Stitch Group's CEO would be there. Janice held herself up. "Mr. Cullen, why are you here?" "You suddenly fainted. You need someone by your side, so Mr. Moore told me to leave after you woke up." "Thank you. I'm fine. Sorry for the trouble. Please send my gratitude to Mr. Moore, too." Of course, Harrison wouldn't see this as trouble. After all, he had only attended this dramatic wedding because Prosper Stitch Group wanted to poach a genius who could do double-sided crochet like Janice. A seamstress would need ten years of experience before they could produce a top-quality double-sided crochet. Talent was also one of the main factors. Less than 20 from tens of thousands of seamstresses under Prosper Stitch Group could do double-sided crochet. And their work was barely satisfactory. Prosper Stitch Group urgently needed a talent like Janice, who had won competitions and even had her work kept by the museum. "Ms. Smith, rest well then. This is Mr. Moore's name card. He told you to let him know any time you need help." The name card of Prosper Stitch Group's CEO was placed on the nightstand next to Janice's bed. The room became silent again after Harrison left. Janice grabbed the name card. Now, the companies that made orders and collaborated with Refined Threads Co. would specifically request Janice to discuss with them. Some rumors said Janice sold herself to get these. After all, she was born pretty and looked aggressive. If not, the pampered Amelia wouldn't have been intimidated by her cold gaze. The business owners could tell that Janice had a knack for running a business. Besides, she knew how to crochet. Everyone would want a talent like her. When the door was opened again, Janice saw Simon wearing a frown. He wore a suit and looked grim. Instead of asking about Janice, he questioned, "Was the secretary of Prosper Stitch Group here just now?" "Yeah." Simon stared at Janice for a while, his eyes flickering. He didn't care that he had slapped Janice. Janice had become prettier and prettier, and men couldn't take their eyes off her. She had the kind of face men went to war for. Simon was aware of Janice's talent, too. She was considered a master in crocheting, but Simon couldn't accept it when a woman was better than him. "Why didn't Prosper Stitch Group look for me instead if they wanted to talk about collaboration?" Simon thought Harrison was in the hospital to talk about a collaboration. He had completely forgotten that Janice needed someone by her side for now. Simon held the back of her hand, his gaze cold. "Janice Smith, you're mine. Have you forgotten that?"