Chapter 4

Valerie Vance POV

Serena started coming to the apartment more and more frequently.

Her silk shawl was left draped over the living room sofa. Her expensive perfumes cluttered the bathroom counter. A box of macarons, a jar of organic honey, and several bottles of yogurt appeared in the fridge.

All of them were sweet.

Julian detested sweets. Whenever I bought a small cupcake for myself, he wouldn't even spare it a glance.

Once, I had approached him while eating an ice cream cone. He had turned his head away in disgust, telling me it was too sweet and ordering me to stay away from him.

But late that night, when I opened the fridge to grab some water, I noticed two macarons were missing from Serena's box.

He didn't hate sweets. He just hated sweets bought by me.

Serena knew exactly what my position was in this household, so she didn't even view me as a threat.

One afternoon, Serena brought a few of her wealthy socialite friends to the apartment.

I was in the kitchen preparing afternoon tea. Serena was showing her friends around the place. When they reached the kitchen door, she stopped.

"Valerie, could you brew a pot of Earl Grey and bring it to the living room?"

She turned to her friends with a casual smile. "This is Valerie. She's been with Julian for years. She can do absolutely everything and is incredibly hardworking. Julian and I honestly couldn't live without her."

The women's eyes instantly shifted as they looked at me.

There was scrutiny, amusement, and blatant disdain in their gazes.

One of them chuckled and whispered to Serena, "Is this the girl you told us about? The one who's been clinging to Mr. Thorne for years?"

Serena didn't answer directly. She just offered a knowing, pitying smile. That smile was all the answer they needed.

The women looked at me with mock sympathy.

When I brought the tea tray into the living room, Serena was discussing her upcoming engagement party with her friends.

"Julian said the engagement party will be next month. He's already hand-picking the ring."

"Oh my gosh! Mr. Thorne is personally picking the ring? He adores you so much!"

Serena giggled, casting a sideways glance at me.

She didn't say a word to me, but that look said everything.

I set the tea tray down and quietly retreated to the kitchen.

Leaning against the marble countertop, I closed my eyes and took deep, shuddering breaths.

That night, after Serena and her friends left, Julian came home.

I was tidying up the living room when he walked past me. Suddenly, he stopped.

"Have you lost weight recently?"

I froze, looking up at him.

It had been a very long time since he had last noticed anything about me.

Before I could answer, Julian walked over to the sofa, sat down, and pulled out his phone to reply to some emails.

"Don't overwork yourself. Serena's friends might visit more often. If you can't handle the housework alone, tell the maid to come more frequently."

His words didn't stem from concern for me. He was just worried that if I collapsed, there would be no one to run the house.

I nodded. "I will."

He glanced up at me again.

"By the way, there's a charity gala in a few days. It's Serena's first time attending this kind of high-society event. She's not familiar with the protocols. I want you to come along and assist her."

He wanted me to act as Serena's personal assistant.

In front of Serena, in front of his entire social circle, in the role of a glorified servant.

"Okay," I said quietly.

That night, back in my room, I locked the door and pulled out my phone. I texted the agent: "How is the paperwork for the cottage coming along?"

The agent replied: "About ten more days at most."

I typed back a single word: Expedite.