Chapter 51
Lennox’s face turned red instantly, body stiff as a board. He stood there, completely at a loss for words, looking like he’d rather be anywhere but here.
Grace nudged him, “Lennox p>
Lennox forced an awkward smile at the salesgirl and quickly pulled Grace aside. Lowering his voice, he said, “We already prayed at Peace Temple earlier. I think the gods heard us – that should be enough. We don’t need to make another offering p>
Grace was confused.
She stared at him in shock, completely failing to follow his logic. “Then why did you agree with me when I mentioned it earlier? One minute you’re all for it, the next you’re backing out? Lennox, seriously? This isn’t the time for jokes. The salesgirl’s still waiting. If we decline now, it’s going to be super embarrassing p>
She was head over heels for Lennox – like, really into him – but even that wasn’t enough to stop her from being annoyed with his weird behavior.
She had her pride. She wouldn’t even bother being jealous of people like Lisette. And now? He wanted her to publicly back out like this? Yeah, no way. Major loss of face!
“I’m not mad,” Grace said tightly.
Lennox sighed and finally admitted it, “After buying you a Chanel purse and covering other expenses such as rent and gift money, I have no remaining funds to cover the cost of the offering p>
Grace’s eyes widened. “Wait, what p>
Lennox felt like life’s reality check had slapped every ounce of ego out of him. He repeated more clearly, “I’m out of money p>
Those simple words hit her like a truck.
Grace frowned, glancing at the salesgirl still waiting by the register, then at Lisette, who was chatting effortlessly with Tobias like they lived in a different world.
Turning back, she said quietly, “Lennox, I get it. You’re trying to live by your own rules, and that’s respectable. But reality can suck sometimes and p>
She bit her lip hard, struggling before finally blurting out what had been sitting in her heart for a while: “Just stop holding out. Apologize to your dad and go back to being who you really are p>
Lennox looked totally lost. “I mean… I know all those words, but when you put them like that, I have no idea what you’re talking about p>
Since she’d already started, Grace decided to rip the Band-Aid off. “I know you’re the heir to the Gray family from Veridia.
“You’ve got your pride, I know. But right now we’ve got a salesgirl waiting, we can’t afford to humiliate ourselves in public like this. If this goes out, people are going to talk. It’s going to ruin your whole image in high society p>
She softened a bit. “Lennox, just say sorry to your dad for now. Once we get through this patch, even if you want to cut ties and walk away from that world – I’ll be with you p>
Lennox froze.
Grace tugged gently at his fingers. “Okay? Lennox p>
He stayed frozen for a while, then looked up with a distant gaze in his eyes. You really believe that p>
Grace was caught off guard. She forced a smile. “Not for long. I only figured it out recently p>
At that moment, Lennox was unusually sensitive. From that split-second smile, he picked up on too much-like she was flustered and… maybe lying.
He gently pulled his hand away. “Guess I let you down p>
Grace lowered her eyes to look at her empty palm, then glanced back at him, voice a little shaky. “Lennox p>
“I’m not some rich heir,” he said flatly. “I’m just a broke student from the countryside. Grew up there, still living in it p>
Her jaw dropped. “Wait what? You’re kidding, right p>
Everything about him screamed rich kid to her! This had to be a joke… right? She got into Veridia University, and everything felt new and unfamiliar at first.
Lennox, as the vice president of the student council, was in charge of welcoming the freshmen. At the orientation, he flashed a bright, sunny smile at her.
And just like that, she was hooked.
As she learned more about him, her feelings only grew stronger.
He was a top student, always grabbing scholarship after scholarship. Even when he missed the national one once, someone actually set up a personal award just for him-with a prize of a hundred thousand!
Not to mention, he was seriously good-looking. No official “Campus Prince” title, but in her eyes, he had the perfect face and build.
Being on the most elite and prestigious campus in Sion, she started to get exposed to luxury brands – slowly at first, but curiosity kicked in. That’s when she found out all his clothes were from the world’s top fashion labels. And that watch he always wore? Worth seven digits!
But what made Lennox stand out most was that he didn’t have the bad habits of the usual rich kids. No racing, no clubbing, no wild parties, no messing around with girls. He practically lived in the library-studious, respectful, and just… decent.
With those killer qualifications and a personality that made you feel like sunshine, she was obsessed.
So even though he was close with Lisette and people loved talking about how perfect Lennox and Lisette were together, she still made her move.
She played up her soft, gentle side, learned how to knit a scarf for him, folded hundreds of tiny paper stars, and finally got him to say yes-they started dating.
They were always together: eating, walking, doing everything hand in hand. She was completely swept up in a sweet, sugar-coated love story.
Eventually, though, she started to notice the contradictions in Lennox’s life.
He wore high-end brands, sported that luxury watch… but ate at corner stalls like it was nothing.
He didn’t own a car and mostly relied on shared bikes, buses, or the subway. Even taking a cab was rare.
At one point, she even wondered-were those luxury clothes all fakes?
She once got a stain on his shirt and offered to clean it, but secretly brought it to a hometown friend who knew fashion brands inside out. The verdict? It was 100% real.
That’s when a thought popped into her head.
Maybe Lennox was born rich but didn’t fit into the mold his parents had set for him. Maybe he didn’t want to follow the family path in finance and chose to study music instead. And maybe, to punish him or force him back home, his father cut him off financially. That would explain why he was so careful with money. He had to earn his way to live his dream life.
In her mind, he wasn’t just any heir-he was the “Struggle Hard or Inherit a Fortune” type.
So after that, she stopped stressing over his frugal habits and just let herself fall in love.
Because one day, reality would slap him hard enough, and when he finally gave in and went back to inherit his family business… she’d be the future Mrs. Gray!
Of course, to be the kind of woman worthy of that title, she had to work just as hard-not give his parents any excuse to look down on her or split them up.
She had a goal and was pushing herself for it-fighting for that debut show, determined to climb her way up.
But now p>
He was telling her he was just a broke college student?
That everything, literally everything, was just in her head?
Her whole world flipped upside down. Grace stared at him, stunned.
“You lied to me p>
“What did I lie about p>
Grace was speechless.
Right.
Lennox never actually said he was rich.
All of this-every single bit-was her imagination.
Anger swelled in her chest, but she couldn’t even let it out.
Meanwhile, Lisette had picked her fabric, and Tobias handed a sleek black card to the salesperson in front of them.
“Wrap up the three jade sculptures p>