Chapter 195
Chapter 195:
Kristine laughed softly. She had completely forgotten. Over the years, she had done countless charitable things, and Vance handled this project for her, so she rarely thought about it.
“I told you to keep it anonymous, didn’t I p>
“Yes,” Vance said quietly. “The university still doesn’t know you’re the donor.” His voice carried emotion. Some people did one good deed and made sure everyone knew. Kristine had done far more, yet never sought recognition. People like her were rare.
“So, will you come on Saturday?” Vance asked, snapping back to the reason he had called. He stared at his phone, waiting — worried she might say no.
Last night, Helen’s remarks had made Vance realize that her resentment toward Kristine ran much deeper than he had suspected. He had no idea why his sister felt that way. Still, he couldn’t ignore the tension — and if he had noticed it, Kristine, always attuned to undercurrents, would have picked up on it even more sharply.
“I’ll be there, of course. Why wouldn’t I?” Kristine replied with easygoing confidence.
𝖳hе 𝗆𝗼ѕ𝘵 𝘱𝗈𝗉𝗎l𝖺𝗿 ո𝘰𝘃e𝗹ѕ 𝗼ո.с𝗼𝗆
Her reassurance settled his nerves at once. She had accepted, and that alone told him she wasn’t upset.
“Great. I’ll come get you on Saturday,” he promised.
“Alright p>
Meanwhile, in Peudon, Tripp took extra care as he nestled a lavish 1950s watch into its velvet-lined box. The once-elegant bracelet was now loose and tarnished, the mainspring snapped, and the dial and hands bore the marks of decades. The piece was in rough shape — even a master conservator would hesitate to take on such a project.
According to Asher, this would be Kristine’s first attempt at repairing a watch.
“Are you actually planning to give this to Ms. Green?” Tripp asked.
Lately, he found Asher harder and harder to read. Since his turnaround, Asher had thrown himself into work, relentlessly pursuing his goal to reclaim the Edwards Group’s legacy. Recently, Gridron had become the center of his attention — even the smallest projects tied to the city demanded his personal involvement. A minor partnership with a local Gridron company was coming up next week, and despite the modest profits, he insisted on showing up himself.
“Is something wrong?” Asher responded, his voice calm as he turned his wheelchair, though his eyes remained icy.
A chill ran down Tripp’s spine. Lately, Asher greeted everyone with a smile. Sometimes Tripp almost forgot that Asher, being an illegitimate son, hadn’t clawed his way to where he was by being pleasant. He had been ruthless when necessary.
“Not at all, Mr. Edwards p>
“Then get to work p>
“Understood.” Tripp left the room.
After the door clicked shut, Asher’s steely mask faded, replaced by his usual collected, elegant manner.
The following night, Kristine finally received the watch. She turned it over in her hands, inspecting every detail, and realized just how challenging the job would be.
Having never restored a watch before, she sought out Victor and asked for resources on the subject. Within half an hour, he replied with a trove of documents — over sixty gigabytes in total, all of it dense and useful.