A Vow of Deception, A Vow of Revenge novel Chapter 78

On the way to the hotel, Veronica got a call from a friend who was coming to the welcome party. The friend asked if it was okay to bring someone else along—a buddy who wanted to join the fun.

"Of course! The more the merrier," Veronica laughed. "Just don't bring any random weirdos, alright? We want a lively crowd, not chaos."

"Relax," the friend replied. "He's definitely not some weirdo!"

Veronica didn't think much of it, but she never imagined that the mysterious plus-one would turn out to be Jonah.

At that moment, everyone was gathering around Winona, ready for the cake-cutting. Veronica had gone all out for the party, ordering a custom five-tier cake topped with a little figurine of Winona. The tiny Winona wore a cape and a crown, looking every bit the heroine.

"Veronica, you've made this look like Nona's birthday," someone teased.

"So what?" Veronica waved her hand dismissively. "We're celebrating new beginnings! Might as well call it a birthday."

"New beginnings? What do you mean?"

"Ahem. Some things are better left unasked!" Veronica grinned, scanning the room. "Is everyone here?"

"Clifford's not here yet."

Clifford was the friend who'd just called her—the one bringing a guest.

"What's up with him? How is he this late? Should we just start without—"

Before Veronica could finish, a man's apologetic voice cut through the chatter. "Sorry, we're late. Got held up by something. Hope you didn't wait too long."

Everyone turned to look, including Winona.

When she saw who had arrived, her eyes widened in shock.

Walking towards them were two young men—one was Clifford, and the other…

It was Jonah.

Jonah spoke up, his voice warm and easy. "We're all here tonight to celebrate Winona. I'm just tagging along with Clifford—please, don't mind me."

He glanced at Winona and nodded politely. "Miss Thorne, welcome back to The Capital."

Winona snapped out of her daze and returned his smile with quiet composure. "Thank you, Mr. Rogers."

She hadn't expected that her first meeting with her fiancé after returning to The Capital would be at her own welcome party.

"Alright, everyone's here now—let's cut the cake!" Veronica announced.

Everyone crowded around Winona, urging her to make the first cut.

Jonah reached for the cake knife, turning the handle toward Winona with an easy, practiced gesture.

Winona hesitated for just a second, then looked up—only to find him smiling at her, eyes warm and gentle.