“Alright,” the staff member said right away. “Ladies, I need you to leave now.”
“Ella, you can’t do this to us…”
The staff waved, and security guards rushed over, escorting Grandma Jill, Jessa, Maureen, Rachel, and Ruby out of the venue.
...
Grandma Jill nearly lost her balance as they were pushed out. Jessa and Maureen grabbed her arms on either side. “Grandma, are you okay?”
She pulled away from them, her face cold and angry. “Did you see that? Ella is a genius.”
For as long as they could remember, Grandma Jill had treated Jessa and Maureen like the jewels of the Irvine family. She never said a harsh word to them. But now she didn’t hold back. “You two. I put so much into you, gave you the best tutors, spent money to make sure every door opened, and in the end, you barely got into good universities. Look at Ella. She grew up in the countryside. She’s a genius, someone who can stand toe to toe with Mr. Harmon. Compared to her, you two are just disappointing.”
Regret twisted inside her. She couldn’t believe how much she regretted cutting Ella off.
Ella could have brought so much honor to the Irvine family. Jessa and Maureen together couldn’t compete.
Both girls turned pale, unable to say a word back.
All they could think about was how many times they’d insulted Ella. To her, they must’ve looked like nothing more than fools.
Rachel tried to step in, her voice soft. “Mom...”
“Be quiet!” Grandma Jill snapped, fixing Rachel with a glare. “You don’t get to talk. You’re the most useless one here.”
Rachel froze, her heart full of bitterness. She hated Ella in that moment, hated that the daughter she’d abandoned had turned out to be a genius.
“I don’t want to see any of you right now. You’re all just annoying.” Grandma Jill turned and walked away.
“Mom!”
“Grandma!”
Ella laughed. “Come on, Lilly, let’s head back.”
The summit was over. Ella said goodbye to Mr. Shepherd and the others, then left with Lilly.
They were planning to go back to the dorm.
Right then, David appeared, tall and elegant, coming toward them. His voice was deep and smooth. “Let me take you home.”
He wanted to give Ella a ride.
Before Ella could answer, Luke, the rising star of the tech world, walked over too. He looked straight at her. “Ella, where are you going? I’ll drive you.”
Luke wanted to give her a ride too.
Lilly glanced between the two men and panicked a little inside. Both of them wanted to take Ella home. Who was she going to pick?

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