No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)

Noelle smiled lightly. "I've resolved my understanding with Samantha."

Since the Merlocks had stopped targeting her, she'd chosen not to release Samantha's dirt videos. They were maintaining an unspoken truce.

However, Noelle was not naive to think the Merlocks were here to mend ties with her. She didn't have that much influence.

Laura smiled. "Samantha acted on impulse and withdrew our family's investment without consulting anyone. I'm here to discuss sponsoring your team again. The Merlocks have been sponsoring for years, and we can't stop the sponsorship as we like."

"Thank you for the offer, but there's no need. Our team has found a new sponsor."

Once Noelle declined, Samantha chimed in, "Laura is saving face for you here, Noelle. Don't be ungrateful."

Laura stopped her. "Samantha, mind your words."

"You've shown her enough respect; how dare she act so high and mighty?" Samantha fumed.

Noelle met Laura's gaze and said, "We can discuss the sponsorship later, but it's not possible for now."

She didn't completely shut the door, considering it a way to save face for Laura. Then, she turned back to training.

Laura stood aside and watched Noelle play. "I have to admit, she's really good at gaming."

She remembered Cedric as once being exceptionally skilled in gaming. He might not have left the field if it weren't for that car accident.

Samantha turned to look at her and asked, "Why did you suddenly come over just to handle this matter?"

Samantha had always idolized Laura and wanted to be just like her a poised and elegant socialite.

Laura replied somewhat meaningfully, "I'm just a little curious. How did you manage to have a beef with her as soon as school started?"

Had Noelle known Cedric's true identity all along and had made things difficult for her sister, Samantha, on purpose?

"You don't know how arrogant she is, Laura. She looked down on our business school, so I had to teach her a lesson. I heard that back in high school, she hooked up with the school doctor, and they're still together. Her private life is a mess."

"She dated in high school? With the school doctor?"

"That's right! Someone like her doesn't deserve the slightest respect."

Laura figured that was good news. Cedric must not have told Noelle his true

identity, and that meant he was wary of the latter.

This was something Emma needed

to know. Though she was just Cedric's stepmother, she cared about him greatly. If he ever ended up with a lady with a bad reputation, people would mock her for failing as a stepmother. noveldrama

Samantha lowered her voice. "Magnus made an open announcement that your engagement to the Greene family was fake. Why didn't you clear things up? My classmates ridiculed me because of that."

Laura's smile dimmed slightly, yet she maintained her composure and replied, "There's no need to fall into a self-defense trap. Magnus doesn't represent Cedric anyway."

"But I saw Cedric carrying some woman out of a bar. Do you think he might be seeing someone else?"

"Don't say nonsense." Laura didn't tell Samantha anything to avoid alarming her.

She thought about all the trouble the Merlocks had been facing lately, and everything clicked. When Samantha targeted Noelle, Cedric must've found out and retaliated behind the scenes.

A chill ran down Laura's spine, but she had a chance for now. Since Cedric dared not reveal his identity, that implied he wasn't serious about the relationship, and she was the one meant to marry him.

The Merlock sisters left shortly after. Noelle relaxed once they were gone, and she wondered what the Merlock family was up to.

Just then, she received a reply from Liam. The gist of the text was that she needed someone to testify for her parents' verbal will, and it was preferably one of her brothers.

She thought about it and decided Frank might be the only person who could testify, so she hesitated but eventually dialed his number.

Yet, Donovan was the one picking up. "Fancy seeing you call, Noelle. Are you trying to convince Frank to testify for you? That will never happen!"