Thorns Grow After Betrayal (Celeste and Chester) novel Chapter 45

"What?!"

The manager, beads of sweat glistening on his temples, stammered, "Just now… while you were away, Miss Selwyn tricked the front desk and managed to get that room open. She ran into the people we'd already stationed there."

Zeke's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Which Miss Selwyn?" He paused, voice turning icy. "Don't tell me it was Celestine."

The manager's voice was barely a whisper. "It—it was her."

Zeke let out a sharp, incredulous laugh.

Celestine. Of course.

That woman had sabotaged his plans with Joanna more times than he could count.

He'd never really cared much about Mirabelle—he had plenty of girlfriends, after all. But over the past few years, she'd been making waves in the industry, her star rising so fast she was starting to outshine Joanna. That wouldn't do. So he'd cozied up to Mirabelle, used a few harmless tricks, and made her willingly fall for him.

With the excuse of wanting to spend more time together, he'd convinced her to turn down job after job.

Then, just when he thought she was safely tucked away, some no-name, low-budget indie film she'd shot went viral. Now everyone was calling her the next big thing—even comparing her to Joanna, who'd always been queen of the scene.

As if Mirabelle could ever hold a candle to Joanna!

Lately, Joanna had been in a foul mood, and Zeke didn't need to ask why; he knew it was all because of his little side project.

The trouble was, Mirabelle came from an old, respected family. Their rules were strict, and she'd managed to stay scandal-free in an industry built on dirt. The only time she'd ever trended for a scandal was because of her relationship with him.

Zeke's lips curled into a cold smile.

Well, if she wanted to play innocent, he'd just have to get his hands dirty.

He'd hired a couple of goons with gang connections, lured Mirabelle to a private room under the pretense of meeting his parents, and planned to catch her in a compromising situation. Once the videos leaked and the headlines branded her as a two-faced seductress, her career would be dead in the water.

Everything had been going perfectly—until Celestine, that meddling witch, had barged in and ruined it all.

The one with the curls was Ramsey, head designer for Reed & Ripple—the brand they were meeting with. Every design had to pass through his critical eye before moving to production, and their company had lost more than a few proposals to his exacting standards.

Seated next to him was Teague, the brand's principal partner. Reed & Ripple had gone viral a while back for a line of matching athletic wear, and the models in all the campaign photos had been none other than Ramsey and Teague themselves.

Rumors about their relationship abounded, but nothing had ever been confirmed.

At one point during the meeting, while the two men stepped out to use the restroom, Crystal Lennox took the opportunity to fill Celestine in on all the gossip.

Celestine was left blushing furiously.

Crystal grinned. "That actually went pretty well! Ramsey didn't nitpick for once, which means we probably clinched the deal. By the way, Celly, what happened on your way here? You looked flustered."

Celestine had just opened her mouth to answer when the door swung open.

"Sorry to interrupt, ladies. The Reed & Ripple collaboration is on hold, effective immediately."