Chapter 313
Isabel only meant to scare the photographer a little, but to her surprise, he didn’t hesitate at all. “Sure,” he replied.
She stared at him in disbelief, lips parting to protest, but he’d already shifted his attention to Effie.
“Miss, this is part of your company’s work too, right? Why don’t you give it a try?” the photographer said to her. “Who knows, maybe your boss will give you a raise for it.”
Effie’s mouth twitched. A raise? She could do without that.
What was meant as an offhand comment landed somewhere else entirely. Lyman, standing nearby, thought to himself, Well, it’s not the worst idea.
Isabel shot Effie a cold, mocking smile. “If she can pull this off, I’ll get down on my knees and beg her forgiveness in front of everyone.”
Effie had been ready to refuse, but Isabel’s taunt lit a competitive spark in her. She straightened and said, “Alright, since someone’s so eager to kneel before me, I’d feel bad not to take the challenge.”
“You-” Isabel was so furious she could barely breathe. Her voice was ice. “Don’t flatter yourself, Effie. You’re nothing.”
Effie shrugged. “Well, at least the photographer thinks I’m worth a shot. Unlike some people…”
“What exactly are you implying?!” Isabel hissed, glaring daggers at Effie, as if she might claw her apart at any moment.
Annabel finally broke in, exasperated. “Enough, both of you. Haven’t we embarrassed ourselves enough already?”
Isabel bit her tongue. She couldn’t shake the feeling the photographer was playing favorites—maybe Effie had bribed him or something. But she had no proof.
Fine, just wait. As soon as Effie made a fool of herself, Isabel would be the first to laugh.
“Go change,” Annabel told Isabel briskly.
Annabel shook her head, thinking back to when she’d first tried to set Isabel up with Lyman—she’d figured Isabel was pretty enough and they’d make a decent couple. Now, though, she could see she’d been way off base.
“My taste back then was terrible,” Annabel muttered to herself.
Suddenly, a voice sounded behind her, edged with irritation. “And you think your taste now is so much better?”
She spun around to see Fenton, brow furrowed, glaring at her.
Annabel scoffed. “Seriously, do you have nothing better to do than eavesdrop on me?”
Fenton pulled out his phone and waved it in front of her. “You might want to see what you’ve done this time. People are saying you’re robbing the cradle.”
Annabel snatched the phone, frowning as she looked at the screen. “This picture…”
Fenton raised his brows. “Don’t tell me you’re going to say it’s photoshopped?”
Annabel rolled her eyes. “It’s real, obviously. Why would I need to fake it? What I want to know is, was the photographer blind? Why did I come out looking so awful? I’m gorgeous!”
Fenton snorted, looking even more sullen. “Robbing the cradle.”
“You’re ridiculous. If you were a cow, would you choose dry, tough straw, or fresh, tender grass? Men always want someone young, don’t they?”
Fenton’s frown deepened. He opened his mouth to argue—it’s not like that, not at all-but Annabel cut him off.
“Seriously, don’t you have anything better to do?”
“I’M the one with nothing to do?” Fenton shot back, annoyed. “If it weren’t for me, who would be cleaning up your messes? ‘Robbing the cradle’-you think that’s a compliment?”
Annabel gritted her teeth. “I don’t need you butting in anymore. I can handle myself.”
“Fine. Next time, I won’t bother. You could at least pick someone halfway decent- looking-aren’t you always claiming looks matter to you? Clearly, your standards aren’t that high.”