Chapter 5

What I didn't expect was that the moment I sat in the passenger seat, Chloe, in the back, greeted me with a wide smile.

"Good morning, Riley!"

"I'm also participating in the competition, so Brandon offered to give me a ride too!"

Chloe then lifted her hand, deliberately fiddling with a new necklace Brandon had given her.

I glanced indifferently at Chloe. The necklace didn't capture my attention, but Chloe's dress surprised me.

We were both wearing the same dress.

The only difference was that mine was pure white, while Chloe's was a dazzling wine red.

"Riley, you don't mind, do you?"

Hearing Chloe's words, I didn't want to engage her.

I simply closed my eyes in the passenger seat.

Beside me, Brandon drove, his face grim.

Neither of us noticed the jealous, fierce glare in Chloe's eyes from the backseat.

Soon, the car arrived at the venue.

Reporters had already swarmed the entrance, blocking it completely.

Brandon opened the car door and, ever the gentleman, helped me out.

Under the flashing cameras, we remained that loving couple.

Brandon led me into the competition venue.

He held my hand, fingers intertwined, all the way to the backstage area, where he left me with a tender kiss on my forehead before leaving.

The whole world envied me for marrying the heir to the Hayes fortune.

But only I knew that all of it was just an act.

In love, happiness is something only you truly know.

Shaking off those thoughts, I turned and immersed myself in the intense competition.

The event proceeded smoothly until my and Chloe's designs were revealed, causing an uproar.

Our two creations were identical!

"How... how could this be?"

Chloe was the first to speak, staring at the two identical dresses on stage.

"This... this is my design that I worked so hard on for over two weeks, how could this happen?"

"So, you're implying that Mrs. Hayes plagiarized your work?"

Just then, someone from the crowd spoke, eliciting laughter from the audience.

"Exactly! Mrs. Hayes wouldn't stoop to plagiarizing your stuff."

"Hahahaha, who is this person? Doesn't she know her place? Dares to compete like this, hahahaha, so overconfident."

"No, that's not right. If the designs are identical, she definitely plagiarized Mrs. Hayes! People who plagiarize others' work should be thrown out..."

"Yeah, throw her out, throw her out..."

The scene quickly spiraled out of control until the organizers sent staff to restore order.

"I didn't, I really didn't... This truly is the design I spent over two weeks creating... I even have my drafts here."

With that, Chloe pulled out her design sketches from her bag.

"If you still don't believe me, you can ask Brandon. He watched me draw every line and sew every stitch..."

Having said that, Chloe cast a pleading look at Brandon.

Hearing Chloe's words, the entire venue fell silent.

Everyone's gaze shifted to Brandon, who sat in the special guest section.

"Hm."

Brandon didn't deny it. His single, faint affirmation, however, pushed me directly into the storm.

"Wow, what did I just hear? Mrs. Hayes, Riley Maxwell, plagiarized an unknown designer, Chloe Davis? And Brandon Hayes himself confirmed it?!"

"Wow, I absolutely *have* to get the scoop on this today! Tomorrow's headlines are mine!"

"No, this is insane! Miss Maxwell, do you have any explanation for this plagiarism?"

"Miss Maxwell, do we have reason to suspect your previous works might also have been plagiarized?"

In an instant, all the accusations turned on me.