Chapter 8 The Slander Came Without Warning

When Harper appeared before everyone again, she was even more captivating than before, drawing all eyes to her.

She wore a purple-to-white gradient gown. The upper part was a fitted halter-neck design with a cutout in the center that perfectly highlighted her impressive figure. The lower part reached her ankles, and as she moved, the shifting colors gave off an air of mystery.

The matching jewelry on her neck and ears brought out Harper's elegance. On her, the jewels became accessories that enhanced her beauty.

Radiant, mysterious, sophisticated—her beauty wasn't aggressive, but rather made people want to get closer to her.

Compliments flew toward Harper from all directions, and many people were asking about her identity, wanting to meet her up close.

Claire looked at Harper with disbelief. She never imagined that Harper's reappearance would stun everyone.

If she had known, she wouldn't have schemed against Harper earlier. Her previous outfit was nowhere near as eye-catching as this one.

She had basically just helped Harper shine!

Claire silently fumed.

Evan stared without blinking.

This was the first time he'd seen Harper all dressed up. She was so stunning, he couldn't look away.

Because he wasn't happy about the marriage, Evan not only never publicly acknowledged Harper's identity, but also never held a wedding ceremony with her—they just got the marriage certificate.

If they had held a wedding, he could have seen this three years ago.

When Claire came to her senses, she saw Evan staring straight at Harper with amazement in his eyes. This made her feel threatened.

She hooked her arm through Evan's and pressed herself close to him, her eyes sparkling as her breath fell near his ear. "Evan, I'm a bit tired. Can you take me to rest for a bit?"

Her tone was flirtatious—this was her usual way of seducing Evan, and he normally fell for it.

However, this time Evan didn't look at her, nor did he take her aside to rest.

He even removed her arm from his and gently pushed her away, creating distance between them.

Evan's gaze kept following Harper. "Miss Martinez, if you're tired, go rest. I still have things to do."

Evan didn't say some things out loud, but Claire understood what his subconscious actions meant—he wanted to keep his distance from her!

She was his date, yet he was letting go of her hand because of Harper. He wasn't giving her any face at all!

Her nails dug into her palm, the pain helping Claire suppress her anger.

She couldn't lose her temper here and make a scene—that would damage her image.

After giving Evan a long look, Claire turned and left. She needed to collect herself to avoid doing something irrational.

Evan was completely unaware of her departure. His gaze uncontrollably followed Harper.

Harper noticed Claire's figure. Her steps showed some panic and embarrassment.

Harper had anticipated what might happen and prepared in advance.

She hadn't confronted Claire earlier partly to avoid damaging her own image, and partly because she would use this stunning entrance to slap back.

This approach would make Claire feel even worse than a direct confrontation—much more interesting.

Many people approached Harper to chat. These were all prominent figures in business circles, and Harper moved among them with ease. The atmosphere was great, which would really help her return to society.

When Claire reappeared, she witnessed all of this. She glared at Harper with hatred.

Harper did this on purpose! She deliberately came to this party to let everyone know she was Mrs. Morgan and make Evan acknowledge her identity!

Claire searched for Evan and found him no longer watching Harper but apparently discussing business with someone.

Harper's position was close to Evan, and she was also chatting pleasantly with people.

Claire put on a hurt and sad expression and walked toward Evan.

Evan, who had stopped watching Harper, noticed something was wrong with Claire as soon as she returned to his side. "What's wrong?"

Claire's eyes were red-rimmed, her voice full of sadness. "The necklace you gave me is broken."

Evan frowned slightly. He had given Claire many jewelry pieces—what necklace could make her this upset?

His gaze fell on her neck and he noticed her necklace was gone. He immediately understood—it was the necklace designed by Ruby. "How did it break?"

"It must have been Harper—she broke it!" Claire's grievance turned to anger. "That necklace, besides me, only Harper has seen it. It couldn't have been anyone else."

Claire's voice wasn't quiet. Harper couldn't help but hear it.

She looked at Claire coldly with a mocking smile. Having found that her earlier tactics didn't work, was she trying a new approach?

Harper walked over in a few steps. "You say I broke your necklace—what's your reason? Why would I break it?"

"Because you're jealous! Jealous that Evan gave me a gift, jealous that he treats me better. You can't accept it!" Claire blurted out, her accusations needing no thought.

The relationship between the three of them was already an open secret—some things just hadn't been completely made public.

Everyone around wore expressions of watching a good show, watching how things would develop.

People just love watching drama.

Evan thought about how he had never given Harper any gifts before. Knowing he had given such an expensive gift to Claire, it was quite possible that Harper might have damaged the necklace in an irrational moment.

She still had feelings for him. The divorce was definitely her playing hard to get.

The amazement in Evan's gaze at Harper gradually faded. "If you want a gift, I'll buy you one. Why damage Miss Martinez's? Just apologize to her."

As he spoke, Evan patted Claire's hand comfortingly. It was just a piece of jewelry—he could buy her another one.

Claire reluctantly backed down. "Since Evan is speaking up for you, I won't make you pay for it. Just apologize to me and we'll call it even."

She just wanted to make Harper bow her head. Besides, the necklace wasn't even broken. Going along with Evan's offer would also make her look generous.

Harper laughed—out of anger.

They didn't even investigate, just directly decided she had damaged Claire's necklace.

Explaining to them was useless—they wouldn't believe her anyway. But she still had to say it. "I'm telling you, I didn't damage it."

Looking at Claire, Harper's lips curved into a mocking smile. "It's just a necklace. I have plenty of them. I don't need other people's charity. Since this can't be explained clearly, and you like it so much, I'll give you one."

Claire automatically filtered out Harper's words, interpreting her offer to "give" as agreeing to compensate her with a necklace.

She looked at Harper in surprise. "That was a necklace designed by Ruby, not just any ordinary necklace. You don't even have any jewelry designed by her. How could you possibly afford to compensate me! Stop trying to save face!"