Chapter 21 Can Go, But the Appearance Fee Needs to Be Paid Now Chapter 2 I Can Go, But the Appearance Fee Needs to Be Paid Now After dropping that bombshell, Violet turned and left, leaving the people in the private room staring at each other in awkward silence. Someone chuckled awkwardly. "Heh, Violet sure knows how to joke." "Don't be angry, Gavin. Just sweet talk her a little another day, she'll probably be fine." Someone else snorted disdainfully, "Sweet-talk? Why should he? Gavin, you absolutely must not spoil a woman. If you spoil them, they become hard to manage." "Shut up!" Gavin's face was like ice. He was irritated listening to them chatter on. Luna's heart tightened. Since when did Gavin start defending that woman? Had she started to replace her in the years she was gone? Luna bit her lip, her voice soft and gentle. "Gavin, if you're worried Violet is angry, I can go apologize to her, okay?" She poked his waist with her finger, her tone carrying a hint of a whine. "Don't be angry. Look, you've scared everyone." When they were kids, she loved poking his waist under the table. Every time she did, Gavin would soften. Sure enough, the stern lines on Gavin's brow relaxed slightly. "I'm not angry. Luna, I would never be angry with you because of someone else." Luna sweetly lowered her gaze, her cheeks slightly flushed. "I feel the same, Gavin." Everyone teased them, and the gloom brought by Violet's appearance instantly dissipated. Violet went straight to the marital home she shared with Gavin. This house was a wedding gift from Gavin's grandfather, Byron Braxton. "Ms. Miller, you're back," Margaret Hale, the housekeeper, said, surprised. Weren't they supposed to get the license today? Why was Violet back alone? Violet went straight upstairs. She hadn't moved many clothes in anyway; one suitcase was enough. Passing by Gavin's study, she noticed the tablet on his desk. Once, when she was at his place, she wanted to use his tablet to watch a show, but he had flown into an inexplicable rage. She thought he just disliked others touching his private things, but today she had clearly seen Luna playing with Gavin's phone. Violet entered the study. Her slender finger pressed the button to light up the screen, prompting for a password. She took a deep breath and entered Gavin's birthday first. Not surprisingly, the password was wrong. The second time, she entered her own birthday. Of course, it was still wrong. The third time, she wanted to try Luna's birthday. A friend had once mentioned she was born on the Autumn Equinox, and the moon that night was clear and bright, hence her parents named her Luna. Chapter 21 Can Go, But the Appearance Fee Needs to Be Paid Now She looked it up on her phone; the Autumn Equinox that year was September 23rd. Violet's fingertips trembled slightly as she entered 0923. Unsurprisingly, the password was correct! Instantly, a bitter taste filled her throat. There were no apps on the tablet. Following her intuition, Violet opened the photo gallery. The warmth finally drained from her fingertips. 3344 photos, all memories of Luna and him. There were solo photos of Luna, and pictures of them together. And her? He had always resisted taking photos with her. The only picture they had together was the engagement photo hanging in the bedroom! How had he explained it then? He said he disliked having his photo taken. Yet, in these 3344 pictures, he was smiling brighter than she had ever seen him. iolet turned off the tablet, as if she had never been there. When Margaret saw Luna dragging her suitcase downstairs, she was curious. Ms. Miller, you just got back. Are you going on another business trip?" he knew Violet was a lawyer who often flew all over the country, so she instinctively assumed Violet was heading out on another trip when she saw the uitcase. 'iolet paused, merely uttering an "Mmm," before leaving expressionlessly. lavin returned to the marital home the next day. full day and night had passed, and she hadn't sent him a single message. ince when did she get the nerve to do that? Did Violet come back yesterday?" Margaret shook her head. "Sir, Ms. Miller seemed to be on a business trip. She didn't say when she'd return." usiness trip or avoiding him? lavin didn't really care. She'd cool off on her own and come back eventually. Besides, they were already engaged, and getting the license was just a matter of timing. As for her saying they wouldn't get the license... Gavin clearly didn't take it seriously. How could they not? 'Yeah, I see," he said and went straight upstairs. The master bedroom hadn't been used; it was reserved for after the wedding. He and Violet had each been staying in separate guest rooms, so he naturally didn't notice that the large engagement photo on the main bedroom's wall was gone. Gavin had just sat down when he received a call from his grandfather, Byron. "Gavin, did you and Violet get the license? I didn't see any news in our family chat group." Chapter 21 Can Go, But the Appearance Fee Needs to Be Paid Now Gavin paused. "Grandpa, something came up that day. We didn't make it; I forgot to tell you. We'll do it after your birthday banquet." "Get it done early, put my mind at ease." "By the way, I heard Luna is back," Byron added. Gavin knew well that Luna had gone abroad five years ago because Byron tried to arrange a marriage for her that she disliked. He didn't know what Luna and Byron had discussed, but after Byron called off that arranged marriage, she quickly went abroad. She didn't even tell him when she left. That year, Gavin's relationship with his family was very strained. It only eased a bit after he got engaged to Violet. "Seems like she's back," Gavin said, pretending indifference. His attitude put Byron at ease. "Mmm. I'll have your father contact her. Now that she's back, living outside is inappropriate!" "Gavin, no matter who comes back, I want you and Violet to get the license soon. Understand?" Gavin's eyes darkened. "I understand." After hanging up, Gavin pinched the bridge of his nose. Tomorrow was Byron's birthday banquet. He looked at his chat with Violet; the last message was from the day he stood her up. [Grandpa's birthday banquet is tomorrow. Are you back from your business trip?] He waited an hour before she replied with a single question mark. Annoyance simmered in Gavin's eyes. [Violet, there's a limit to throwing a tantrum. Don't you know how important Grandpa's banquet is?] Violet had just finished showering. Seeing the message, she laughed instead of getting angry. [Mr. Braxton, we've broken up. I won't be attending the banquet tomorrow. Feel free to take whoever you want.] Gavin lost his patience. [Playing hard to get again? Who agreed to break up! Tomorrow at 7 PM, I'll pick you up! Violet, you know how well my grandfather treats you. If you have any conscience, you wouldn't upset him on his birthday, would you?] Gavin was half-threatening, half-warning. Violet scoffed coldly. [I can go, but the appearance fee needs to be paid now.] Attached was a screenshot of her PayPal QR code. [Just mark it as "service payment",] A faint anger simmered beneath Gavin's expression. He didn't understand what game Violet was playing, But he didn't have time to banter with her. He directly transferred $100,000. Violet withdrew the funds to her bank account right away, then texted: [Thanks!] She couldn't be bothered to waste another word on him. Chapter 21 Can Go, But the Appearance Tee Needs to Be Paid Now (0) 644 (0)