Not A Small Town Girl (Danielle and David) novel Chapter 16

When the auction ended, Juniper began to feel her anger rise. "What the hell are those idiots doing? Do they even know what the Crimson Lily is? If it wasn’t for them, it would’ve been ours, no question. It was practically in our hands!" she fumed, clearly pissed off.

She went on for a while, ranting, until she finally noticed Danielle sitting next to her, effortlessly relaxed with a little smirk on her face. She looked like someone who hadn’t been caught up in the chaos at all.

"Aren’t you pissed, Danielle? We got totally screwed out of the Crimson Lily!" Juniper asked, still a little confused by her friend’s cool attitude.

Danielle just shrugged, her tone completely casual. "The Crimson Lily just wasn’t meant to be. Let’s forget about it. The party’s starting. We should go."

Meanwhile, in the VIP box, David sat back on the black leather sofa, one long leg casually crossed over the other. He held a glass of red wine, his gaze fixed ahead, exuding the kind of regal energy that made people take notice.

After a beat, he spoke up, his voice calm but authoritative. "Who’s in room number two?"

Nathan, standing nearby, replied, his voice respectful. "It’s someone using the alias ’Anonymous’ from Black Web. He’s the founder, and a total mystery.

"You remember the miracle healer who did the surgery on the old man? That was arranged through Black Web. But we have no clue what ’Anonymous’ wants with the Crimson Lily."

David pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes, but Nathan couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

As night fell, the manor was lit up beautifully. The main hall, in particular, was lavishly decorated, and the fountain at the entrance to the hall was set alight with spotlights, reflecting a multitude of shimmery colors and splendor.

Laughter could be heard echoing through the halls as the attendees exchanged name cards and traded banter, most of which was about business.

"Danielle, let’s grab a bite," Juniper said as they entered the hall and laid eyes on the array of hors d’oeuvres and pastries. Both women shared a love of sweets, and they kept to themselves in an inconspicuous corner as they sampled the offerings.

"Juniper, this strawberry shortcake is to die for. Try it," Danielle gushed. It seemed like she had transformed into a girly teen again under the spell of the desserts.

"Oh my god, you have to try this Orange Swiss Roll, too," Juniper said as she took a big bite.

David had made his way to the main hall as well. Dressed in his custom-made suit that accentuated his figure, he kept a close eye on the two ladies while sipping on his wine.

Nathan stood at his side, a little puzzled as to why his boss had decided to attend the party but refrained from socializing with anyone. In the past,

David had never bothered with such meaningless networking sessions.

"Mr. Charrington, would you like to go over and exchange greetings?" Nathan asked carefully.

All the company directors present had noticed David’s arrival as soon as he stepped into the hall, but they lacked the courage to approach him. David was overwhelmingly intimidating.

A middle-aged man walked towards David then, deciding that he simply had to say something to him. He knew this was his once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perhaps be granted an opportunity to work with David’s company.

"Good evening, Mr. Charrington. I’m Adam Boyd, the president of Boyd Technology. Our company has been working on a new product recently, and I wondered if you might be interested to know more?" he said respectfully as he handed his business card to Nathan.

David didn’t respond, so Nathan received the business card and spoke on his behalf, saying, "Mr.Boyd, Mr. Charrington will not be talking shop today."

The other company directors who had been readying themselves to approach David overheard Nathan’s remark and immediately stopped in their tracks. All of them knew better than to go against David’s wishes.

David paid no mind to the group of men and walked over to Danielle. He stood before her and said, "Danielle Darling. Or should I call you the Miracle Healer?"

"Apparently, there’s a miracle healer who can cure all sorts of illnesses as long as the patient is alive. We’ve been trying to locate this person all these years but we haven’t had any luck.

"No one’s ever seen this miracle healer either, so maybe it’s nothing but an urban legend and there’s no such person."

"Can I go to see them tomorrow?" Danielle immediately asked. She had to see them in person to obtain a proper diagnosis.

"Of course, we’ll accompany you to the hospital tomorrow." Vivian and Howard were relieved that their daughter was so understanding.

"We’ll go to the hospital tomorrow, and they’ll be better in no time. You guys should get some rest." Danielle was not the best at consoling others, but she knew that healing her grandparents would be the biggest comfort for her parents.

"Sure thing. Goodnight, Danielle," Howard and Vivian said one after the other as they watched their precious daughter go upstairs to her room. They were truly grateful that their daughter had matured into such a wonderful young woman.

They took their phones out and opened the Darling family group chat. Vivian was the one who dropped the bombshell with the message, [We’ve finally found your biological sister. She’s back home now.]

Howard sent a text as well. [She’s the most beautiful, caring and understanding daughter a father could ever hope for.]

Howard and Vivian had been disappointed by their sons the last time they had sent them messages, so they had wanted to hold off on breaking the news to them. Besides Joseph, the others hadn’t seen her yet.

In the end, they couldn’t stand the idea of Danielle thinking her brothers didn’t care about her.

They didn’t want her to feel unloved or uncomfortable just because of those annoying brats, and they expected their sons to treat Danielle with the same love and attention they gave her.