Chapter 21

“Twenty million dollars p>

Dane wrote out a check for Claire right then and there.

Everyone in the room sucked in a sharp breath.

Octavia felt a swirl of emotions she couldn’t untangle. Just a moment ago, she’d been looking down on Claire, thinking of her as some country nobody. Now, out of nowhere, Claire was filthy rich.

“Claire, please have a look,” Jack said, handing her the check with both hands.

Claire just glanced at it. “Thank you, Dane. You really don’t mess around p>

There was no point in negotiating. He’d offered way more than the agarwood was actually worth.

But honestly, if it were anyone else, even another ten million wouldn’t have been enough to buy that agarwood pillow. Claire was only selling it because she couldn’t stand the thought of keeping a pillow Cindy had slept on her whole life.

With the deal done, everyone seemed satisfied. Well, except for Cindy, who suddenly found her voice.

“Claire, that agarwood pillow is mine,” she said. “I’ve been sleeping on it since I was a kid p>

Claire, who had still been smiling, and Dane, who now held the pillow, both turned to look at Cindy. Even Octavia, who had just been cursing Claire’s luck in her head, perked up.

“Cindy, what did you say? That pillow’s yours?” Octavia’s eyes lit up with hope. If the pillow really belonged to her daughter, then the check should be hers, too. Plus, this was their chance to get on Dane’s good side.

“Yeah, it’s the pillow I wanted to take earlier,” Cindy replied, trying to look innocent.

“Why didn’t you say that before?” Octavia blurted out. If she’d known, she would have let Cindy take it home. She never would have left it for Claire.

“I… I was worried you wouldn’t like it, Mom, so I thought I’d just leave it here and take it another time p>

Cindy hadn’t known how valuable the pillow was before, so she was more focused on pleasing Octavia Now realizing what she’d lost, she was kroking herself. The pillow was supposed to be hers. Somehow, it had ended up in Claire’s hands.

This wasn’t just about the money. Cindy felt cheated. Her grandmother had given her that pillow, and now suddenly Claire was the one cashing in.

“Do you really think I’d be mad over a pillow?” Octavia said, giving her daughter a look that was half-annoyed, half-worried about her reputation. “Well, now look. Claire’s about to sell your pillow p>

Dane watched the whole scene, instantly seeing through their act. Did they want the pillow back, or were they just after the money? He kept quiet, knowing it wasn’t his place to step in.

“Claire, I’ve used that pillow my whole life. Can you give it back to me?” Cindy asked, her voice small and hopeful.

Claire let out a short laugh. “It’s mine now, Cindy. And soon it’ll be Dane’s. Are you really trying to claim the same old pillow your mom didn’t even want, just because you found out how much it’s worth p>

She turned to Octavia. “Does the James family really need the money that badly p>

Octavia’s face went pale. She did

wish her daughter could get the pillow back. Even if they didn’t sellat to Dane, it could come in handy someday. The agarwood pillow was valuable, maybe even more if they auctioned it off Money wasn’t exactly the problem the James family had plenty. But what they really needed were connections. If word got out that they owned such a rare item, influential people would be lining up at their door.

“Cindy, you gave up the pillow, so let Claire have it,” Octavia finally said, forcing

herself to sound generous.

Lance, who’d been watching,

couldn’t stand Claire’s attitude. Or

maybe he just didn’t want her to end up with so much money. He snorted, Seriously, Clare? Are you that desperate for cash you’d snatch a pillow Cindy’s had since she was a kid, just to sell it p>