Chapter 474

Harrison ran his fingers through her hair. “You didn’t tell him you were here for the photo shoot?”
“I did,” she replied, her tone tinged with exasperation. “But he said, ‘Do you really think someone like you could get an appointment with Mr. David, considering who he is?””
She let her gaze drift over David and Lauren, her voice soft and pointed. “Mr. David made it clear-today, he’s only working for his friend, Ms. Brennan.”
The words hung in the air, and the atmosphere in the room seemed to plummet, so heavy and cold it was suffocating.
David’s face broke out in a nervous sweat. He blurted, “Mr. Lancaster, I-I had no idea this lady was-”
“I remember, I specifically invited you to photograph Ana and me.” Harrison’s voice was low and icy, slicing through David’s excuse.
He’d wanted to spare Ana any unnecessary waiting. The moment he got in touch, he arranged for David to come straight to Fairhaven. Logan handled everything— private jet, transport, the hotel. The arrangements left no room for misunderstanding-David was here for one thing only: a photo session with Harrison and Anastasia. No other clients. No double-booking.
And yet, David had tried to bump Ana off the schedule for Lauren’s sake?
Harrison’s cold, disdainful gaze swept over Lauren. Just a glance, and she felt a chill run down her spine. She’d been too eager to embarrass Anastasia-she never imagined Harrison himself would show up.
She scrambled to recover, her tone suddenly deferential. “Mr. Lancaster, I’m so sorry. But it’s not really David’s fault-since there was no official appointment, he just
“He’s here because my husband invited him, what kind of appointment does he need?” Anastasia cut in, giving a small, cool smile as she slipped her arm through Harrison’s. “Even if he didn’t recognize me, the moment I said I had an appointment, he should’ve double-checked, asked a few questions. But Mr. David -he didn’t even stop to think. Decided I wasn’t good enough and tried to send me down to the lower floors.”
David was practically wilting under the silent pressure radiating from Harrison. His legs shook; he could barely stand.
He’d only wanted to help Lauren-she’d made it clear she couldn’t stand Anastasia-but he never stopped to consider the bigger picture.
“Mr. Lancaster, this was my oversight he stammered, desperate for forgiveness.
Harrison didn’t even look at him. “Get a different photographer,” he said coolly, directing this to the studio owner.
The owner, who’d already pinched himself twice in disbelief at David’s stupidity, nearly wept with relief. At least Mr. Lancaster wasn’t blaming the whole studio.
He rushed to respond, “Mr. Luca is in the next city-he just finished a
shoot His style is similar to
David’s
and sometimes he surprises us with Follow current novᴇls on ⓝovelFind.net
truly inspired work. I’m sure Ms. Sterling will love it!”
to
He quickly pulled up Luca’s portfolio on his phone for Anastasia to browse.
She flipped through the photos, eyebrows arching in surprise. Several shots took her breath away. “He’ll do,” she said with a nod.
From what she could see, Luca’s work was at least as good as David’s-maybe even better. Replacing David was no loss at all.
David’s face went ashen when he realized what had just happened. He’d gone to great lengths to edge out Leica for this job thrilled at the chance to work with the prestigious Mr. Lancaster. Now, in an instant, the opportunity was gone.
He wasn’t the forgiving type. He shot Lauren a bitter, blaming glare. If it weren’t for
her, none of this would’ve happened.
Lauren’s face tightened, shame and frustration warring in her eyes.
Anastasia meanwhile, paid them no further mind. She asked how soon Luca could arrive. When she heard it would be several hours maybe not until tomorrow-she was ready to leave with her husband.
But then, just as they turned to go, a voice rang out, trembling with shock and delight.
“Ana?!”