Chapter 66

Ethan Roscente hastily rinsed his hands and walked out without drying them.

"It's late. I'm leaving." He glanced at Vivian Laurent, who was absorbed in typing.

Vivian didn't even look up. "Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

Only after the door clicked shut did she set aside her laptop, staring blankly at the entryway.

The chat window on her screen continued to blink.

"AN, do an old man a favor," Samuel Garten's messages kept popping up. "We're one judge short."

Vivian rubbed her temples.

"I'm not the right person for this."

"Nonsense!" Samuel sounded frantic. "You've won the gold medal three times in a row. One of the judges just had a heart attack—we'll have a vacancy if you don't step in!"

The chat fell silent for a few seconds.

"...Fine."

Samuel immediately sent her flight details. Vivian adjusted her surgery schedule overnight and flew to France the next day.

At the airport, the silver-haired Samuel waved his cane excitedly.

"AN!" He studied her from head to toe. "Good heavens, you haven't aged a day. When I first met you, you were only this tall." He gestured to his waist.

Vivian smiled and steadied the elderly man. "You're as spirited as ever."

"Stop humoring me." Samuel lowered his voice. "This year's contestants are no pushovers. Keep an eye out for me."

"Don't worry."

Meanwhile, in an upscale sanatorium across town...

Victoria Roscente slammed a champagne flute onto the table.

"That AN woman did this on purpose!" she seethed. "And my brother actually took her side!"

Sophia Evans took a delicate sip of tea. "Calm down. Explain properly."

"She stole Roscente Group's endorsement deal!" Victoria's cheeks flushed with anger. "Ethan even said I wasn't competent enough—"

Sophia gently squeezed her hand. "Your brother's under a lot of stress lately. By the way, about what I asked you to look into..."

"I checked." Victoria scoffed. "Ethan hasn't seen Vivian since returning to the country. Honestly, you're the only one on his mind."

Sophia smiled in relief, her fingers unconsciously tracing the rim of her teacup.

Outside, dusk deepened.