Chapter 61

Amelia always had a knack for getting herself into trouble with her big mouth. No matter how hard she tried to do something good, it always seemed to backfire.

Just then, Pearl saw Isabella and walked over with a cold sneer on her face. "Well, well, look who decided to show up! Didn't you know my family owns this place?"

Isabella frowned. She had no clue about that. The city was divided among the four major families, each owning different businesses, but keeping track of who owned what was impossible.

Isabella was about to drag Amelia away, but Amelia had already found something amusing.

"Pearl, what's up with the cast on your finger? Did you trip and fall in the sewer?" Amelia teased, eyeing Pearl's bandaged finger.

Isabella glanced at Pearl's finger too, surprised. That was the same finger Pearl had worn a ring on the other day.

Pearl quickly hid her hand behind her back, glaring daggers at Amelia.

"Get these two out of here!" Pearl barked at the store staff, who started pushing Isabella and Amelia towards the door.

Naturally, Isabella and Amelia were not thrilled with Pearl's attitude.

Amelia pushed the door open and yelled, "Hey, everyone! This store is bullying customers! They think we're too poor to shop here and want to kick us out! They're even humiliating us!"

Amelia's loud voice quickly drew a crowd on the bustling commercial street, and people started gathering to see what was going on.

Pearl's face turned pale. She did look down on ordinary folks, but she wasn't dumb enough to show it openly.

"Amelia, how dare you spread lies! Do you want me to call the cops?" Pearl shouted, pointing at Amelia.

Amelia stood her ground, hands on her hips. "Did you or did you not order them to kick us out? Just admit it!"

Pearl, who was fuming, suddenly had an idea. She looked at Amelia coldly. "Yeah, I did tell them to kick you out, but not because of your lies! I did it because you came here to cause trouble, claiming everything in my store is fake!"

Amelia's face fell. She had wanted to annoy Pearl, but now, if she and Isabella left, it would look like Pearl was telling the truth.

Isabella sighed, feeling stuck. The crowd was growing, and neither side had any proof. Even if the cops showed up, all they'd do was listen to both sides.

Just then, a voice called out to Isabella. "Isn't this Ms. Taylor? What's going on?" Benjamin pushed through the crowd, curious about the commotion.

Pearl's expression shifted when she saw Benjamin. She knew he was Michael's good friend, so she quickly put on a pitiful look.

"Benjamin, you have to help me! These two women are saying everything in my store is fake! I can't let them slander me like this." Pearl clung to Benjamin's hand, looking at him with pleading eyes.

Benjamin frowned and pulled his arm away from Pearl. "Ms. Brown, I think there's been a misunderstanding. Let's go inside and clear this up." He didn't believe Isabella would do something like that, so he decided to smooth things over.

Pearl had to respect Benjamin, so she shot Isabella a nasty look and led the group back into the store.

Once inside, Benjamin made a quick call, and soon enough, the police arrived to disperse the crowd.

"Ms. Brown, I won't get into the issues between your families. Just do me a favor and let me take these two friends and leave." Benjamin smiled at Pearl and then gestured to Isabella and Amelia.

Isabella nodded and led Amelia out of the store.

"Isabella, who was that guy? He seemed pretty important," Amelia asked, curious.

"He's a top-notch surgeon and a good friend of Michael's. They met at the hospital," Isabella explained.

Isabella noticed Amelia curiously staring at Benjamin and teasingly asked, "Mr. White looks very handsome. Do you have a crush on him?"

Amelia quickly shook her head. "No way, but I did feel like Benjamin was checking me out."

Isabella raised an eyebrow and glanced at Benjamin. He was still talking to Pearl, but her expression suggested she wasn't thrilled with what he was saying.

Soon, Benjamin walked out of the store.

"Let's go; she won't bother you anymore," Benjamin called out, smiling, and turned his gaze to Amelia.

"Ms. Taylor, is this your friend?" Benjamin asked, curious.

Amelia extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Amelia."

"Hello, Benjamin. I'm a friend of Ms. Taylor," he introduced himself simply.

Isabella noticed Benjamin's gaze linger on Amelia for a few seconds before turning back to her.

Benjamin smiled. "Ms. Taylor, I heard you recently entered a cosmetics design competition. Did you ask Michael for help? He knows some of the judges; maybe he can give you a heads-up."

Isabella shook her head, smiling. She knew Michael had connections on the organizing committee, but she had turned down his offer to help.

"Thanks, but I want to do this on my own. I'm confident I'll do well," Isabella said, her smile full of confidence.

Benjamin nodded at her determination and didn't push further. He just changed the subject. Knowing Michael's high regard for Isabella, he was sure Michael would help if needed.

"Well, good luck then. I've got a surgery to prep for, so I need to head out." Benjamin smiled, said his goodbyes, and walked away.

After he was out of sight, Isabella turned to Amelia. "Did you get the wrong idea? I don't think he was interested in you."

Amelia scoffed. "He's playing it cool. Guys are good at that. Didn't you notice he only said goodbye to you and didn't even nod at me? That's not normal behavior."