Chapter 55

On the day of the birthday bash. Emily slipped into the dress Veda had sent her and headed to Celestial Cuisine.

This place was perched in the tallest building in all of Emerald City. From up there, you could see the grand Emerald River winding through the city.

The top floor, the 100th, was reserved for big shots and major events.

Veda's birthday party was on the 90th floor, which was still pretty high up and super fancy. Renting out that space must've cost a fortune.

Today was Veda's 23rd birthday. Even though Mia said Veda wanted to celebrate with Emily, it was clear she had her favorites.

The Johnson family went all out this time, mostly because Veda's reputation had taken a hit online. They were trying to save face. For Emily,the real heiress, this party was just dripping with irony.

Years ago, Isolde had swapped the two kids out of jealousy for the Johnson family's power. Isolde used to be a servant for the Johnsons,taking care of the baby.

No one noticed the switch at first since the kids were born around the same time. They didn't look alike; but Mia and Aiden were swamped with work and completely handed over their child to Isolde,so they couldn't recognize their kid. Little did they know, Isolde had her own plans.

There was some old drama between Isolde and Aiden. They were each other's first love and dated for years. But Aiden married Mia for her family's wealth and power. Isolde wanted to live on her own, but her family pushed her to marry Lucas.

Lucas and Aiden were half-brothers, a fact Mia was clueless about.

Mia didn't really care, or maybe she just couldn't afford to. After the Johnsons took over her family, she lost all her support. If she divorced Aiden, she'd be left with nothing. So, she had to turn a blind eye to some things.

Eventually, Isolde found her way back to the Johnson Mansion, starting as a maid and slowly getting close to Aiden right under Mia's nose.

There was never a clear answer on whether Veda was really Aiden's kid.

Since Emily came back to the Johnson Mansion, she and Veda had never been seen together at a birthday party. So, even though everyone knew Veda wasn't the real heiress, as long as Aiden acknowledged her,they couldn't deny it.

Today was kind of their first joint appearance. Everyone was curious to see if Mia and Aiden would favor their biological daughter or the foster daughter they'd raised for over twenty years.

In the afternoon, Mía called Emily to the hotel to help out. When Emily got there, she realized Mia's idea of help was having her pick out jewelry and dresses for Veda, just because Veda thought Emily had better taste.

Emily didn't mind Veda's little games. She just lounged on the sofa in the dressing room,watching Veda show off designer dresses in front of her.

Veda knew her little tricks wouldn't really get to Emily and said, "Mom said all these clothes are gorgeous, so she bought them all for me.I kept saying no, but she insisted. I even picked one for you, the one you're wearing now. Emily, Mom actually cares about you, she just doesn't show it."

Emily could brush off the material stuff, but Veda flaunting Mia's affection did get under her skin a bit. Still, she felt like she didn't care that much.

Emily calmly replied, "It's fine. John's mom has given me everything she could."

For the first time, Emily felt a bit childish.

She added, "John's momn is my mom. She's better than Mia."

Just then, Mia walked in and overheard her. Her gaze lingered on Emily.

Emily slowly looked up from her phone, realizing she had accidentally sent a string of [damn] to James. It was too late to take it back.

James quickly replied:[You in trouble?]

Emily: [Just some annoying flies.]

James:[Then swat them.]

His bluntness made her smile. Mia glanced at Emily, frowned slightly at her outfit, but didn't say anything.

Emily's demeanor made even a plain dress look good.

Mia went over to Veda, tidied her hair, and said, "Get ready quickly."

Veda nodded.

The Johnson family clearly put a lot into this party, or rather, intoVeda.

They even hired a celebrity makeup artist and bought her expensive

jewelry.

Veda had been dancing since she was a kid, keeping a slim figure. She

wanted to look both innocent and sexy. Her clothes were a bit revealing,but her makeup was light.

Mia praised, "My daughter is so beautiful."

Emily's eyes flickered as she watched Mia let Veda hold her arm and said,"Most of the guests are here. Let's go down so they don't wait too long."

Mia, with Veda, didn't look at Emily once. Emily followed behind,feeling a bit lost.

Outside the lounge, there was a huge spiral staircase leading to the banquet hall.

At the staircase, Calliope in a long dress was standing there, waving at Emily.

Emily's eyes lit up. She ran over and affectionately called out, "Mom, why are you here?"

"It's your birthday. Of course I had to come."

Calliope took out a hairpin and clipped it on Emily's head.

Emily wanted to take it off, but then she heard Calliope loudly say, "This is a treasure of our Williams family, very precious. Emmy, I'm giving it to you,wishing you always happy."

Calliope raised her voice on purpose so that someone would catch her.

Emily caught a glimpse of Mia and Veda, both looking a bit grim.

Mia patted Veda's hand and whispered, "It's okay; let's go downstairs first."

The lights suddenly dimmed. As Veda walked towards the stairs, the lights brightened with each step she took.

Emily followed behind Veda.

Emily's gaze was calm, but her stunning appearance immediately overshadowed Veda as soon as she appeared.