Chapter 252: Watch Your Words

Mina stepped out of the rest area and braced herself for the onslaught of disgusting remarks and sneers she thought she was going to be on the receiving end of. She also made a mental note to find Lisa and Luna and watch them closely for the remainder of the night.

Mina guessed that both women played a role in signing her up for the auction and she knew that both would not be happy about President Lee spending millions of dollars to help her out.

Mina was also much more wary of President Lee. He had purchased a 'date' with her, and although he had given her the opportunity to somewhat clear her name, she could not be sure there was not a condition attached to the action.

When Mina stepped into the main ballroom, she was immediately assaulted by dozens of eyes on her. Not just men, but women too. Her ears had just started to ring again when she saw a familiar face approaching.

"Mina, who the hell did you piss off?" Oric asked. Mina shook her head.

"It's a long story," she said.

"And how do you know President Lee?" Mina sighed deeply.

"That is a longer story." Oric studied Mina's expression and could tell she was put off by the question. Mina could sense his curiousness, so she decided to run with the original lie. "His sister and I are acquaintances. Nothing more," Mina said.

Oric and Mina stood next to each other in silence for a while before the man became distracted by a woman who kept smiling in his direction.

"Please leave," Mina said. "If I have to watch you two making eyes at each other for the rest of the night, I may end up with nightmares." Oric chuckled. He really liked Mina as a person. She was blunt yet polite. He believed she could be a vital asset if he could somehow get her over to his father's company.

"Fine, I will go, but take my card," Oric said. "My offer is still on the table. I really do have a need for a polyglot, and if I am being honest a beautiful one would be even better." Mina's face blushed, surprising him.

Oric could now see why Cylus asked him to watch over Mina for the night, but now that President Lee had claimed ownership of the girl, he did not think it was necessary anymore. Oric bid Mina goodnight and made his way over to the woman who had been eyeing him, while Mina tried to find Zane. She still did not know that he had already been sent home.

----

Lisa was so angry that she wanted to strangle Mina in front of everyone. Had she known her Ian would have bid on the girl, she would have stopped Luna from placing Mina's name in the auction pool. Now, she was being stared at by everyone, and she knew it was not because of her beauty or her dress.

People were staring at Lisa because her rumored fiancé had just used his money and his standing to help an unknown woman out of a difficult situation. What was worse, is that after Mina's performance Ian did not immediately return to Lisa's side, and Mina was also gone from the ballroom.

It gave everyone the impression that the two were together and Lisa knew very well what people assumed was going on somewhere behind closed doors. Had it not been for the fact that Lisa knew Mina was with CEO Rue, she too would have believed that Mina and Ian were together.

Lisa once again caught sight of Mina walking through the venue and she could not help but to envy the girl. When Mina was playing the piano, the lights in the room had become dim and a spotlight was put directly on the woman. Her ivory dress matched the piano perfectly and all that was missing to create a heavenly image were wings and a halo.

Lisa wanted nothing more than to tear Mina's face off, but she could not, not yet anyway. If she hurt the girl now, she was sure Ian would hate her. Lisa needed to place a wedge between them first. She needed Ian to see Mina as expendable. Only then would she be able to get rid of the woman once and for all.

A shadow appeared next to Lisa and she smiled thinking Ian had returned, but her smile disappeared the moment she realized who was standing next to her.

"Cylus," Lisa said as greeting.

"What game are you and your boyfriend playing?" Cylus asked. Lisa narrowed her eyes at the man. She was genuinely offended, because she was not the one who put Mina's name in the drawing.

"I can assure you that I had nothing to do with my boyfriend spending millions of dollars on that who-" Lisa's words were cut off when Cylus roughly grabbed her arm, he obviously did not care who saw him.

"Watch your words," Cylus said before quickly letting Lisa's arm go.

Cylus thought about Lisa's statement and it was believable. It would not make sense for her to set Mina up to be 'saved' by president Lee when she was obviously jealous of the girl, but if her boyfriend had not been trying to protect her, why had he confiscated the auction card?

As Cylus studied Lisa's face, another shadow approached. The person cleared their throat and Lisa practically jumped in the man's direction.

"CEO Rue, do you have a problem with Miss Lisa?" President Lee asked casually.

"I'm not sure yet," Cylus responded. He glanced at the pair before scoffing and walking away.

Cylus really could not determine what the couple's angle could be, but he was sure that there would be consequences for Mina because of tonight's events. He had already spoken to his mother regarding the relationship between Lisa and Mina and to his surprise, his mother had already figured it out. However, she was unwilling to get involved. Neither of them knew what the relationship between Mina and President Lee really was, but both were sure that it was not simple.

----

Kace had been watching his sister intently throughout the night. She had embarrassed herself and this time, he hoped she had learned her lesson.

Unfortunately, Lisa seemed to be a glutton for pain, because time and time again she kept thrusting herself into competition against a woman she could not beat, and then torturing herself when she lost.

Kace knew that his sister had something to do with the disgusting display that took place earlier. Had Lisa not been his sister, he would have outed her for pettiness, but there was something not quite right with the setup. Why would his sister write in such a high amount to start the bidding, if she were trying to embarrass Mina? Either the number had some significance to the woman, or it was not his sister who had set Mina up at all.