Ex-boyfriend comes back strong

The half - joking and half - serious mockery appropriately alleviated the awkward atmosphere just now. Over the years, Rachel Saintclair had been ridiculed by Leonard Winston like this almost every day and had long since become accustomed to it.

Moreover, most of the time, it was she who provoked such mockery first, so she was well aware of the consequences.

The reason she did this was to desperately maintain her freshness in front of Leonard Winston. If Leonard Winston lost interest in her, everything she had now would disappear.

She couldn't lose Leonard Winston, at least not for now.

At present, her father was still lying unconscious in the hospital, undergoing kidney dialysis every day. Large amounts of money were flowing into the hospital like a waterfall. Leonard Winston had promised to give her money to treat her father, which was the condition for her to marry him.

Having to rely on a man and sell her body to survive, and using the hypocrisy she herself loathed to please others, this was what Rachel Saintclair truly hated about herself.

However, her sense of loss and self - mockery only flashed by for a moment. She concealed it well and immediately put on a bright smile and said to Leonard Winston:

"Of course I can't compare with her. I'm your wife, but she's the one in the depths of your heart. Leo, you have a good eye. This set of jewelry is very suitable for Elizabeth."

Rachel Saintclair pulled the large box of jewelry over and examined it carefully. This set of jewelry consisted of a necklace, a pair of earrings, a thin bracelet, and a delicate and small ring. Both in terms of craftsmanship and style, it seemed to be tailor - made for Elizabeth Collins.

Rachel Saintclair could even vividly imagine how these shiny jewelry would look on Elizabeth Collins. They would surely make her as dazzling as she already was, and add a touch of tranquility and beauty that was beyond compare.

Holding the jewelry in her hand, it felt heavy. She wondered which jeweler had gone to such great lengths to please Leonard Winston.

Leonard Winston watched Rachel Saintclair studying the jewelry in the box in silence. He was well aware that Rachel Saintclair was sensitive to the name "Elizabeth Collins". After all, no one could be indifferent when their husband liked another woman, even if they were in a contract marriage.

But the reason he liked Rachel Saintclair was precisely that she always knew her place and could always put herself in the right position.

After looking for a while, Rachel Saintclair reached out and grabbed Leonard Winston's arm, pulling him to sit on the bed. Before Leonard Winston could frown in dissatisfaction, Rachel Saintclair leaned over and started chattering to him about the jewelry:

"Elizabeth has small earlobes. These earrings have small and light - weight diamonds. The asymmetrical design makes the streamlined earrings more lively and vivid, and they won't feel heavy when worn."

She placed the necklace around Leonard Winston's neck to compare.

"The necklace is also exquisitely designed. Its length is just right to rest on the collarbone. Elizabeth's most charming feature is her collarbone. It's both amorous and delicate. The thin bracelet matches her slender wrist bones, and this ring..."

Rachel Saintclair looked at the ring. In fact, from the very beginning, she had a strange feeling about this set of jewelry, a sense of deja - vu.

Although she knew that this was designed specifically for Elizabeth Collins by the jeweler, Rachel Saintclair couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen this design somewhere before. Especially this ring. When she held it in her hand, it reminded her of her former lover.

But, this was clearly impossible.

"Why did you stop?" Leonard Winston, who had been immersed in Rachel Saintclair's praise of Elizabeth, suddenly became curious when he heard no more.

"Ah? Oh..." Rachel Saintclair snapped out of her daze. "This ring... Elizabeth's finger joints are a bit larger. Designing the ring to be open - ended and finishing it with a snake - tail shape at the junction would make it look even better."

Leonard Winston smiled and looked at her. "You're really attentive. You know better than anyone what suits Elizabeth and what doesn't."

Rachel Saintclair's eyes narrowed into slits as she smiled, and she playfully shook his arm. "Because she's the woman you like. How could I not be attentive?"

"Good that you know." Leonard Winston patted her little head in satisfaction.

Rachel Saintclair and Leonard Winston were in a contract marriage. At the beginning, Rachel Saintclair needed money, and Leonard Winston needed a wife.

They had been married for almost three years, and they had been intimate on the very first day.

Leonard Winston was the heir of the Winston family business. The Winston family's business covered fields that one could hardly imagine. The reason Leonard Winston needed a wife was to obtain the shares held by his grandfather, Ethan Winston.

Although the reason for their marriage was simple and straightforward, over the past three years, Rachel Saintclair had been trying her best to fulfill the duties of a wife.

Outside, she never pestered him. She tried her best to distance herself from him and act like a transparent person. When she got home, she would transform into a passionate little vixen, doing everything she could to please and satisfy him.

The phrase "keep a mistress" was probably the most appropriate description of Rachel Saintclair's situation.

Leonard Winston had already gotten into the quilt, while Rachel Saintclair was still brooding over the matter of the jewelry.

"You'll be in charge of the design for the new clothing collection to match this batch of jewelry." Leonard Winston, who had already gotten into the quilt and closed his eyes, suddenly added this sentence.

Rachel Saintclair groaned inwardly. She knew that Leonard Winston must have an ulterior motive. All her efforts to please him just now were in vain!

As a fashion designer, ever since she married Leonard Winston, Rachel Saintclair had become his free labor, the personal designer for Elizabeth Collins.

On the runway, Elizabeth Collins stole the show, and people praised how amazing Leonard Winston's brand was. But behind all this was the hard work of Rachel Saintclair, the silent designer. And Leonard Winston's way of rewarding her was... to exhaust her in bed to "comfort" her for her hard work.

Over the years, whether Leonard Winston's requests were reasonable or excessive, Rachel Saintclair almost always agreed to them unconditionally.

At this moment, she was playing with the ring in her hand. Although she was reluctant, she still agreed. "Okay, okay, my Mr. Winston. But you have to tell me who the designer is, right?"

"Henry Edwards, a newly - emerging designer."

Outside the window, thunder suddenly rumbled, as if a bolt of lightning had struck directly into Rachel Saintclair's heart.

"Hen... ry Edwards?" She heard her own voice trembling as she uttered these two words. This name was engraved so deeply in her heart that three years ago, every night, Rachel Saintclair would murmur this name in her heart, biting her lips tightly and letting her tears flow freely.

"What, do you know him?" Leonard Winston didn't notice anything amiss.

"No. I just think... his designs are very creative..." Rachel Saintclair turned her back to Leonard Winston, trying her best to make her voice sound normal.

"Um." Leonard Winston gradually drifted off to sleep. "Do a good job on this collection."

Rachel Saintclair sat stiffly with her back straight for a long, long time. Only then did a few words squeeze out from her dry throat. "Can... can I not do it?"

After waiting for a long time without getting a response from Leonard Winston, Rachel Saintclair turned around to look and found that Leonard Winston had fallen into a deep sleep.

She bit her lip and stared at the string of jewelry, but the brilliance from it stung her eyes.

Outside the window, thunder rolled and the rain poured down in sheets.

Henry Edwards.

The man she had loved for six years, but she had pushed him away heartlessly because of money.

Three years ago, she had slapped him hard, forcing him to leave for abroad. Three years later, he returned with his works and talent. Leonard Winston told her matter - of - factly that the designer was her ex - boyfriend.

Fate was so ironic. He returned in glory, while she had become a mistress hidden from the world.