All at once, a weird, uncomfortable feeling filled her chest. She stopped moving, her hand shaking a little.
A deep sense of dread filled her.
Still, she forced a smile, grabbed her things, and walked downstairs.
Sure enough, Peter was waiting in the living room, seated calmly on the sofa.
His posture was relaxed, but his aura was gloomy, unlike the gentleness he always exuded.
Nexi forced a cheerful voice.
"Brother, how was your day?" she asked sweetly, walking toward him with a bright smile.
Peter’s eyes lifted to et hers; his voice was laced with calmness.
"Tell ," he asked, "did you use my phone to chat with Adriana and pretend you were responsible for this house?"
Nexi froze on the spot.
Her smile faltered, and her face stiffened.
Inside, she cursed Adriana for snitching.
’That bitch... why didn’t she follow the script? My sources clearly said that she was very submissive in a relationship!’
Nexi wasn’t an idiot. She had planned everything.
When she first got to know about Adriana’s talent, she had only admired it and even had thoughts of hiring Adriana to make her(Nexi) so designs.
Hence, she investigated Adriana. That was when she got to know about Adriana’s submissive and gullible nature when it cos to relationships.
Later that day, she saw Adriana chatting with Peter and realized that her brother was in a relationship.
She couldn’t describe how thrilled she was.
Instantly, she put her plan into action, believing that Adriana’s personality would prevent her from confronting Peter directly after receiving subtle hints.
Who would have thought that Adriana wouldn’t follow the script at all?
Hiding her dark thoughts, she tried to keep her innocent act.
"Brother, I truly do not understand what you are saying," she replied softly.
Peter chuckled, but his eyes were filled with gloom.
"I will give you one last chance. If you do not cherish it, you will regret it."
Nexi’s heart pounded.
She bit her lip, then finally dropped the act.
Her face twisted into pity as she looked at Peter.
"Fine. Yes, I did it. But I only did it because Adriana has so many beautiful designs. What harm would it be if she gave a few? If she let win this competition, then my na would echo through the fashion industry. And as for Adriana, she is going to beco your wife anyway. So why does she need her own fashion brand?"
Her words spilled out selfishly, without regard for how ugly they were.
Peter’s heart sank, and for the first ti, he wondered if this was truly the sister he had adored since childhood.
Suddenly he felt his EQ wasn’t that great. Even Nexi could hide her true self, and he remained so oblivious.
"From now on," he said coldly, "Adriana may or may not beco my wife. But that does not an you can steal her designs. That does not an you can demand her work with such an entitled attitude. And even if she were my wife, that would be all the more reason for you to respect her, not try to take advantage of her."
Nexi was furious.
"And most importantly," Peter continued, his voice sharp, "what do you an she should hand over all her designs to you? If you lack talent, then you should cultivate it yourself. Instead of begging like a beggar."
The word stung. Nexi’s body trembled, her eyes blazing with fury.
"You are crossing the line!" she shouted.
Peter’s lips curved into a cold smile. "You crossed it first," he said simply. "I am only returning it to you."
Nexi felt her temper rising.
Beggar? Her? It was Adriana, not her, who was a beggar!
She wanted to scream at Peter, but before she could, his calm voice interrupted her.
"Now," Peter said, his eyes staying fixed on her, "I am going to punish you for the cri you have committed. For the next year, forget about receiving even a single coin of pocket money. You will learn how to live like a normal person. You will not stay in this mansion anymore. You will have to struggle, find your own lodging, and see how hard life is outside these walls. And since you love to steal other people’s designs, it would be better if you change your departnt completely. Perhaps then you will understand the aning of real work."
The words dropped like a bomb.
Nexi’s face went pale, her lips trembling.
Then her eyes shook with anger as she pointed a finger at him. She bellowed,
"You are doing vicious things! You are only using Adriana as an excuse to push away from the race of inheritance!"
Peter stared at her for a second, and then suddenly, laughter escaped from his lips.
It was not warm laughter, nor was it playful. It was bitter, sharp, and mocking.
"Nexi," he said, still chuckling, "do you truly have the illusion that you would ever be able to inherit the Richardson Corporation?"
Her whole body stiffened, and she gritted her teeth so hard she could taste blood.
"I am talented in designing!" she shouted. "I can inherit the main clothing brand of our family business. I deserve that much!"
Peter’s eyes darkened, and his voice dropped lower.
"Talented? If you truly had talent, you would not act like this. You would not beg others for designs. You would not steal like a thief and then twist the truth, pretending that your cheating is a kind of favor to soone else. That is not talent, Nexi. That is shalessness."
His words were so harsh that Nexi could hardly resist the urge to slap him.
"So this is about Adriana," she spat. "You are taking revenge for her, aren’t you? Even if that is the case, you should not be this harsh on . I am your sister!"
Peter chuckled again, but his head shook slowly.
"If I had ever known you were doing such things behind my back, I would have punished you anyway. It has nothing to do with Adriana being in my life. But since you dared to harm her, yes, I am taking revenge on her behalf. The punishnt may seem cruel, but I do not care. You crossed the line, Nexi."
His voice was firm, leaving no room for doubt.
Nexi’s lips quivered. Her red eyes glistened with tears as she shouted,
"You are really my good brother! I thought you truly cared for . But no, you are nothing but a venomous snake. How can you let so girl co between us? How can you throw away our relationship for her?"
Peter’s expression hardened at once. He raised his hand and tapped his own brain.
"You should truly visit a doctor for your brain. You do not understand cause and consequence. You were the one who tried to steal. I only retaliated. And now you twist it around and bla Adriana, claiming she is coming between us? You are wrong, Nexi. You are the one who tried to interfere in my and Adriana’s relationship first."
Nexi’s whole body shook with anger. She clenched her fists tighter and finally exploded.
"Fine! I will teach you a good lesson. I will complain to Mother about you!" she shouted.
Peter leaned back against the sofa, his eyes never leaving hers.
Then he gave a small chuckle, his voice calm.
"Go ahead," he said. "Run to her if you want."
Nexi’s body trembled.
"If I do that, Father will take excellent care of you, too. Do you really want to go through another beating? Or do you truly think the scars you tried to hide from Adriana can remain hidden for long?"
Peter’s eyes instantly turned cold.
"So that is it. I was wondering why Father’s sadistic side suddenly flared up yesterday. It turns out you had a hand in it."
Nexi smirked, a wicked glint flashing in her eyes.
"Of course. Otherwise, do you think I would dare speak to Adriana with such confidence? Do you think I would dare tell her about the scars hidden under your turtleneck?"
Peter’s hand clenched into a fist, the veins standing out.
His voice ca low and cold.
"It is not relevant. They are only scars. I can bear them, for Adriana’s sake. But hear clearly, Nexi. If you ever dare to harm her again, it will not end with your pocket money being cut off. It will not end with you changing departnts or being thrown out of this mansion. I will make sure you disappear from this country completely."
"You won’t! My mother won’t allow you to! Your own father will kick you out!" Now, Nexi was starting to panic a bit.
Maybe a long ti had passed, and hence she forgot how ruthless this brothers of hers was.
But now... the warning given by him reignited the mories she had long forgotten, and she kind of started to regret harming his sweetheart.
"Oh, I will." Peter chuckled, "And I will also..."
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