?Chapter 1407:


    She smiled until he turned his back—then the smile slipped away, reced by a storm of emotion as she stared at him retreating into the bathroom.


    At first, she had believed hisck of passion was a health issue. Butter, she learned the truth—it was because of another woman.


    The memory of that one night still burned in her mind—when he’d been drunk, whispering Christina’s name and mistaking her for the other woman. That night, his passion had been fierce, consuming, unlike anything she had ever felt from him before.


    The thought of it made her chest tighten, her jealousy ring into a zing inferno.


    From that night on, her calm began to crumble. Anxiety took root, twisting into jealousy and fear. She lived in constant dread that Christina would take him away.


    She hadn’t loved Brendon in the beginning, but somewhere along the way, she had fallen for him—and now that love had be a bitter truth she could hardly bear to face.


    The following day, the newly restored mural was revealed to a crowd of top media representatives.


    As soon as the red cloth dropped, every eye in the room widened with awe. The photographers froze,pletely mesmerized. For a moment, they forgot to click—afraid even a breath might make the mural disappear.


    “Holy hell, this is gorgeous! You can’t even tell it was restored—it looks like it’s always been this perfect.”


    “Miss Jones has done something huge for Jasgow. If I hadn’t seen her work with my own eyes, I wouldn’t believe someone her age could pull this off.”


    “No wonder Magnus—the big-shot restoration expert—was blown away. He called her a master right then and there. She’s not just talented, she’s a damn prodigy.”


    Everyone there couldn’t stop talking about how incredible it was.


    Christina’s team stood beside her, grinning with pride, soaking in the moment like they’d won gold. Their reputation climbed with Christina’s, and along the way, they picked up a lot of skills from her. If Christina hadn’t stopped mentoring, they’d have begged to be her students—no questions asked.


    “Miss Jones, your work is unreal. This mural’seback is all you. Any words for us?” After a flood of questions, one reporter finally got that out.


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    Christina answered calmly, “Restoring this mural so fast wasn’t just me. It was the whole team’s doing. Everyone worked themselves to the bone, day and night. That’s how we got here. Every single person deserves credit.”


    The moment she finished, the room burst into apuse.


    Her words hit home for the team—deep and personal. At first, they hadn’t seen her brilliance. Some even judged her unfairly. But the more time they spent working with Christina, the more they realized she was the real deal—genuine, open, and generous with her craft. She didn’t gatekeep a thing.


    Sheid everything out for them, but how much they absorbed? That was on them. She didn’t spoon-feed. Even in the dead of night, if they hit a wall, one call was all it took. Christina would show up quickly, walking them through the problem step by step, never once losing her cool.


    It pissed them off that someone so dedicated still got dragged online. They’d fire back at trolls whenever they had a minute to spare.


    Their respect for her only grew. The hate didn’t touch her; she brushed it off like dust. That kind of mental armor? They wished they had it.


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