Julian walked her to a stool where a bartender was serving a few drinks.


    "Stay here for a while until the anniversary starts," he said and she nodded in understanding before he left to continue from where she’d left off. He may have been friends with Xander for the longest time, but he doesn’t know much about the clients at all.


    Anastasia decided to sit still, her posture calm andposed, but her sharp eyes darted around the room like a hawk, taking in every detail with intense focus.


    All of a sudden, she spotted thest person she expected, dragging a chair and settling into it with the demeanor of a child punished and sent to their room to sulk until the anniversary was over.


    Michelle’s hand was on her cheeks as she sulked in defeat.


    "Isn’t it strange that none of them are willing to even listen to what I’m saying? All they want to do is listen to Samantha. They might as well worship her like she’s some goddess," she spat out with so much venom it was obvious she wasn’t enjoying the party at all.


    Anastasia’s subconscious screamed to her to hide. Michelle was the one person she expected to figure out her true identity at the very first eye contact. However, thetter wasn’t even acknowledging her presence there.


    Anastasia stiffly ordered a ss of water to calm down her nerves as she continued to listen to Michelle talk to herself.


    "She thinks with this act, she can win Xander over just like that. She’s ying." Then she chuckled at the end of her words. That action merely got her side eyes from the guests, wondering if she’d gone insane all of a sudden.


    Anastasia decided not to keep quiet anymore.


    "Excuse me but I couldn’t help but listen to all that you’ve said. You seem to be agitated with someone. Did you face any difort while speaking to the guests here?" She asked with the kindest and most polite tone she’d ever used to approach her enemy.


    While she was recovering, Anastasia had done some practice to change the tone of her voice so she’d soundpletely different from her usual self. It was just a final touch to her new identity and so far, Michelle wasn’t freaking out, which only meant she was able to fool her also.


    Michelle wondered who thedy across her could be. She’d been so invested inining about her unfortunate night to herself she’d forgotten someone could have overheard her, especially someone who was close contact with Samantha.


    "If I may ask, who are you?" Michelle carefully asked the unknowndy.


    "I’m Jennifer Reyez," Anastasia replied with a polite grin that gave her a soft aura.


    "Oh..."


    "I’m a friend of Julian, and I wanted to speak with Xander about partnering with him. I’ve been wondering how to speak with him and you seem to not be getting any clients for yourself—"


    "Did you just say that you want to partner with us?" Michelle asked, immediately excited.


    ’Us?’ Anastasia was tempted to cock up an eyebrow at Michelle’sst word.


    Although she couldn’t exactly remember how Michelle got into this kind of work, there certainly wasn’t an <i>us</i> with Samantha and Xander.


    "Of course. If you don’t mind, could you please introduce the both of us?" Anastasia politely asked.


    "Definitely." With that, Anastasia rose from her seat and followed Michelle through the dense crowd, weaving between clusters of people engaged in lighthearted conversations and exchanging smiles. Each step she took, she mentally prepared herself, calming her nerves with steady breaths.


    She was already in too deep; there was no turning back now. This was just a normal meeting—nothing more, nothing less. There was no way Xander would recognize her. If Michelle, the sister who had betrayed her for so long, couldn’t see through her new identity, then neither Xander nor Samantha stood a chance.


    Anastasia continued to remind herself until they reached where the two were.


    "Xander, I brought you someone. She’s Jennifer Reyez, and she wants to partner with us," Michelle introduced, and again, Anastasia was tempted to raise a questioning eyebrow.


    "Jennifer Reyez? I’ve never heard that name before," said Xander with a scrutinizing gaze as he studied her.


    "That’s because I’m not a public person. I love to do my business in private," Anastasia replied.


    "Still, that’s not an assuring reason to be involved in what we do." Samantha was the one who spoke.


    Suddenly, Anastasia felt a tight arm around her shoulder.


    "She’s a very close friend of mine and I was the one who brought her here," Julian suddenly said.