Chapter 120: A Borrowed Skirt

Billionaires, heirs, and socialites whipped their heads around, staring at every woman within twenty feet, trying to figure out which one was the phantom queen of Midtown.

Even Jude raised an eyebrow in surprise, scanning the VIP tables with his Insight... yet among all the older rich ladies and female CEOs, none of them had the kind of presence to pull off running a place like this.

"Alright, I won’t keep you waiting any longer," Vanessa smiled, stepping back toward the red curtain and waving a hand toward the stage stairs.

"Ladies and gentlemen... please welcome the founder and sole owner of the Heavens Club to the stage!"

Three hundred people held their breath at the exact same time.

Every single eye in the ballroom locked onto the bottom of the stairs, waiting to see who would walk out.

All this drama just to introduce a club owner, Jude thought to himself, shaking his head.

Did she really need to keep it a secret for five years?

The very next second, Jude froze dead in his tracks.

Stepping out of the front row in shiny high heels, looking confident and playful without even pretending to hide behind a pillar anymore, was Chelsea Lee!

For half a second, Jude thought Chelsea had just gotten bored again and was walking across the aisle to come annoy him.

Then, right before his shocked eyes, Chelsea didn’t turn toward him at all... she put a hand on the gold railing and walked straight up the stairs right to the center of the stage.

Chelsea Lee is the founder of the Heavens Club?

How the hell is that even possible?!

Standing by the pillars, Jude stared at the stage in disbelief.

For a split second, he thought Chelsea had lost her mind and crashed the stage as a joke... until he saw General Manager Vanessa Canfield step up, bow with respect, and hand the mic straight to Chelsea!

There was zero doubt left...

The wine-drinking girl he had just lectured behind the plants about keeping her head down and eating pastries was the actual owner of the entire building!

Under the spotlights, Chelsea wasn’t even wearing fancy evening clothes.

Earlier, when the two of them hopped the back balcony wall to sneak inside, a spike had caught and ripped her original dress... so she was wearing the super-short designer skirt Jude had snuck into the VIP dressing room to grab for her, which Vanessa Canfield had handed over without asking a single question.

Because the skirt was so short, her gorgeous legs were on full display for the whole room.

Between her killer curves, pretty smile, and playful eyes, she was rocking a borrowed outfit with more effortless charm than any high-end runway model.

Even a stunning woman like Vanessa Canfield looked plain standing right behind her.

Back by the pillar, however, Jude stood frozen on the carpet, lost for words.

The mysterious boss of the Heavens Club had been walking right beside him the entire night.

For a few seconds, Jude had to stop himself from marching up the stairs and asking what kind of game she was playing.

Suddenly, every weird thing from tonight clicked right into place.

No wonder Vanessa Canfield didn’t call security or blink an eye when she caught Jude grabbing that skirt from the dressing room... Vanessa knew from the very beginning that he had arrived with her boss, and that the skirt was for Chelsea.

Wait a minute...

As Jude replayed the whole night in his head, his eyes narrowed.

If Chelsea Lee was the mastermind behind the club, then nothing tonight had been an accident.

The little fender-bender against his bumper down the street, her "accidentally" showing up outside the back wall claiming she forgot her VIP pass... every single move had been a setup to stick to his side.

Why go through all that trouble just to get close to me? Jude thought.

One thing was clear: behind that carefree attitude, Chelsea Lee had targeted him on purpose...

"Sorry to keep everyone waiting so long tonight," Chelsea’s voice came through the speakers, snapping all three hundred guests out of their trance.

Giving the room a smile, she kept going smoothly. "Five years ago, I started the Heavens Club right here in Midtown. But right after opening night, personal stuff pulled me overseas for a long time, so I left everything to Vanessa. That’s why I haven’t shown my face in New York for five years, and why most of you are seeing me for the first time tonight."

Listening from the back, Jude didn’t believe a single word of that excuse...

Watching her talk into that mic with such an innocent face, he figured Hollywood had missed out on an Oscar-winning actress.

"First of all, I want to thank everyone here for supporting the club over the years," Chelsea said, looking over the crowd. "As you heard, things in my personal life have changed, and I don’t plan on keeping this place anymore. There’s nothing wrong with the business but a club like this needs an owner who can give it 100% of their time, and I’m just not around enough. So the rumors you all heard are totally true: the Heavens Club is officially for sale tonight."

"Miss Lee, tell us the rules!" an older CEO shouted from the front row. "How are we picking the winner tonight?!"

"It’ll be through a bidding war," Chelsea said, holding up a finger. "But tonight isn’t going to be a normal auction. After five years, this place means a lot to me, and selling it off like an empty warehouse would disrespect all the hard work our staff put into making it special."

"Then how does it work, Miss Lee?" another rich guy called out.

"In a second, our staff will hand out sealed envelopes to every table," Chelsea explained. "Anyone who wants to buy the club can take one. All you have to do is write down the exact cash number you’re willing to pay, and seal the envelope."