Chapter 64

The next morning, Elisa went to Christina's bedroom to wake her up.

"Mom? What are you doing here so early?" Christina mumbled, rubbing her eyes.

She grabbed her phone and checked the time. It was only 5:40 AM, still twenty minutes before six.

She sighed, feeling a bit exasperated. "Didn't we agree on six? I already set my alarm."

"The earlier you get up, the more time you have to get ready. What if you don't finish in time? Everyone else will be there early, and we'll be the only ones arriving late. That wouldn't look good. Come on, get up," Elisa insisted, not feeling the least bit guilty.

With Elisa's nagging, Christina couldn't go back to sleep. She got out of bed, made her bed, washed her face quickly, and went downstairs to change.

The makeup artist Elisa had hired was already waiting downstairs. As she worked on Christina's makeup, she complimented, "Ms. Windsor, your skin is so fair and flawless. You don't even need concealer, just a light layer of foundation."

"Don't make the makeup too heavy. Nicholas doesn't like women with too much makeup. It should match her student image," Elisa reminded the makeup artist.

After all, Christina was still a student. A student should look like one. If she wore heavy makeup, not only would Nicholas dislike it, but William would too.

The makeup artist agreed immediately.

She chose brown eyeshadow and a light shade of lipstick, keeping the overall look very natural.

Elisa watched for a while before feeling satisfied and went to get herself ready.

Two hours later, the three of them were ready. Raymond drove them to the Cavendish Mansion.

On the way, Elisa reminded Christina of various things to keep in mind, which Christina found annoying and promptly forgot.

As luck would have it, when they arrived, Raymond's second brother's wife, Gabrielle, was also arriving.

Elisa opened the car door and saw Gabrielle, her expression immediately souring.

"I knew I should have checked my horoscope before leaving. What bad luck," Gabrielle rolled her eyes dramatically.

She looked at Elisa, then at Christina behind her, not hiding the disdain in her eyes.

Gabrielle had met Raymond's second brother through an arranged introduction, so she knew their background well. But Elisa and Raymond? Elisa was restless, and her daughter wasn't much better. Christina was still so young, not even graduated, and had already slept with William. The whole family knew about it, and they still had the nerve to show up.

But then again, like mother, like daughter. With Elisa's behavior, how could her daughter be any better?

Elisa felt a surge of anger and retorted sarcastically, "You need to check your horoscope before leaving the house? You must be so important. Your presence is grander than Nicholas's."

After all, it was Nicholas's birthday party. Even though Gabrielle's comment was aimed at Elisa, it wouldn't sound good if others heard it.

Gabrielle decided not to argue further and walked away.

Elisa didn't want to follow Gabrielle, so she took Christina another way. By the time they reached the living room, everyone else had already arrived.

Nicholas was still in the garden exercising and hadn't come in yet.

The living room was spacious, with several large tables set up by the butler, filled with juices, wines, and various snacks.

"Nicholas will be here shortly. Please wait a moment. If you need anything, just let me know," the butler said before standing aside.

Everyone exchanged glances and made small talk, each with their own thoughts.

On such an occasion, who wouldn't want to make a good impression on Nicholas?

Christina didn't want to join their conversation and kept looking at her phone. When she looked up, she accidentally made eye contact with William.

She quickly looked away.

What bad luck.

Soon, Nicholas arrived. Despite his age, his presence was still commanding as he sat down.

"Happy birthday, Nicholas," Gabrielle was the first to stand up, raising her glass of juice.

She drank it in one go and then presented a box. "This is a gemstone brooch I acquired at an auction abroad. It matches the one you have."

Nicholas opened the box to find a brooch set with sapphires and turquoise, clearly to his liking.

He nodded in satisfaction and handed the box to the butler. "Gabrielle, you are very thoughtful."

With Gabrielle setting the example, others quickly presented their gifts.

Elisa remained seated. If she couldn't go first, she would go last.

After everyone had given their gifts, she finally stood up and presented a landscape painting. "Nicholas, this is my heartfelt gift."

"Very nice. It will look perfect in my study," Nicholas nodded approvingly.

The butler moved to take the painting, but Elisa stopped him. "Nicholas, this painting is missing one final touch."

Curious eyes turned to her.

Gabrielle scoffed. Bringing an unfinished painting? What was she thinking?

Did she plan to have the artist come and finish it in front of everyone? Ridiculous.

Elisa was clearly trying too hard to impress men. No one should expect much from her.

"Christina, come here," Elisa called to her daughter.

Christina took out a paintbrush from her bag and added a few strokes of golden sunlight to the painting, bringing it to life.

Her style was both controlled and expressive, perfectly blending strength and beauty. The sunlight symbolized hope and warmth, which pleased Nicholas greatly.

"Excellent, very well done," Nicholas nodded in approval.

The painting was already good, but the addition of sunlight gave it a special touch.

"Who would have thought Christina, at such a young age, could paint so well? Raymond, you've raised a fine daughter," Nicholas praised, prompting others to chime in.

William watched the scene unfold. Though he didn't like Christina, he had to admit her addition to the painting was impressive.

But when did Christina learn to paint?

What else didn't he know about her?

Listening to the compliments, Elisa felt immensely satisfied. Her meticulous planning had paid off.