Oops! My Secret Baby Is Caught By His Top-Lawyer Daddy! Novel

---- Meanwhile, Clara had already calmed herself. From that first shock to now, she'd leveled out. It reminded her a bit of the time she'd been bullied in school-trapped with nowhere to run. But she wasn't that girl anymore. The situation had happened, and she wasn't going to hide from it. If there was no way out, then she'd face it head-on and find a solution. Linsey, Kacey, and a few of their socialite friends exchanged knowing glances. What was ten grand each? Practically nothing. And the chance to see Clara utterly humiliated? Worth every penny. Let's see how long you last as Mrs.

Devereaux after this public flop, sweetie. Everyone in the hall was now watching the stage, then back to Clara, then to the emcee, like a ping-pong match. Finally, the emcee's voice boomed out again with even more gusto than before: "Our third ---- performer tonight is Mrs. Devereaux, with a record-breaking 52 votes! That's $5.2 million raised-the highest total ever for our Wish List segment! Please welcome Mrs. Devereaux to the stage!" Of course, people loved a spectacle. In just a few minutes, the vote count had jumped from 36 to 52.

Clara rose to her feet, a calm, elegant smile on her face. Aaron tugged her hand. "You don't have to go up there. I already sent someone to talk to Sebastian. I'll donate a few more million and have him perform on your behalf." To him, no amount of fame or reputation mattered more than Clara's peace of mind. Scarlett added quickly, "Seriously, don't do it. You're not in this world-you don't owe anyone a performance." Clara gave them a reassuring smile. "It's okay. Backing down without even trying isn't my style.

---- Let me give it a shot." She set her clutch gently on the table, smoothed the folds of her dress, and began walking slowly toward the stage. Her figure was slender and graceful. The little black dress hugged her curves in all the right places, accentuating her femininity without being over the top. She carried herself with quiet elegance. Her mother had made her take posture classes when she was young, and tonight, it finally came in handy. Back straight, hands folded in front of her, chin lifted slightly-she looked poised and composed.

Her delicate features, smooth glowing skin, and the diamonds on her ears and necklace sparkled under the lights like magic. The entire ballroom fell silent. Every eye followed Clara's every step. The emcee even walked down the stage stairs to ---- meet her, offering his arm like a true gentleman and leading her up. "Mrs. Devereaux, on behalf of the event organizers-and all the lives your generosity will touch-thank you." In his mind, though, he was thinking: She's gorgeous, no doubt about that. But... can she actually play? Will she even be able to finish a full song?

Clara smiled gracefully and spoke with confidence: "Charity is everyone's responsibility. As a citizen of Greystone, I'm honored to have raised this much in donations. I'm not an expert pianist, but if it helps more people, I'm more than happy to perform." Beautifully said! The emcee started clapping, and the entire ballroom erupted into applause that shook the walls. Yes, this was charity-not some petty game. Some people had clearly lost sight of that. There were plenty of true philanthropists in the ---- crowd, especially among the older generation.

Many of them applauded Clara wholeheartedly, their eyes filled with admiration. The vote count continued climbing by the second. At this point, whether she played well or not didn't matter anymore. Aaron finally relaxed and smiled. His wife was brilliant.