The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

In the buzzing world of the entertainment industry, rumors had long swirled that Ramona's meteoric rise to stardom wasn't without the help of sshady dealings. But Kala, with her own history as a fan favorite, never bought into the gossip. She knew all too well how vicious whispers could trail a successful woman.

However, when she overheard Ramona trash-talking Vivienne, the scion of a respected entertainment dynasty, her blood boiled. Kala's patience snapped as Ramona's sneering remarks about the Brooks family hit too close to home. Before she knew it, a sharp retort lashed out from her lips.

Ramona's face cycled through a spectrum of anger, embarrassment, and indignation.

Kala, her own temper flaring, nearly apologized, but the words froze on her tongue as she stared into Ramona's twisted expression of fury.

"Oh, you've really done it now, Kala!" Ramona seethed, her delicate features contorting.

No wonder Kala and Vivienne were buddies-birds of a feather flock together! "You want to slander me? You're going to pay for that!" Ramona yelled inside when her hand shot out, grabbing Kala's wrist and attempting to hurl her down the trailer steps.

"Ramona!" The urgency in her agent's voice was clear as he raced to intervene.

With the grace of an actress, Ramona turned on the waterworks for the gathering crowd. "Ms. Brooks, I know you resentfor snagging that endorsement from you, but we all have to play the gin this industry. How could you attacklike this?" Kala was incredulous at the audacity of Ramona's performance, almost impressed despite herself.

The emotions in her eyes flickered as she stared at Ramona.

The shooting had just ended, and several staff were walking around the set, ready to leave. Hearing the commotion and realizing it was a clash between two popular actresses, a crowd quickly formed with onlookers recording the whole thing.

Ramona's agent, Jackson, helped her up, and she limped onto him as if her ankle was sprained.

Understanding the look in her eyes, Jackson immediately said righteously, "Ms. Brooks, Ramona has been giving you the utmost respect because you're a senior in this industry; that's why she prefers to avoid conflicts with you even if it means she has to give up things in the process! And how do you repay her? Not only did you take Ms. Vivienne's side in oppressing us during the banquet, but now you've even gone and pushed her down the stairs! You know, even if you want to suck up to Ms. Vivienne, this is too much! Everyone knows you're doing this for the endorsement! You know what? We don't want it anymore! Take the endorsement!" Noticing a gathering crowd, with seven livestreaming the situation, Jackson added, "But this isn't over! Ms. Brooks, we'll see you in court for intentional assault!" Ramona suddenly cut in with a gentle and soft tone, "No, Jackson. Don't say that. Ms. Brooks didn't mean it. It was my fault for stepping up and not expecting the Hawthorn family to actually hirefor this endorsement. Ms. Brooks, don't you worry, I'll call Mr. Hawthorn right now! I'll make sure you get what you want." The onlookers started murmuring.

"That's horrible! To think I actually believed Kala was a nice person!" "How nice can the granddaughter of a murderer be? She's showing her true colors now, isn't she?" "Opportunities in the entertainment industry are never certain until the last moment. How can Kala be so shameless to claim that the endorsement belongs to her?" "If she becomes the brand ambassador of the Hawthorn Group, I'll never buy their perfumes again! Who knows what ingredients they put inside? They might be lethal for all we know!" Hearing those discussions, Kala's agent, Xavier, frowned, his sharp gaze scanning past Ramona's ankle, and was surprised.

This woman actually deliberately sprained her ankle for real. How could a girl born with a silver spoon have the courage to do something like that? "You done?" Kala surveyed the surroundings, the dazzling flashlights making it hard to keep her eyes open. She would be a fool to still not have grasped the situation by now.

Clearly, Ramona's goal today was to ruin her reputation. It was no wonder Ramona kept provoking her.

However, how did Ramona know about the Brooks family? Didn't Vivienne prevent the information from leaking? The public thought the Brooks family's demise was because of her grandmother. In fact, even Scott was not considered the main culprit by the public.

Yet, why did Ramona sound like she knew the truth? With these thoughts in mind, Kala tried to extract more out of Ramona. "Ms. Grimshaw, you seem to be very familiar with my family, so I'm sure you know that Vivienne is my cousin. You say you snatched my endorsement, right? How about we call Vivienne now to see if that's actually the case?" She smirked and added, "Or, Ms. Grimshaw, do you think you've charmed her into betraying her own family?" Suddenly, it dawned on the crowd as well.

"Oh, right, I've forgotten about that. I think I've heard somewhere that Kala is Ms. Vivienne's older cousin." "What? That's impossible! Ms. Vivienne comes from Havenwood! Kala is a Rivenwood local through and through. How could they be related?" "The Hawthorn and the Brooks families share the sancestors. Plus, I heard Ms. Vivienne's biological father isn't actually from the Hawthorn family but the imprisoned head of the Brooks family, Scott Brooks."

"You know, that remindsof something. I've read online that Vivienne bullied Ramona sonte tve agor don't think the Hawthorn family will let someone who has bad blood with their lady of the house be their brand ambassador, right?" Hearing the heated speculations, Ramona was completely unfazed. "Ms. Brooks, you've fallen in love with Ms. Vivienne's husband. Don't you think that reason is more than sufficient for her to fire you?" Kala stood her ground, her eyes widening in shock. Her feelings were like a secret garden, meticulously tended and hidden behind high walls. So, how on earth did Ramona uncover the truth? It was baffling. Even Vivienne, with her eagle eye for detail, hadn't picked up on the fact that she had fallen for Percival.

"You..." Kala's lips parted as she scrambled for words to counter.

But Ramona's gaze was unwavering, a deep pool of certainty that silenced Kala's protests before they could even begin.

Ramona let out a derisive laugh, “Kala, Ms. Vivienne has been so kind to you. Without her, would you made your comeback? And to think, you've fallen for her husband." have

She dabbed at her eyes with a touch of theatrics and continued, "I wouldn't have known a thing if Ms. Vivienne hadn't confided inShe senthere today to break it to you. She can't bear to see you anymore, Kala. And I'm telling you all this for your own good. I don't blyou if you don't believe me. Direct your anger atif you must. I'm just the messenger, powerless and at your mercy."

Ramona was beautiful in a way that was different from Kala's radiant charm. Her beauty was harmless and innocent the kind that made everyone believe she could harbor no ill intentions. A veritable angel in appearance but with the heart of a viper! With her tearful plea, she had everyone around feeling a pang of sympathy for her plight.