The Heiress They Lost Came Back Overpowered

Yvonne placed the red envelope from Leo Grant, along with the ones from her elders, under her pillow. Grabbing the jewelry box from the table, she ran downstairs again.

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Leo Grant, who was in the foyer, turned to look, his brow slightly furrowed. "Slow down. I’m right here; I’m not going to run off."

"Here, this is your New Year’s gift." Yvonne handed him the jewelry box.

A flash of surprise crossed Leo Grant’s eyes. "I get a gift, too?!"

"Of course. I had it ready a while ago. Besides, we seem to be in sync when it comes to giving gifts." Yvonne gestured for him to open it.

"A Jadeite Jade Guanyin?" Leo Grant’s eyes filled with adoration as he looked at the smooth, delicate, and exquisitely carved pendant in the box.

"Mhmm. As expected of the worldly President Grant, you have good taste. So? Aren’t we in sync?" Yvonne arched an eyebrow.

In fact, when they first got together, Yvonne had been wondering what to get him but could never come up with any ideas.

Then she remembered this guy was a Buddhist, and she happened to have won a piece of top-grade mutton-fat white jade at an auction a few years back, so she commissioned a master craftsman to carve a Guanyin Pendant.

’The carving was just completed and delivered a few days ago. I was originally planning to give it to him tomorrow...’

Leo Grant stroked the pendant in the box and adopted a serious expression. "You’re wrong. What you should say is that our hearts beat as one, that we’re a match made in heaven. Our destiny was arranged by the heavens."

Yvonne chuckled. "Yes, yes, yes. Whatever President Grant says is right. When it comes to destiny, of course the heavens’ arrangement is what counts."

Leo Grant sat on the nearby entryway bench, his eyes sparkling as he handed the box to her.

Yvonne glanced down at him, then fastened the pendant around his neck and tucked it inside his shirt.

’Somehow, this mutual exchange of pendants felt a little strange.’

Yvonne shook her head, casting the messy thoughts aside. "Let’s go. Otherwise, you’ll be ostracized again."

"It’s fine. As long as you’re on my side, that’s all that matters." Leo Grant stood up, squeezed her hand, and with a bit of deliberate cunning, pulled the Guanyin Pendant out from under his shirt.

He had long been ostracized by the Lowell family anyway; it wasn’t like this time would make a difference.

...

Upon entering the garden, Leo Grant was, as expected, met with glares and eye-rolls from the Lowell brothers.

Harrison Lowell curled his lip, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Well, well. We’ve already set off two big fireworks, and the two snails have finally decided to crawl over? It took you half a year to cross that short distance. Anyone who didn’t know better would think you’d just trekked all the way here from Trask."

Leo Grant showed not a hint of embarrassment. Instead, a perfect smile graced his lips. "My apologies. It was my fault we were delayed."

Harrison Lowell’s expression faltered for a moment. Growing up, Leo Grant had always been the "perfect kid next door." Even he, the self-proclaimed little tyrant of Kingsland, had been happy to trail after Leo Grant, calling him "Brother Grant."

’Even though he knew this old fox was just being polite, he had to admit, being on the receiving end of an apology from Leo Grant felt pretty damn good.’

Harrison Lowell was easy to please; all you had to do was stroke his ego, and he’d be happy.

Caleb and Yancy Lowell saw the look on their foolish brother’s face and knew he’d been temporarily bewitched by that wolf. They could hardly bear to watch.

And that Guanyin Pendant around the wolf’s neck... they had never seen him wear one before. Now he was intentionally displaying it. It didn’t take a genius to figure out their sister had just given it to him.

Nina Jennings cleared her throat. "Yvonne! I stashed two Gatling fireworks, saved them just for you. Hurry up!!"

"No way! My sparklers are the main event! Sis, come play with sparklers first!" Adrian Lowell grabbed a handful of unlit sparklers and waved them at her.

Nina Jennings shrugged nonchalantly. "Fine. I’ll humor the kid. We’ll do your sparklers first."

’Anyway, she was just giving her bestie an out. It was all the same to her.’

"You’re the best, Nina! Just you wait, tomorrow it’ll be my turn to ’respect the elders’!" With that, Adrian Lowell ran off with the sparklers.

’Hehe, being a little brat is so much fun.’

"Hey, you little brat! Get back here if you’ve got the guts!" Nina Jennings shouted after him, though she didn’t move an inch.

Leo Grant released her hand. "Go on, go play with them."

"Aren’t you coming with me?" Yvonne turned to look at him, hesitating.

"Sparklers are for fairies. I’ll set off a big one for you later, hmm?" Leo Grant said with a smile, stroking her hair.

’If he wasn’t mistaken, Caleb Lowell had something he wanted to say to him.’

Yvonne glanced around discreetly, then whispered, "Okay. If my brothers give you a hard time, come and tell me."

"Alright. You’ll have to protect me then."

Behind her back, Yvonne secretly made an OK sign, then walked toward Adrian Lowell.

Leo Grant stood a short distance away, watching her, his usually cold, hard expression now filled with adoration.

"You know, in the entire Lowell household, even the gardeners and security guards love to spoil her." Caleb Lowell had appeared at Leo Grant’s side at some unknown point.

The corners of Leo Grant’s lips curved up slightly. "She deserves it, doesn’t she?"

"Of course she does!" Caleb Lowell said with conviction.

’His sister was sweet, adorable, and polite to everyone. She deserved all the beautiful things in the world.’

If the people Yvonne Lowell had "dealt with," or even her own subordinates, heard this, they would probably grab Caleb by the shoulders and shake him violently while screaming: ’Snap out of it! It’s all an act! Your sister is a ruthless she-devil who kills without batting an eye!’

Caleb Lowell: ’Impossible! Absolutely impossible! You’re all spreading rumors and slander! You’ll be hearing from my lawyer!’

"Treat her well. Otherwise, it won’t just be me—none of us will let you off the hook." After a pause, Caleb continued, "The reason we’re not standing in your way has nothing to do with who you are. It’s only because she likes you."

Leo Grant was amused. ’Leave it to his good friend and future brother-in-law to be a master of rhetoric. ’Not standing in your way’ certainly didn’t mean they approved of him.’

’But... that was enough.’

Leo Grant’s eyes never left Yvonne, and they were filled with the purest, most sincere love.

"Of course I’ll treat her well. After all, I’m the child husband she laid her claim on when I was eight."

Hearing this, Caleb also recalled that day. His sister had always loved beautiful things. When she was two, she had grabbed a certain someone’s clothes and refused to let go, which was one thing, but she’d also slobbered kisses all over his face.

But at an age when she could barely speak properly, she was already trying to talk about taking him home. "Bwother... Nola... home-home."

The men of the Lowell family had been jealous for quite a while after that. Even Caleb himself had unilaterally declared his friendship with Leo Grant over at school.

Caleb Lowell snorted at him and said no more.

The men lined up the fireworks in a row, simultaneously lighting the fuses with thirty seconds left on the clock.

As the clock struck midnight, colorful fireworks exploded in the sky, illuminating the night.

At that exact moment, Leo Grant reached Yvonne’s side. While everyone else looked up to admire the fireworks, they only had eyes for each other.

"Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!"

In that moment, the fireworks were deafening. And so was their love.