Playing the Villainess, He Fell for Me

Tina Wade wasn’t a bad person. She understood the rules of the entertainment industry and knew how to market herself. She seemed to make several new ”friends” with every project she filmed, though how much of that was genuine was anyone’s guess.

Joanna didn’t want to get too involved with someone like that, but she didn’t dislike her either. Surface-level politeness was enough. She smiled and said, ”Let’s not. It’ll probably be late by the time the banquet ends. We can schedule something for next time.”

It was a tactful refusal, but Tina Wade kept her bright smile and went along with it. ”Okay, then I’ll ask you out next time, Joanna.”

”Shall we go in together?” Tina Wade asked.

”Sure,” Joanna agreed with a smile, discreetly avoiding the hand Tina Wade extended to help her.

Although her status in the industry was higher than Tina’s, they were about the same age. If any malicious gossip accounts decided to spin the story, it would probably look like she was bullying Tina Wade.

The banquet was hosted by a top luxury brand looking to expand its regional presence. The guests were all celebrities and influential figures from various industries. To put it bluntly, these kinds of events were for networking and expanding business connections.

As soon as Joanna entered, she spotted several actors and celebrities from her own company. Men and women alike were dressed in glamorous, eye-catching attire.

”Jo.”

”Joanna’s here.”

The group saw Joanna and perceptively came over to greet her. Only one young starlet in a goose-yellow dress remained, leaning coquettishly against a man seated on the sofa. When she saw Joanna, she shot her a provocative glare.

Joanna pretended not to see it. After responding to the others, she walked over to the sofa and offered a polite explanation to the man. ”Boss, I’m sorry. The traffic was bad, so I’m late.”

Howard Thorne slowly raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the smiling young woman standing before him from head to toe. Then, he pushed away the starlet in the yellow dress and patted the spot beside him. ”Jojo, come, sit here.”

Meeting Howard Thorne’s unreadable, half-smiling eyes, Joanna hesitated for two seconds before walking to the other side of the sofa—not too close, but not too far—and sitting down.

...

It was a blatant snub. For a signed artist to dare publicly disrespect the big boss... Joanna was probably the only one who would do such a thing.

The others exchanged glances, but no one dared to speak, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.

After a long moment, the man finally spoke, his voice lazy. ”You all can go mingle. I have something to discuss with Jojo.”

”Mr. Thorne...” The starlet in yellow wanted to try her luck again, but she immediately shut her mouth when she met his impatient gaze and left obediently.

Once everyone had gone, Howard Thorne waved for a drink and sighed. ”Alright, don’t be upset. It wasn’t me who had Mindy Morgan rush you to come here, so why are you mad at me?”

Joanna refused the pink cocktail Howard offered her and frowned slightly. ”I’m not mad.”

”Not mad? Then why are you giving me that fake smile?”

Howard Thorne chuckled. He and Joanna had known each other for seven or eight years, since high school. He could definitely tell she was in a bad mood tonight.

”So tell me, why are you unhappy? Who pissed you off?” Howard Thorne asked, casually crossing his legs. He ventured a guess, ”Is it because of that negative trending topic calling you a ’bimbo,’ or did someone snatch another one of your roles?”

”I told you I’d help you, but you just won’t let me. If I made a move, who would dare to cross you? You could have your pick of any film script you want.”

Howard Thorne was sincere. He genuinely wanted to help Joanna, to make her career path smoother. He hated seeing people curse her out with such vile language.

Joanna could tell he meant it, which was precisely why she couldn’t accept. ”Thank you, but you’ve already helped me a lot.”

A smile touched Joanna’s lips. ”If it weren’t for you, I would’ve been hounded out of the industry by trolls long ago. I’d never have been able to earn so much money and live this comfortably.”

She and Howard Thorne had been high school classmates, but they hadn’t been close. It wasn’t until after college, when she was signing with an agency, that she unexpectedly signed with his family’s company. Only then did she realize how powerful his family background was.

”So thank you, Boss Thorne~” Joanna teased in a deliberately lighthearted tone.

Seeing her carefree expression, Howard Thorne rolled his eyes in annoyance. ”Whatever. Have it your way.”

”Even if you beg me in the future, I won’t help you,” Howard said, then immediately regretted it. But he was too proud to take it back or say something softer.

Just then, a brand representative came over to invite him for a chat. Howard Thorne went with them, leaving Joanna alone on the spacious sofa.

But her peace didn’t last long. Someone quickly came over to strike up a conversation. He was a recently popular male idol, quite handsome, though the makeup on his face was a bit thick.

”Jojo, we’re all chatting over there. Want to come join us?” the handsome idol asked enthusiastically.

The table was full of unfamiliar faces. Joanna was just about to refuse when someone did it for her.

”Sorry, kiddo. Joanna and I already have plans. We’re about to discuss some girl talk about skincare. You want to listen in?” the newcomer said with a grin.

The boy band member quickly waved his hands. ”No, no, it’s fine!” he said, and walked away dejectedly.

Joanna couldn’t help but chuckle. ”Kim, you scared him off.”

Nina Kim plopped down, flicking her fiery red gown to the side. ”Then he scares too easily,” she retorted casually.

She picked up the untouched pink cocktail in front of Joanna and took a sip. ”These people are just trying to ride your coattails. If you actually start trending together, you’ll be the one who gets all the hate.”

”That’s true,” Joanna said, nodding in complete agreement.

She just had the kind of disposition that naturally attracted haters. Even if she did nothing, she would end up trending online and getting trashed.

Nina Kim was the editor-in-chief of a well-known fashion magazine, a chic and charismatic woman. Joanna had worked with her many times, and they had developed a sense of mutual admiration.

Seeing Nina Kim down the entire cocktail in one go, Joanna asked, ”Bad mood?”

”Don’t get me started,” Nina Kim said with a tsk. ”Have you seen the hot topics list?”

”...Actually, no, I haven’t,” Joanna said.

She had been rather distracted these past few days. She had taken in a stray kitten, and all the time spent buying supplies and getting its vaccinations had left her with no time or energy to look at her phone.

”What’s wrong?” Joanna asked tentatively. ”What happened?”

”I don’t know who started it, but a rumor that I’m switching jobs and backstabbing the magazine went viral. I’ve had people asking me what’s going on for days now. It’s driving me crazy,” Nina Kim said with a frown.

Annoyance was written all over her face; she was clearly furious. Joanna tried to console her. ”It’s okay, it’ll die down in a couple of days. The gossip accounts just love to make things up. As long as upper management isn’t mad, you’ll be fine.”

Something in that sentence set Nina Kim off. ”Upper management? Our whole magazine is about to change hands!”

”Huh?”

”It was just finalized a couple of days ago, contracts and all. And do you know which company acquired us? The Sinclairs!”

Seeing Joanna’s confused expression, Nina Kim pointed a finger upward and whispered, ”The Sinclair Family. *The* Sinclair Family of Jornheim.”