THE DISABLED HEIRESS, MY EX-HUSBAND WOULD PAY DEARLY.-Chapter 342

Her eyes scanned Cora from head to toe, taking in every detail.

"You know what though? You haven't changed at all, like not even a little bit. You look exactly the same as you did back then."

There was something in the way she said those words that made them feel less like a compliment and more like she was pointing out that Cora hadn't grown or improved over the years.

however Cora kept that polite smile on her face, refusing to let Penelope get under her skin like she used to do so easily.

"Well, you too," Cora said, keeping her tone light and friendly.

"You've definitely changed though. You look so much more sophisticated now, and way more matured than before."

The moment those words left Cora's mouth, Penelope let out this little laugh and cut her off before she could say anything else.

"Well, that's because I've been out here working and building empires."

Hearing what Penelope just said, Cora's jaw tightened a little, the muscles in her face going stiff as she tried to process the subtle insult that had just been thrown her way. But she caught herself quickly and immediately masked her true feelings, plastering that same polite smile back on her face. It was becoming crystal clear that Penelope hadn't changed one single bit over all these years. She was still the same girl who loved throwing little jabs disguised as compliments, still the same person who got satisfaction from making others feel small.

Cora took a quiet breath and kept her voice steady and sweet.

"Well, it's definitely written all over you that you're really out here building empires," she said, making sure her tone sounded impressed even though she felt anything but.

At that moment, Penelope's eyes suddenly lit up like she had just remembered something really juicy, and she snapped her fingers.

"Oh wait, that actually reminds me of something," she said, her voice getting higher with fake curiosity. "What exactly brought you here tonight? I mean, nobody just comes to a place like this with a guy without having one or two things going on between them, you know what I mean?"

She paused for dramatic effect, letting her eyes drift over to where Oliver was sitting.

"But hold on a second - this is not the guy I heard you got married to, is it? Because I distinctly remember seeing pictures back then, like actual photos of you and some other man together. I saw those wedding pictures floating around, and this man sitting here with you right now is definitely not the same one from those photos." Her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked Oliver up and down without even trying to hide it.

"So who is this guy by the way?"

At that moment, Cora felt her jaw tighten even more, and she could feel the heat rising up her neck. Her hands clenched slightly under the table where nobody could see, and when she spoke, her voice came out a bit harder than before.

"Well, that's - I don't think that has anything to do with you."

Immediately, hearing what Cora just said, Penelope raised up her hand in this stylish dismissive way, waving it around like she was swatting away some invisible fly.

"Well, I really don't understand why you're taking it like I'm being nosy or trying to cross your boundaries here," she said, her voice dripping with false innocence.

"It's honestly not that big of a deal, not a big deal at all. I'm just trying to understand what's going on with you, that's all." She let out a small laugh that sounded more condescending than friendly.

"But it seems like you're really not in the mood to talk about it right now."

Before Cora could even respond to that, Penelope turned slightly and gestured toward the well-dressed man standing beside her. Her whole face changed into this bright, show-off smile that screamed look at what I have.

"Anyway, this right here is my fiancé," she announced proudly, like she was presenting some kind of trophy.

"We're actually getting married in just two weeks from now, can you believe it?" She didn't even wait for Cora to congratulate her before continuing.

"And you know what? Since I literally just ran into you here tonight, it's only right that I invite you to the wedding." Her smile shifted into something that looked more like a smirk.

"I don't have my invitation cards with me right now, but I'll make sure you get one because the entrance is strictly by invitation only. I wouldn't want security to kick you out at the door or anything embarrassing like that."

However, before Cora could even open her mouth to say whether she was going to accept or reject the invitation, Penelope kept talking like she owned the entire conversation.

"The wedding is strictly by invitation only, like I mentioned before, because it's really meant for highly influential individuals," she said, her voice getting more excited as she went on.

"We're talking about governors showing up, ministers will be there, major business moguls from all over the country - so many important people are definitely going to be in attendance." She paused for a moment, letting those words sink in like she was trying to make sure everyone understood just how big of a deal this wedding was going to be.

"You see, I've made quite a name for myself over these years, my family has also built up this incredible reputation, and my fiancé here has established himself as someone really significant in his field too." She gestured toward the man beside her again, and he just stood there with this proud smile on his face.

"So we really have to be very strict and careful with our guest list, you understand? We can't just invite anybody and everybody to something this exclusive."

Penelope's eyes locked onto Cora's face, and her smile became even more patronizing than before.

"If it wasn't for the fact that you're such a close friend of mine, I honestly wouldn't even be extending this invitation to you at all. But hey, what are friends for, right? What are those childhood friendships really worth if we can't share these special moments together?"

She waved her hand again like she was being so generous.

"I'm definitely going to find a way to get that invitation to you somehow, or if you want, you can always come by and collect it yourself."