Chapter 142: Chapter 142: He Doesn’t Like People Mentioning His Marriage

When Cecilia Croft entered the backyard on Sebastian Hawthorne’s arm, the lively chatter died down as everyone fell silent, all eyes turning to them.

Wendy Rhodes had her back to the entrance. Noticing the strange looks on everyone’s faces, she turned and saw Cecilia Croft standing beside Sebastian Hawthorne. Her expression immediately grew complicated.

Of everyone there, only Finn and Jasmine Vance showed no surprise.

Everyone exchanged glances, wondering what was going on.

Jasmine Vance beamed excitedly and waved at Cecilia Croft.

Cecilia Croft smiled back at her, then looked up at the man beside her. "Let’s go over to Finn," she said.

’Her sister had told her to stick with Sebastian Hawthorne today.’

Sebastian Hawthorne nodded.

A flicker of joy lit up Cecilia’s eyes. Just as she and Sebastian were about to walk over, Wendy Rhodes approached from nearby, took her by the wrist with feigned intimacy, and put on a fake smile.

"Sebastian, Cecilia, you’re here!"

Cecilia gave a small nod and tried to pull her hand from Wendy’s grasp, but Wendy only tightened her grip.

"You haven’t been back to Karthus in so long. I have a few friends I want to introduce you to."

’Wendy was determined to cling to her, and she couldn’t exactly make a scene at an event like this. It would just make her look petty.’

"Sure."

Cecilia smiled in response to Wendy, then glanced sideways at the man beside her.

"Sebastian, I’m going to go catch up with Wendy for a bit."

’She chose not to call him Mr. Hawthorne, opting for a different form of address.’

Sebastian Hawthorne lowered his gaze to her, his dark eyes holding an emotion she couldn’t decipher.

"Okay?" When he didn’t answer, Cecilia asked again softly.

Finally, he answered in his deep voice.

"Fine."

"Come find me in a bit. Don’t wander off."

Cecilia nodded, then withdrew her hand from the crook of his arm and smiled at Wendy.

’Sure enough, a flicker of wariness crossed Wendy’s eyes.’

’She was probably trying to gauge the relationship between me and Sebastian Hawthorne.’

’She remembered with perfect clarity how Wendy had deliberately given her a hard time the last time she was back in Karthus.’

’On a day like today, she absolutely wouldn’t let Wendy pull any of her little stunts. Making Wendy hesitate was the best strategy.’

"Let’s go, Wendy."

Wendy snapped back to reality and, linking her arm with Cecilia’s, led her toward the other side of the yard.

All the young socialites of Karthus’s elite circle were seated over there.

Cecilia recognized some of them.

Others, she had never seen before.

Wendy pulled Cecilia over and introduced her to the group.

She even made a point to emphasize Cecilia’s background: the second daughter of the Croft family.

Those who knew Cecilia looked at her with probing eyes, while the ones who didn’t simply watched her with curiosity.

But as they sized her up, their expressions all shared a common feature: envy mixed with a hint of disdain.

Wendy feigned a curious expression and asked,

"Cecilia, how come you came with Sebastian? What’s the relationship between you two?"

The moment Wendy asked, all eyes fell on Cecilia.

Cecilia smiled and answered vaguely on purpose. "What kind of relationship could there be? There’s nothing between us."

A flicker of displeasure crossed Wendy’s eyes, but she still spoke to Cecilia in a soft, concerned tone.

"Cecilia, you’ve probably just gotten back to Karthus, so you don’t know what’s going on. We were classmates for years, so let me give you a little inside information."

"You’d best stay a little farther away from Sebastian. He’s about to get engaged to my cousin."

Cecilia wracked her brain but couldn’t recall anyone who fit the description of Wendy’s cousin.

"And your cousin is...?"

"Jade Golding, of course," Wendy replied, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Even though Jade Golding wasn’t related by blood to Wendy’s aunt at all, Wendy had always publicly claimed Jade was her cousin to leverage the connection.

Jasmine Vance, who had just walked over, heard Wendy’s declaration and couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.

"Wendy, does Miss Golding know you’re out here playing matchmaker for her without her permission?"

As she spoke, she walked over and sat down right between Cecilia and Wendy, effectively pushing Wendy away from her friend’s side.

Wendy was still holding a grudge against Jasmine for embarrassing her at the last dinner party. Seeing Jasmine stick her nose in again, she couldn’t stop her hands from clenching into tight fists at her sides.

"I was just giving Cecilia a friendly reminder not to get any funny ideas about what isn’t hers. It’s a long way down, and the fall can be brutal."

Jasmine scoffed and turned to look toward her brother and Sebastian Hawthorne.

"Sebastian!"

The moment the name left her lips, Wendy grabbed her arm.

"What are you doing?!"

Hearing Jasmine’s voice, both Finn Vance and Sebastian Hawthorne looked up in their direction.

"What’s wrong?"

Sebastian asked in a low voice.

Wendy bit her lip, shot Jasmine a glare, and then turned to Sebastian.

"It’s nothing, Sebastian. We were just chatting."

"Wendy was just talking about your engagement," Jasmine cut in. "She heard you’re getting engaged, so we wanted to confirm it with you."

Wendy hadn’t expected Jasmine to be so bold. She froze, and as she lowered her head, she shot Jasmine a wounded, resentful look.

A chill crept into Sebastian Hawthorne’s deep eyes.

"Jasmine! Stop causing trouble."

As Sebastian’s good friend, Finn Vance knew he hated people discussing his personal life, especially his marriage status.

Over the years, the topic of his marriage had become something of a taboo.

Scolded by her brother, Jasmine couldn’t help but shrink closer to Cecilia.

’Cecilia knew Jasmine had always been a little afraid of Sebastian. She’d only spoken so boldly because she didn’t want Wendy to humiliate her, and had ended up displeasing him in the process.’

Just as she was about to say something to defuse the tension, Sebastian’s intense, almost predatory, gaze landed on her. "I’ve been engaged for a long time," he said, his voice deep.

Cecilia’s heart clenched.

Everyone present was stunned.

"From now on, don’t ask me about this. Just ask her."

His gaze remained fixed on Cecilia, his expression unreadable.

Jasmine nodded obediently, her response quick, though a hint of lingering fear remained in her eyes.

"Got it, Sebastian."

Cecilia managed an awkward smile at his words.

’Ask me?’

’Why ask me?’

’She wouldn’t dare spout nonsense like Wendy.’

While everyone else was reeling from the shock of Sebastian already being engaged, Wendy looked up at Cecilia, her eyes filled with profound confusion.

’Others might not know who Jasmine Vance’s best friend was, but she knew perfectly well.’

’Cecilia Croft and Jasmine Vance had grown up together; they were practically joined at the hip.’

’In the years Cecilia was away from Karthus, she had worked so hard to get on good terms with Jasmine. But the moment Cecilia returned, Jasmine had dropped her to go running back to Cecilia’s side.’

’But this business about him already being engaged... why should anyone ask Cecilia?’

’Could it be... that the old rumors about an engagement between the Croft and Hawthorne families were actually true?’