Chapter 159: Chapter 159: You Can Have Anything in Your Dreams

Cecilia Croft’s face flushed crimson, but Sebastian Hawthorne looked utterly serious as he answered her question.

There wasn’t a hint of frivolity in his deep eyes, as if he were stating a perfectly ordinary fact. This only made Cecilia Croft’s face burn hotter, leaving her unable to lash out.

She silently gritted her teeth. ’Don’t stoop to his level.’

’I can’t win an argument with him anyway. It would just make me miserable.’

Cecilia Croft stopped responding to Sebastian Hawthorne and focused on eating the congee in her bowl.

Sebastian Hawthorne glanced at her and said coolly, "Don’t feed it up your nose."

Cecilia Croft: "..."

Just then, a call came in from Assistant Zimmer.

Cecilia Croft glanced at the screen, picked up her phone, and swiped to answer.

"President Croft."

Assistant Zimmer’s voice quickly came through the phone.

"Yes," Cecilia Croft acknowledged.

After confirming it was Cecilia Croft on the line, Assistant Zimmer reported in a low voice.

"President Sheridan has been looking for you since yesterday. He’s come by the office several times."

"Somehow he found out you’re in Karthus today, and now he’s threatening to come here to find you."

Hearing this, Cecilia Croft gently pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I understand."

’What the hell is wrong with Jude Sheridan! He’s so persistent.’

"Did he say what he wants?"

Assistant Zimmer replied respectfully, "No."

Cecilia Croft quietly took a breath. She looked up to see Sebastian Hawthorne watching her with a chilling gaze, so she pressed her lips together and said in a low voice,

"Stall him. Don’t let him come to Karthus."

’To borrow Sebastian Hawthorne’s influence, they had been deliberately creating the illusion that she and he were involved.’

’If Jude Sheridan came to Karthus and their past relationship was exposed, it would likely cause trouble for her sister’s plan.’

’At the same time... it would have a negative impact on Sebastian Hawthorne’s reputation.’

’God knows what those who were jealous of him would say behind his back.’

Assistant Zimmer quickly responded, "Yes, President Croft."

"In that case, President Croft, when do you think you’ll be back?"

They could stall him for a short time, but he was afraid he couldn’t hold him off for long.

"I’ll be back tomorrow."

After getting Cecilia Croft’s response, Assistant Zimmer quickly agreed.

"Alright, I’ll go and try to stop President Sheridan now."

The call ended, and Cecilia Croft felt the gaze of the man across from her grow even sharper, as if he could see right through her.

She held her breath slightly and looked up, meeting his harsh, severe gaze. A wave of nervousness washed over her for no reason.

All she could do was promise, "Rest assured, Mr. Hawthorne. I will handle this and make sure you aren’t dragged into any gossip."

Sebastian Hawthorne’s eyes were cold as he said in a deep voice,

"And if you don’t handle it well? What if I am dragged into it?"

Cecilia Croft took a deep breath and answered earnestly.

"If that day comes, I will take full responsibility for everything myself."

Sebastian Hawthorne put down his glass of milk and asked coldly, "And how do you plan to take responsibility?"

Cecilia Croft replied, "I will shoulder all the blame myself. I won’t let it affect you in the slightest, Mr. Hawthorne."

Sebastian Hawthorne sneered, his sharp gaze fixed on her, a furious fire seeming to burn in his eyes.

Cecilia Croft avoided his furious stare, lowering her head and pretending nothing was wrong as she continued to eat.

Sebastian Hawthorne watched her retreat like a turtle into its shell, his expression cold.

"You’re so responsible, Miss Croft."

Cecilia Croft gave a sheepish laugh. "It’s what I should do, of course."

’It was their idea to borrow Sebastian Hawthorne’s influence in the first place; they were already taking huge advantage of him.’

With a dark expression, Sebastian Hawthorne abruptly stood up from his chair.

The sound of the chair scraping against the floor was like a sharp knife dragging across Cecilia Croft’s eardrums, and it almost hurt.

She knew Sebastian Hawthorne was angry, so she decided to back down, not daring to provoke him further.

While Sebastian Hawthorne was heading back to his room, Cecilia Croft quickly finished the congee in her bowl, wiped her mouth, and called out toward the bedroom.

"Mr. Hawthorne, I’m heading out now. Thank you for your hospitality last night. I’ll treat you to a meal when we’re back in Silvercrest."

After saying that, without waiting to see if Sebastian Hawthorne had heard, she strode toward the door.

After she left, she pulled the door shut behind her. Walking down the empty hallway, she finally let out a small sigh of relief.

As she stood waiting for the elevator, the image of Sebastian Hawthorne’s angry face flashed through her mind, and an inexplicable sadness welled up inside her.

’This must be what they call a cruel twist of fate.’

’She no longer had the courage to risk everything.’

The elevator doors opened. Cecilia Croft sighed softly and was about to step inside when a hand seized her by the back of her neck.

Cecilia Croft’s scalp tingled. She spun around to see Sebastian Hawthorne standing behind her, his face cold, his hand gripping her collar.

He was still wearing the same black shirt from earlier.

However, he must have been changing when he came back to his room, because the shirt was unbuttoned halfway, revealing a wide expanse of well-defined abs.

The combination of the black shirt, the firm muscles shimmering before her, and Sebastian Hawthorne’s arrogant face was a potent sight for any woman.

Cecilia Croft started to stammer.

"Mr. Haw... Haw..."

Sebastian Hawthorne shot her a cold glance. "You a boxer now?"

Cecilia Croft gave an awkward twitch of her lips and reached out to pull his open black shirt closed.

"Men need to protect themselves when they go out, you know. You can’t just walk around with your chest exposed. The world is a complicated place these days. Even getting an eyeful from strangers is a kind of violation."

"And it’s not just women who like to look—men do, too."

Sebastian Hawthorne looked down, saw the tips of her ears turn red, and smirked. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered,

"So, do you like to look?"

Cecilia Croft shook her head. "I don’t ’like to look.’ I’m just appreciating."

Sebastian Hawthorne chuckled, his voice bewitching. "Then should I let you be the only one who appreciates it from now on?"

Cecilia Croft tilted her head up, her gaze meeting Sebastian Hawthorne’s tender expression. She cleared her throat and decided to play along.

"Appreciating it once in a while wouldn’t be so bad. But if I see it too much, I might get tired of it."

Sebastian Hawthorne scoffed and tapped her forehead with a long finger.

"Pushing your luck, are we? You want to look? Go see it in your dreams."

Hearing that, Cecilia Croft’s mind drifted to the dream she had last night.

’Actually, it wasn’t like she hadn’t seen it in her dreams.’

’In fact, it was much clearer in her dreams. And much more... pulse-pounding.’

Sebastian Hawthorne watched her ears grow redder and redder, wondering what on earth she was thinking.

’That blush definitely didn’t look innocent.’

He suddenly felt as if he were the one being violated, and he snatched his shirt back from her fingers.

"You’re coming with me to check on a small project in a bit."

The word "project" snapped her out of her daze. Seeing Sebastian Hawthorne already walking back toward the suite, she quickly jogged to catch up.

She was very interested in the project he had just mentioned. If she could seize this opportunity, perhaps the Croft Group could cozy up to Sebastian Hawthorne and get a piece of the pie.