My Fiancé's Scandals Never End, So I Married His Uncle Instead-Chapter 54: Silas Norwood Really Knows How to Play
Celia Sterling and Kian Sterling left Sterling Manor shortly after.
Kian Sterling sat in the passenger seat. Seeing Celia’s distracted expression, he teased lightly,
"What, still can’t pull yourself away from those hundreds of thousands of words in ’Moonlight’?"
Although his tone was unreadable, Celia knew that both he and Silas had been reluctant to let the matter slide so easily. For years, she had gotten into plenty of trouble. And every time, Kian would bring it up with a heavy hand, only to let it go gently the moment her eyes welled up with tears. He spoiled her rotten, without any principles.
"I’m not thinking about the document anymore." Celia stopped the car at a red light. "I promised Silas I’d go to Seraphina with him tomorrow. We’re going on a cruise from there."
Kian was extremely strict with her when it came to men. In the three years she’d been with Declan Norwood, Declan hadn’t once managed to get her on a date outside of Kian’s sphere of influence. Sometimes, Celia felt he was less like a brother and more like an overprotective father, guarding her vigilantly against all kinds of men, terrified she might get taken advantage of in the slightest. Even Declan had been subject to Kian’s many restrictions while they were together.
She wasn’t sure if Kian would let her go to Seraphina with Silas.
Kian didn’t answer right away.
He watched her quietly in the rearview mirror, his gaze deep and unreadable.
After a long moment, he finally hummed. "You can go. But you’re not married yet. Don’t do anything you shouldn’t."
Celia knew what he was implying and coughed lightly. "Silas isn’t that kind of person."
Kian let out a noncommittal chuckle. "Cece, you’re still young. You don’t understand men."
Celia didn’t want to discuss such a complicated topic with him, but Kian’s "not married yet" weighed on her mind. "Kian, do you think Silas and I will really last?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I went to see that Elder Coleman from Port Sovereign to have my fortune told about marriage." Celia’s tone was grim. "You know Port Sovereign better than I do. Are the masters there reliable? He said Silas’s destined marriage is a match made in heaven, but then he said our birth charts aren’t compatible. It’s a complete contradiction, and it’s left me feeling so unsettled."
Kian’s devilishly handsome features were obscured by the backlight, making his expression impossible to read. "Don’t listen to him. My Cece is a match made in heaven for anyone she’s with."
"But his predictions for other people have been scarily accurate..." Confusion clouded Celia’s eyes. "Kian, what if my marriage with Silas goes wrong, too?"
After a long silence.
"Then come back to me." Kian’s eyes darkened, his voice low and slow, laced with his typical possessiveness and depth. "I’ll take care of you for the rest of your life."
Celia didn’t read too much into it and just hummed in acknowledgment. The light turned green, and her attention shifted back to the road.
It was late by the time she got home. After washing up, she lay in bed and sent Silas a goodnight text. She was casually scrolling through her group chats when a message caught her eye.
In a perfumery discussion group, the admin, [T-Rex Perfume], was frantically tagging [Rivermoon], trying to buy iris root materials from him:
[T-Rex Perfume]: [King, are you there? I’m in desperate need of this material. You control the three largest iris raw material sources in the world. Could you do me a huge favor and sell me the output of one of them? Price is not an issue.]
’The output of one entire source? That’s not a small-time deal. It would have to be done with a formal, offline contract.’
After a long wait, a reply finally came:
[Rivermoon]: [On a cruise with my girlfriend. We’ll talk when I get back.]
[T-Rex Perfume]: [A cruise? Which ship? I’ll come find you so we can talk in person! This is seriously urgent. My arch-rival is launching a new fragrance on the ninth of next month, and right now, we have nothing to counter it.]
Another long pause.
[Rivermoon]: [The Lumina]
[T-Rex Perfume]: [HOLY SHIT! That’s my buddy’s cruise ship, and it’s docked in Seraphina! Boss, just you wait, I’m bringing the contracts and coming to find you on board.]
Rivermoon didn’t reply.
In her bedroom, Celia felt a nagging sense of familiarity with the words ’Seraphina’ and ’cruise ship.’ The next morning, when Silas came to pick her up, she couldn’t help but ask,
"What’s the name of the cruise ship we’re taking?"
Silas answered gently, "The Lumina."
Celia froze, then immediately turned back around. "Silas, wait for me a second."
Twenty minutes later, she reemerged with a thick document folder and got into the car with Silas, her face full of anticipation. "Okay, we can go now."
On the way to the private airport, Silas glanced at the folder she was clutching. "What’s that?" he asked casually. "You’re holding onto it for dear life."
"A few contracts for perfume raw materials."
Figuring he wouldn’t know much about the perfume industry, Celia explained a bit more. "There’s a tycoon who controls the world’s largest supply of perfume raw materials who’s going to be on the ship. I’m hoping I can land a couple of major deals with him. You might not know this, Silas, but in the fragrance world, raw materials are our lifeblood. The Sterlings have our own suppliers, but we’re still facing shortages. If I can use this chance to connect with him, it would be a godsend for my brand, Delia Caine."
Silas hummed in acknowledgment. "As long as you’re enjoying yourself, that’s what matters."
Two hours later, their luxurious private jet touched down in the exclusive VIP section of Seraphina International Airport.
As Silas and Celia deplaned, dozens of tall, imposing men approached in an orderly fashion. They were dressed in bespoke casual wear, and every single one of them exuded an air of wealth and nobility.
"Are these your friends from Seraphina?" Celia asked.
The next moment, the men stood respectfully before Silas. Their casual, carefree demeanor vanished, replaced by a cold solemnity as they addressed him in unison: "Boss."
Celia stared, momentarily stunned.
Silas then explained to her in a gentle voice, "They’re my bodyguards. They’ll be boarding with us as fellow cruise club members to provide discreet protection."
"Bodyguards?" Celia looked at the men before her—impeccably dressed, radiating aristocratic auras. Any one of them could have passed for a second or third-generation heir. "Silas, are they playing dress-up?"
"Just think of them as regular tourists, Cece. Most of the time, they’ll be scattered around the ship, doing their own thing. They’ll only intervene if I run into trouble." Silas pointed to one man’s cufflink. "This is the exclusive crest of the Norwood Conglomerate. Every bodyguard wears one. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to give them orders directly."
’Turning bodyguards into tourists... this was some next-level immersive role-playing.’
"And what about you, Silas?" Celia asked, her curiosity piqued. "What identity are you using this time?"
Silas fell silent.
Behind them, Theo Chambers, who had gotten out of the car after them, cleared his throat.
"Miss Sterling, for his last few cruise club gatherings, the Boss has adopted the persona of a naive young man with no background and little worldly experience, just here to see what a luxury cruise is all about."
