Ch. 351..360
Chapter 351
Chapter 351
I frantically killed the call, but my phone fell down and rolled into the room through the crack of the door. When I looked up, Christopher was already coming up to me, obviously realizing I was here.
I tried to run away, but Monica was faster. She ran out in tears, but she froze for a moment when she saw me. Then, she got even sadder and ran away with her face in her hands. This time, I could hear her muffled sobs even though she was already some distance away from us.
I felt like banging my head against the wall. I got caught both times in the act. Man, I’m an id*ot.
Christopher leaned against the doorframe, smirking at me. “Come in,” he said.
“Huh, the moon’s looking mighty fine tonight, Chris. I’m just here for some moon-sighting. I can’t sleep, you see. Well, you do your stuff. I’ll be going now.”
I smiled awkwardly, but I was cursing my stupidity inside. What sort of an excuse was that? I obviously saw Monica trying to seduce him! Then I had a bad feeling about it, so I looked up. Wh-Why is he looking at me like he wants to gobble me up? I could feel him taking my clothes off with his eyes, much to my terror.
“So, do you need anything?”
“Oh, you left your phone back in the room, so I send it for you. Sean called you. I’ll be going back to my room now. Don’t stay up too late.” I scurried off like I had seen a ghost, but no matter how fast I tried to run, I couldn’t outrun Christopher.
Christopher dragged me all the way to his room, while I stared down guiltily all the way, like a child who was caught stealing. “Um, it’s getting late, Chris. It’s almost bedtime, so can I get back to sleep? We have to pick Sabrina’s wedding gown for her tomorrow.”
Christopher put me on his lap. “So you heard everything.”
I wanted to lie, but I knew he could see through me, so I nodded. “Yes, I did.”
“So you saw Monica stripping herself too.”
“Yes.” Then, Christopher smacked my butt. “Don’t you think of getting off the hook! You should have barged in when you saw that, but you didn’t.”
“W-Well, that’s because I trust you.” I scratched my head uneasily. It was normal getting hugged by Christopher, but doing it in his home felt uncomfortable for me.
Noticing how uneasy I was, Christopher patted my back to calm me down. “Don’t worry about it. Sure, my family’s powerful, but it’s not as complex as you think it is. My mother’s still trying to think this through, but she’ll calm down once she gets over it.”
“So what about Monica’s mother?” I asked. “Can you tell me more about her?”
“It happened back when I was a kid. I was five years old, and my dad was the governor back then. He crossed someone he shouldn’t, and they tried to sabotage him so he would lose his position. They hired someone to crash into my mom. It was supposed to be an empty threat for my dad, but Monica’s mom was there too. She pushed my mom out of the way and was sent flying, then she died in the hospital.”
I was starting to feel sad after hearing the story. No wonder Julia’s so stubborn about this. This isn’t something she can repay so easily. ”But you said no to Monica… How are you going to break this to your mom?”
“You can call her mom since we’re already married.” Christopher patted my head like I was a kid. Then, he took a lollipop out of the table’s drawer and stuffed it into my mouth after he unwrapped it.
“She’ll calm down with time. Monica will get it eventually. Don’t tell me you want to back out again, you dummy. Do it and I’ll spank you until kingdom come.”
“Of course I won’t!” I chose to stand on the side of love this time. Nobody could stop me and Christopher now, but there was something bothering me. I looked at Christopher. “Did you really fall for me back then? Why?”
“Take a guess,” Christopher said mysteriously.
“Dammit. I knew you were lying. I would have remembered it if I had known you then.” I puffed my cheeks.
Chapter 352
Chapter 352
I wanted to leave the Lane residence after staying for only one night, but Christopher made me stay for breakfast. Darius wasn’t there though. He probably didn’t come back after he left the night before.
Shelley was a woman of few words, so she didn’t say much, but she did talk to Dylan a bit. On the other hand, Monica was looking lively that morning.
She kept telling us to eat as if she had forgotten everything that happened the night before. However, I realized she was acting like she was Christopher’s wife, while I was just a mere guest. I didn’t argue with her though, since Christopher filled my plate with food after Monica told me to eat.
Dylan came to see us off when we were leaving. Shelley was holding his hand, staring at us in cold silence.
Well, that piqued my curiosity. “Hey, has Shelley always been this quiet?” I asked Christopher. “I get the feeling she doesn’t like me.”
“She has always been that way. Never smile at anyone aside from Darius,” Christopher answered calmly. “But Darius seldom smiles at her either, so she doesn’t smile these days.”
I stopped asking about it. For some reason, I knew a lot had happened back when Darius was still in love with my mother, but my mother didn’t know anything about it. It’s not as simple as what Darius told me.
He must have a reason to be so estranged from Julia and his family. Back when he found out Julia was forcing Christopher to marry Monica, he was even more furious than we were, and he got into a big argument with Julia too. I wondered if Julia forced him to marry Shelley.
Christopher took me to the hospital on the way back, but this time, he didn’t take me to the hospital we went to last time. Instead, I was taken to an expensive private hospital. A bunch of doctors and nurses surrounded me like I was the queen as I went for the checkups. When I came out of the room, I saw Christopher in the corridor, opening and closing his lighter.
It was his little habit whenever he got nervous. I smiled and called out to him, then he looked back at me in confusion. “Don’t worry. I’m fine. I’ve been alright lately.”
“I’m not worried. The checkups are just too slow, that’s all,” Christopher growled at me for once, though I realized he was blushing. Oh my, he’s getting shy. Is he really Christopher? But he’s usually so shameless.
I waited for the report nervously after all the checkups were done. Even though I was laughing at Christopher, I was also as nervous as he was. No, I had always been nervous, since I was worried I might get hit with something unexpected.
I didn’t have to take the old meds, but the doctor gave me a new prescription. I had been feeling better lately, though I’d still get uncomfortable sometimes.
It had been a long time since the checkups were done, but the doctor was still looking through my report. My patience was starting to run thin, so I was about to tell him to hurry up, but Christopher straight up pulled the doctor by his collar. “Take a closer look.” He pointed at the report on the table. “Is there anything we should know?”
This was probably the first time the doctor had seen someone acting so aggressively, so he stared at Christopher in shock. His momentary silence started to worry us, and tension rose when he started stammering.
“What the heck is going on? Tell me or I’ll shoot you!” Christopher whipped a gun out and pointed it at the doctor’s head.”
I started coughing, but not because I was laughing. I choked on myself in horror; then, I quickly stopped Christopher from doing anything outrageous. “Calm down, Christopher. The doctor probably needs more time to go through the report. Just give him a few more minutes, alright?”
Christopher removed the gun from the doctor’s head and slammed it on the table. “You’d better take a closer look,” he growled. “Make one more mistake and you’ll be getting it!”
Chapter 353
Chapter 353
Since when did Christopher have a gun on him? I have lifted his shirt before, so how did I not notice it? I found myself speechless at the thought of that.
The doctor wiped off the cold sweat on his forehead and said cautiously, “I am looking for the cause of the problem, mister. Given the number of tests we’ve performed, this is a lot of data to go through. From what I can tell, your wife is just a little anemic. Keep in mind that you’re the one requesting for us to run these tests, so it’s not like we’re trying to rip you off or anything! I can have the finance office refund half of the costs if you’re dissatisfied with our services!”
“Really? That’s it?” Both Christopher and I asked in unison.
“Y-Yes… The data on these reports show no signs of any major issues, so you are indeed healthy, ma’am.”
Seeing as the doctor was on the verge of breaking down in tears, I grabbed Christopher and took off before the doctor called the police. Pulling a gun on a doctor over an examination? I bet we’d make the headlines tomorrow for such a bizarre incident!
Christopher and I were both glad to hear that I was all right and that I wasn’t suffering from any terminal illness. I still had a long life ahead of me, which would give me plenty of time to hold his hand and do the stuff we love.
Upon getting into his car, Christopher pinned me down in the back seat, and we had some pretty crazy sex. It all happened so quickly that I didn’t even have the chance to refuse his advances.
Sabrina held a very grand wedding and had an incredibly long list of guests. I woke up at six in the morning and hurriedly dragged Christopher out of bed, much to his annoyance.
With one swift motion, Christopher pulled me back onto the bed and pinned me down as he went back to sleep. “Why are you so worked up about someone else’s wedding?”
“But I promised Sabrina I’d head over earlier and be her bridesmaid! Come on, get up!” I explained while pushing against him, but he refused to get up. With no other options left, I decided to throw the covers off and tickle him instead.
However, he reached out and grabbed me by the wrist before my fingers could even touch him. How he did that with his eyes closed remained a mystery to me.
“You naughty little girl!” He pointed at his cheek and motioned for me to kiss him or he wouldn’t get out of bed. I then kissed him on his forehead, his cheek, his lips, and his chin before pulling at his arm again. “There! You happy now?”
“Hmph, that’s more like it!” Christopher then held his hands out for me to dress him as if he was some sort of king.
It was already past eight when we got into the car. Sabrina called me and threatened to kick my butt if I didn’t show up as promised. Glancing at my white dress and the makeup on my face, I asked Christopher, “How do I look as a bridesmaid? I don’t want to embarrass Sabrina on her big day!”
“You look beautiful, but I think you’re forgetting something here.” Christopher yawned and planted a kiss on my cheek as he continued, “You’re a married woman, and bridesmaids are supposed to be unmarried ladies.”
I let out a cry in shock after a brief pause.
“Christopher and I may not have held a wedding, but we are still a married couple! What should I do if I can’t become your bridesmaid, Sabby?” I asked Sabrina anxiously like a girl suffering from gamophobia.
“So what if you’re married? I don’t mind that at all!” Sabrina was pacing about in the house, asking me from time to time if she looked pretty in that wedding dress of hers. After what seemed like forever, she mustered the courage and asked, “Say, do you think Zachary will suddenly change his mind and decide to not marry me? He hasn’t been answering my calls since yesterday, nor has he called me all day. I gave him a call this morning, but he hung up on me in less than a minute! Has he gotten sick of me before we’re even married?”
“Have you forgotten what you told me on the phone yesterday? You said your family has a tradition of not meeting the person you’re about to marry or it’ll bring bad luck!”
Chapter 354
Chapter 354
I couldn’t understand what Sabrina was being so nervous about. Who would have known that someone so carefree about everything would be afraid of getting married?
“Really? I said that? Well, he could at least have someone else deliver a message or something! I still think he shouldn’t have gone completely silent like that! I haven’t been able to sleep a wink last night, and he didn’t even bother to comfort me or say anything today. Something definitely isn’t right, or he wouldn’t have hung up on me so quickly!” Sabrina then put her hands on her hips as she continued mumbling to herself, “I’ll be sure to make him pay when he gets here… He won’t be taking me with him so easily!”
Oh, no… What is Sabby up to this time? I got nervous when I saw Sabrina setting up some traps in the house, and I couldn’t help but remind her, “Sabby, this is your wedding, not someone else’s! Make sure you don’t go overboard with this!”
“He claimed he was too busy to keep me company because he was on some kind of special mission! How dare he call himself a member of the special forces if he can’t even manage his time well? Hmph! I don’t care! I’m going to make him suffer for a bit today!” Sabrina pouted and dragged me over to help her out.
“Eve, what do you think a seven-year itch feels like? Would it come early for us? What if we get into fights often?”
“No, I don’t think that’ll happen. Given how nice a guy Zachary is, I think you’ll be the one bullying him instead!” I replied while rolling my eyes at her.
“I guess you’re right. Still, your relationship with Christopher has been put through all sorts of trials, so it makes sense that you’re so calm about this. What if Zachary has a childhood sweetheart or something? What if she shows up at our wedding and causes a scene? How am I supposed to handle that?”
“That’s not going to happen!”
“Say, what if…”
“Oh, my god! I can’t believe you’re already worrying so much before you and Zachary are even married! You’d better stop this crap or I won’t speak to you again. Do you hear me?”
After what seemed like a pandemonium at the house, Zachary was able to successfully take Sabrina out of the house. Putting aside the buckets of water above the doors and the chairs coated with glue, everything seemed perfect.
As Sabrina insisted on me being her bridesmaid despite my marital status, Christopher shamelessly took the place of the existing groomsman and stood next to me. “What, you got a problem?” he asked coldly when he saw Zachary staring at him.
Zachary quickly shook his head, and Sabrina whispered something into his ear. He then looked like he had a sudden realization and said seriously, “I’ll be sure to toss the bouquet accurately into your hands, Sir! That way, no one will be able to get their hands on it! You’ll be able to hold your wedding smoothly for sure!”
“Heh… Much appreciated!” Christopher rubbed his palms gleefully as he whispered, “I’ll be sure to get him wasted tonight! Let’s see how he’ll spend the night with his bride!”
I’ll never understand the friendship between men… I thought to myself and let out an awkward chuckle in response.
Upon arrival at the hotel, we walked along the red carpet together as we made our way toward the event hall. I stopped in my tracks all of a sudden when I noticed a familiar figure in the crowd. The person also happened to turn around at the same time and flashed me a sinister grin in response.
“Crystal?” I exclaimed in shock.
Christopher followed my gaze and frowned when he saw her. After all, Crystal did try to seduce him on the ship.
“You head on over. I’ll join you in a bit,” I said as I saw Sharon making her way toward us. She rarely attends such social events and should be resting in the hospital due to her recently poor health. What’s she doing here?
“Long time no see, Yvonne! You look as great as ever!” Crystal raised her chin and shot me an arrogant smile as she continued, “By the way, I heard you were diagnosed with some terminal illness. Is that true?”
Chapter 355
Chapter 355
Da*n Benjamin and his big mouth! Oh, well… Looks like Crystal’s information is outdated, and I don’t plan on filling her in! With that in mind, I replied calmly, “So what if that’s true? It’s none of your business!”
“You’re right, it is indeed none of my business. I think Monica would be pleased to hear about it, though! Wouldn’t you agree?” Crystal’s eyes were filled with glee and anticipation like she was expecting to see a show.
“Unfortunately for you, your information is outdated. I’m afraid that even Monica knows more about it than you do!” I let out a cold chuckle as I continued, “What about you? How was your trip to Jetroina? Why the late return? Did you run out of money there or something?”
The look on Crystal’s face turned gloomy the moment I mentioned Jetroina. “You’re finally here, Lyle! I’ve been looking all over for you!” she shouted all of a sudden before throwing herself into Lyle’s arms.
Crystal flashed me a smug wink as she nuzzled against him, but I felt nothing and simply stared at them emotionlessly. At this point, I’m not even sure if I feel bad for Lyle or myself. He dismissed all that I’ve done for him, only to come running back to me two days ago asking to have a fresh start with me. Heck, he even tried to force himself on me! Now that Crystal has returned, he’s gone back to her again… Has he forgotten what she did in the past? This is such a lowly form of love, but it’s none of my business. I mean, why should I concern myself any further when he has already made his choice?
With that in mind, I greeted him coldly, “Hello, Mr. Smith.”
“H-Hello, Ms. Tanner…” Lyle’s eyes darted around in an attempt to avoid my gaze. I figured he was too ashamed to look me in the eye after trying to rape me the other day, only to get beaten up badly by Christopher as a result. Despite his absurd levels of shamelessness, he didn’t dare say anything with Crystal around.
“You should call her Yvonne like I do, Lyle! We’re family, after all!” Crystal said with a giggle.
Noticing his grandma in the crowd, Lyle brushed Crystal’s arm off and made his way over. His attitude toward Crystal seemed to have changed as he was no longer blindly going along with everything she said. He probably learned to appreciate his family a little more after what happened.
While Sabrina was perfectly fine with a married woman like me being her bridesmaid, her parents weren’t. As such, her cousin took my place after I walked her to the red carpet.
Crystal continued to mock me from the side, but I ignored her as I didn’t want to cause a scene on Sabrina’s big day. This is one of the things I hate about big families! Even though Sabrina didn’t invite any of these unwanted guests, we can’t kick them out either, now that they’ve arrived.
With that in mind, I made my way through the crowd in hopes of spotting Christopher, but he was nowhere to be found. Suddenly, Crystal pointed at a woman in the crowd and said, “Guess who she is!”
She’s clearly trying to pick a fight with me if she’s following me around like this, but she can’t do anything if I keep quiet like this! With that thought in mind, I simply frowned and continued to ignore her.
“You may be ignoring me now, but you’ll be begging me for mercy later!” Crystal chuckled and pointed at the woman as she continued, “Her name is Nicole Williams, and she used to be Zachary’s classmate back in high school. You know, the kind who almost killed herself out of her love for him? Well, she’s pregnant now. What do you think will happen if she calls out to Zachary during the ring exchange and says he’s the father of her child?”
I went pale immediately upon hearing that. How does Crystal know all this?
Chapter 356
Chapter 356
“What are you up to this time, Crystal?” I asked through clenched teeth as I tried to suppress the burning anger within me.
Crystal broke into a sinister grin. “What do you think I’m up to? I just want to piss you off as much as I can! You got pretty bold with someone like Sabrina supporting you, huh? Thanks to her spreading my scandal everywhere, people have been pestering me about it since my return! Heck, they even went as far as trying to have the press interview me! She should’ve seen this coming before trying to ruin my reputation!”
Hearing that made me tremble all over in anger, and I was about to make my way toward the pregnant woman when Crystal grabbed me by the arm. “I know it’s normal for men to fool around before getting married, but… For a pregnant woman to expose the truth at the wedding in front of everyone? Isn’t that just exciting? Do you think Sabrina will choose to accept the fact that her groom was sleeping around, or will she call off the wedding altogether? Go on, take a guess! I’ll even reward you for getting it right!”
She’s seriously planning on sabotaging a wedding this grand? I couldn’t believe how far Crystal would go to get revenge on Sabrina for sticking up for me. “Crystal, this is between you and me! Just come at me and leave Sabrina out of this!”
“Oh, that simply won’t do! Sabrina has to pay the price for messing with me, and you’re not going anywhere unless I say so, Yvonne!” Crystal said with a twisted grin on her face. I thought about asking for help but realized there was no one else I could trust. There’s no telling how people would respond to this. If someone decides to start yelling and cause a scene, I’d be playing right into Crystal’s hands!
“You’re crazy! You’re really crazy, Crystal! How could you do such a thing? Aren’t you afraid of karma coming back at you?” I tried my best to brush her arm off, but she maintained a firm grip and held a knife to my waist.
“Stop struggling or I’ll stab you. It’d be a shame for you to die now that you’ve finally married Christopher, you know? Think about it, Yvonne. If you die, Monica will steal Christopher, and you wouldn’t be able to do a thing about it! Tsk, tsk, tsk… It’d be such a tragedy!”
I froze upon hearing that and didn’t dare move a muscle. This isn’t like Crystal at all! As someone who always prioritizes her image over everything else, there’s no way she’d take a huge risk like this! Something must’ve happened to her without me realizing it and changed her completely!
In my state of anxiousness and desperation, I softened my tone and pleaded with her, “Please don’t do this, Crystal! You can take your anger out on me however you like, and I won’t even utter a single word of complaint! Please, you have to stop that woman!”
Regardless of whether that woman’s story was true, her words were most certainly capable of ruining the best day of Sabrina’s life.
“Oh, I wouldn’t dare hurt you! You’re the apple of Christopher’s eye, remember? I’d be dead if I so much as laid a finger on you!” Despite what she said, Crystal kept that knife pressed against my waist and gave it a light jab.
The ceremony was coming to an end, and it would soon be time for the ring exchange. I began to sweat out of anxiousness as I prayed for Christopher to show up and notice the state I was in.
“Have you gone mad, Crystal? Why are you doing this?”
“Like I said, I want to make you suffer! But since you’re begging me so nicely, I’ll be kind enough to make you a deal. Have Christopher go on stage and announce that he’ll marry me. After that, I want you to get down on your knees and tell everyone that you’re the selfish, shameless homewrecker instead! You do that, and I’ll have someone take the woman away. What do you think?”
Chapter 357
Chapter 357
I turned and glared daggers at her. “Crystal! Does your shamelessness know no bounds?”
“The show is about to start, Yvonne!” Crystal said while giving me a friendly pat on the shoulder. I saw the bodyguard next to Benjamin whisper something into the woman’s ear, and she began making her way toward the stage. Her tummy seemed really huge and looked like she was in her third trimester.
With no other option left, I was about to shout out loud and get everyone’s attention on me when I saw Christopher running into the hall. He seemed to be in a hurry with sweat all over his forehead, and I also saw Monica following behind him.
For some reason, seeing Monica here gave me the feeling that she had something to do with this incident.
I then turned toward Crystal and flashed her a faint smile. “You know what, Crystal? I just remembered something! It’s like you said, I’m Christopher’s woman. Do you really think you can just walk away after stabbing me in public? If I die, you’re joining me in death!”
“Don’t threaten me! You think I won’t do it? Try me, b*tch!” Crystal shouted coldly.
I calmed down a little when I saw her panicked response which confirmed my theory. “This isn’t like you at all, Crystal. You’re so desperate that you can’t even think straight. You should’ve had someone else stab me, and I’m sure those from the Miller family would be more than happy to do it for you. I’m pretty sure you don’t have the guts to stab me, so this is checkmate for you!”
I then grabbed her hand holding the knife and headbutted her in the nose. Crystal reeled from the pain but managed to stop herself from crying out. Seeing as people have noticed our commotion, I raised my hand and slapped her hard across the face.
“Ah! You b*tch! How dare you hit me?” Crystal shrieked.
“That’s not all I’m going to do!” I seized the opportunity to break free of her grip before grabbing a glass of red wine and splashing it all over her face. “You should’ve prepared yourself for the consequences when you decided to seduce a married man! Being Lyle’s first love doesn’t give you the right to just label me as a homewrecker, you know? What do you take us for? Complete id*ots or something?”
“No, that’s not true! I swear!” Crystal was quick to catch on and covered her face while looking at me helplessly. She even tossed the knife onto the table behind her without anyone noticing.
I slammed my fist hard on the table and shouted, “You know what you did, Crystal! And I haven’t forgotten how you stole Autumnal Panorama and claimed it to be your own work! Replacing my name on it with yours doesn’t automatically make it yours! I painted the Autumnal Panorama, and I was supposed to be the one attending the Eastsummer art exhibition! You’re a fake, and you’ll always be nothing but a fake!”
People began gathering around us when they heard the commotion, and I saw the pregnant woman making her way onto the stage. However, nobody noticed what she was doing as everyone had their eyes fixated on my confrontation with Crystal, much to my relief.
“Shut up, Yvonne! I’m your cousin, for goodness’ sake! I know you really love art and all, but that doesn’t mean you can just slander me like this! I’m an acknowledged apprentice of the great Mr. Sawyer! I can’t believe you’d accuse me of such horrible things, all for the sake of fame and fortune! Do you even have any passion for art? Or do you just see it as a mere tool for you to get rich and popular? It’s my dream to become an artist, and I will not allow you to insult it like this!” Crystal sobbed as tears began rolling down her cheeks.
Chapter 358
Chapter 358
I didn’t want to bring this up as it would only lead to more trouble, but I had to do so to ensure I had everyone’s attention. I’m sorry for causing such a scene at your wedding, Sabrina…
“I know art more than anyone here! What do you think, Crystal?” I was so relieved when I saw the woman get taken away that I nearly broke down in tears. The entire ordeal had only lasted five minutes, but it was so tense that it felt like an hour.
Being the bootlicker that he was, Benjamin quickly rushed to Crystal’s aid when he saw the Zimmers’ bodyguards dragging the woman away. “Zachary, you got someone…”
Realizing what he was about to say, I quickly grabbed a bottle of wine from the table and smashed it on his head to cut him off. Benjamin cried out in pain and fell to his knees, clutching his head in his hands. What I did was so shocking that I even found myself stunned in disbelief.
In the past, I would always get bullied at parties and without fighting back at all. But now, I’m holding my ground like a bada*s without anyone to back me up!
As the shock slowly wore off, the entire hall went into an uproar as everyone regained their composure and began discussing what had happened. I saw Zachary anxiously explaining something to Sabrina in the distance before giving me an assuring nod. Finally… the situation is under control…
Feeling relieved, I wiped the sweat off my forehead and said with an awkward giggle, “All right, the show is over, people! Come on, let’s all return to our seats now!”
“Yvonne, you b*tch! How dare you bully my daughter? Have you no heart? First, you leave your cousin all by herself on an abandoned island, and now this? Why are you always bullying her?” Natalie yelled as she shoved her way past the crowd.
Nathan appeared shortly after and stood in front of Crystal as he shouted angrily, “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Crystal has always been compromising and letting you have the good stuff! She even went as far as backing off when you wanted to marry Lyle! How could you insult her career like this? Are you not satisfied until you destroy her life completely? I wonder what I did to deserve a daughter like you!”
I had gotten sick of hearing that line from him and picked at my ear as I said, “By backing off, do you mean how she gave my husband intimate phone calls every now and then before forcing me into divorcing him?”
“Shut up, Yvonne! You shouldn’t slander them like this even if you and Lyle are divorced! What they have going between them is the purest form of love! It’s not what you’re thinking with that filthy mind of yours!”
Natalie draped a coat over Crystal to cover her up before saying coldly, “You didn’t even know who your baby’s father was because you were unfaithful in marriage, and now you’re trying to destroy Crystal’s career that she built with her own hands? If so, then don’t blame me for exposing you for the adulteress that you are! Unlike Lyle, I’m not going to show you any mercy!”
“Apologize to Crystal right now, or I won’t forgive you for this!” Nathan added.
“I don’t think I’ve done anything to wrong her, Dad!” I frowned as I wondered if Natalie was the one who taught Lyle to do what he did.
Having regained their composure, those from the Miller family approached us and chimed in as well, “Ms. Tanner! What has Benjamin done to warrant you to injure him like that? You’d better explain yourself or I’ll take legal action against you!”
Right as I was on the brink of breaking down from stress and anxiety, a cold voice was heard from behind the crowd, “Who dares lay a finger on my woman?”
Chapter 359
Chapter 359
Benjamin’s father was a merciless man. Ever since I was little, I had always been terrified of his minatory aura. Being suddenly confronted by him, my face turned pale. What do I say to him? I can’t possibly tell him that his son is trying to help Crystal by ruining the wedding ceremony. I was only trying to divert everyone’s attention.
While I was caught in a quandary, Christopher’s voice was heard out of nowhere.
Upon hearing Christopher’s words, everyone was stupefied. However, some of the people there thought that Lyle was the one who yelled out those words. “Lyle, you aren’t married to Yvonne anymore. Why are you still covering for her? Look what she has done to Crystal,” uttered Natalie, with a sullen look on her face.
“Lyle, you’re like a brother to Benjamin. How could you say such a thing?”
Lyle had an awkward look on his face as he pondered on how he should respond.
Gazing at his face, I almost burst out laughing.
Nathan was irritated at me for being frivolous at a time like this. He lifted his hand and was getting ready to slap me. Fortunately, Christopher appeared just in time to stop him.
He grabbed hold of Nathan’s arm with one hand and let out a sinister smile. “Mr. Lane, Eve is my woman. Even if you’re her father, you can’t just hit her. I’ll be heartbroken if something happens to her.”
“What! There’s no way Christopher Lane said that! I must be hearing things right?”
“Yeah, is Christopher drunk or something? How could he say that? Does he not care about Monica anymore?”
“Stop joking around, Christopher. It’s not funny.”
I was baffled after hearing Christopher’s statement. I was in a greater shock than when I first heard that Crystal had plagiarized my work. It’s Christopher that we’re talking about here. He’s one of the wealthiest men in Avenport.
The crowd was staring at Christopher as they opened a path for him. Even though his attire was a bit messy, it complemented very well with his evil charm.
His cold demeanor made him look rather suave. All the girls in the crowd almost passed out because of his charm. “Eve is my woman. Do I make myself clear?”
“Christopher, you’re… You’re kidding, right?” Nathan queried incredulously as he shook off Christopher’s hand.
“Haha, very funny Christopher. You sure got us good. You should really stop joking around like that. What if Ms. Martin heard you?” Natalie uttered with a straight face.
Christopher reached out his hand and pulled me into his arms in front of everyone. After that, he glanced at Nathan and replied nonchalantly, “Mr. Lane, it seems to me that you don’t know much about Eve at all. Have you ever really cared about her? You seem to care more about Ms. Yates than your own daughter from what I see.”
Amused by what he said, the crowd started laughing. On the contrary, Nathan was livid.
“Christopher, you have taken this too far.” Nathan took a deep breath to compose himself.
“Mr. Lane, Eve and I will pay you a visit on another day. Hopefully, you’ll not show your contempt toward her.” Christopher winked at me with a smug look on his face. Just look at this ostentatious fellow, trying to act all cool again.
Chapter 360
Chapter 360
“We are very glad that you came to visit our home, Christopher. That being said, you shouldn’t utter such a blatant lie in front of everyone just to protect Yvonne. She’s a divorcée who cheated on her ex-husband. You really shouldn’t get yourself involved with the likes of her.” Natalie was doing her best to disparage me in front of everyone.
“Besides, everyone in Avenport knows that Ms. Martin is the only one for you. Both of you are destined to be together,” she added.
Christopher gave her a cold stare and responded, “Whether she’s an adulterer or not, I’ll be the judge of that. I pity Eve for having to deal with an aunt like you. It must’ve been very hard for her. Oh, by the way, I still remember what your daughter did on that deserted island. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to return the favor one day.”
“I…” Glancing at Christopher’s menacing eyes, Natalie was reticent to say anything.
Christopher turned around to face Benjamin’s father before uttering, “Mr. Miller, regarding the whole incident between your son and Eve, we’ll settle this in private, okay? I promise I’ll make it up to you.”
Mr. Miller glanced at me with disdain before turning toward Christopher. “Well, since you put it that way, we’ll let Ms. Tanner go for now. Humph! Let’s go.”
After Mr. Miller took his men and left, the crowd surrounded us and was staring at us. I felt like I was being judged by them. A young lady who was standing on my left murmured, “Impossible. I must be dreaming right now. There’s no way a woman like Yvonne is fit to be with Christopher.”
I signaled Christopher to disperse the crowd by giving him a little bump on the shoulder. How did it come to this? I thought we could be furtive about this. Just 10 minutes in and our relationship has already been exposed. This is not looking good.
“Let them stare as much as they want. No one would dare to mess with you again after this. I want to be open with our relationship. If anyone dares to deplore our relationship, I’ll make them regret it,” Christopher whispered.
I pushed him and replied in a playful manner, “Okay, tough guy. I need to go see Sabby now. Can you hurry up?”
Seeing us whispering into each other’s ears, everyone thought that we were flirting with one another. They were staring at us in bewilderment. How could Christopher choose such a mundane girl to be his woman?
“Anyone else wants to have a talk with Eve? I’ll wait right here.” Christopher slowly lifted his head up to glance at the crowd. The look on his face was rather petrifying.
Terrified, the crowd lowered their head and replied, “No…”
“Okay then. If there’s nothing else, you guys can continue on with the eating and drinking. It’s a shame that the ceremony is over, I really wanted to give the bride a kiss in front of everyone.” Christopher grabbed my hand and brought me over to the seat in the first row.
The table was full of dishes and wine. After sitting down on my seat, the vise that had been gripping my chest all day long finally loosened a little. A while later, Sabrina and Zachary came over to our seats. Sabrina sat down beside me with a pale look on her face. “Eve, thank you so much for your help just now. If it wasn’t for you, Zach and I would’ve become everyone’s laughing-stock. That being said, I’m sorry for dragging you into this.”
“It’s fine. You’re my most precious friend; so, I will do my best to help you naturally.” I was fraught with guilt as I said that. I can’t believe Crystal has planned to hurt those around me just to get to me. She’s even gotten Sabrina into this.