Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Face-slapping
Titus Croft tried to drag Cecilia Croft into the line of fire.
Cecilia Croft ignored the look Titus Croft shot her way. Her eyes landed on the coffee stain spreading over Sebastian Hawthorne’s clothes, a few drops still visible on his well-defined collarbone.
She hesitated a moment before pulling out a few tissues. Just as she was about to hand them over, she heard the man beside her say in a low voice,
"Infuriating, isn’t it."
Titus Croft, acting as if he’d finally found common ground with Sebastian Hawthorne, eagerly piped up.
"Back when this damn girl insisted on breaking off the engagement with you, I tried everything to stop her. But she’s just like her mother, completely single-minded. If it weren’t for her, our families..."
Sebastian Hawthorne listened quietly to Titus Croft without offering any opinion. He just nonchalantly took the tissues from Cecilia Croft’s hand and wiped at the coffee stain on his shirt.
Titus Croft’s expression shifted when he saw the gesture. He had just offered Mr. Hawthorne a napkin, and the man hadn’t even given it a glance. Now, he was willingly taking tissues from Cecilia Croft.
A hint of confusion flickered in his eyes, but he couldn’t stop himself from pressing on.
"Back then, the Croft and Hawthorne families were on such good terms. If it weren’t for this damn girl..."
Sebastian Hawthorne’s brow furrowed, and he cut Titus Croft off.
"Uncle Croft, let’s not dwell on the past."
Titus Croft nodded hurriedly. "Yes, yes, of course. It’s not exactly a shining..."
Before he could finish, Sebastian Hawthorne cut him off again.
"Uncle Croft, I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving."
His voice was polite but distant, leaving no room for refusal.
Titus Croft froze for a second before instinctively replying, "Oh, alright."
He could sense Sebastian Hawthorne’s displeasure.
Ever since Cecilia Croft had insisted on breaking the engagement, the Hawthorne family had cut all business ties with the Croft family. It was only natural that Sebastian Hawthorne wanted nothing to do with him.
Though he was fuming inside, he didn’t dare let a hint of it show in front of Sebastian Hawthorne.
The Hawthorne family was now moving at a pace he couldn’t hope to match, even at a full sprint.
Sebastian Hawthorne gave a slight nod, not sparing Titus Croft another glance. He turned to the daydreaming woman beside him and said,
"Let’s go."
Cecilia Croft nodded. "Okay."
Under Titus Croft’s stunned and bewildered gaze, Cecilia Croft walked away at Sebastian Hawthorne’s side.
"Cecilia..."
He couldn’t help but call out.
’What on earth is going on?’
’Sebastian Hawthorne should detest Cecilia Croft even more than he dislikes me.’
Cecilia Croft didn’t look back, a cold glint in her eyes.
’We haven’t seen each other in years. I thought he might have changed, even just a little. I didn’t expect him to just show up and drop a huge, stinking, disgusting pile of crap right in front of me.’
’Titus Croft never had any intention of giving up the Croft Group. She couldn’t even count how many times he must have tried to sabotage her sister during her years in Silvercrest.’
’With enemies both inside and out, how could the Croft Group possibly recover?’
’And she had only been thinking of herself, never once considering her sister’s situation.’
’Cecilia was filled with immense regret and self-blame.’
Lost in thought, she failed to notice the steps in front of her.
Her foot found only empty air, and her entire body pitched forward.
A flight of hundreds of steps lay ahead; she was so frightened she almost screamed.
Fortunately, the man beside her grabbed her arm in a firm grip, pulling her back from the edge.
Still shaken, Cecilia Croft gasped for breath, her face pale.
After composing herself, she looked up at Sebastian Hawthorne to thank him.
"Thank you."
Sebastian Hawthorne casually released her arm and shot her a look.
"The car is over there."
With that, he turned and walked toward the hotel entrance.
Cecilia Croft looked over and saw Assistant Scott waiting by the car, a smile on his face as he watched her.
She froze for a second, her gaze shifting to a staff member in a black hotel uniform at the bottom of the stairs. A flash of embarrassment crossed her face.
’Her mind had been a complete blank. She hadn’t even realized she was following the wrong person, just instinctively walking forward.’
She hurried to catch up with Sebastian Hawthorne.
"Mr. Hawthorne, my car is in the underground garage. I’ll drive myself. We can just meet at the destination."
Sebastian Hawthorne frowned, glanced at his watch, and said in a low, serious voice,
"Have Assistant Scott drive your car over. I’m in a hurry."
Assistant Scott immediately walked over, his expression perfectly polite.
"Miss Croft, may I have the car keys?"
Cecilia Croft nodded dazedly, took the car keys from her bag, and handed them to Assistant Scott.
Once he had the keys, Assistant Scott strode away.
Sebastian Hawthorne was already in the car. The driver stood respectfully beside the open door, gesturing for Cecilia Croft to get in.
She pressed her lips together, bent down to get into the car, and sat down beside Sebastian Hawthorne.
The driver thoughtfully closed the door for them and returned to the driver’s seat.
He had just gotten in when Sebastian Hawthorne gave a quiet order.
"Get her an ice pack."
Cecilia Croft quickly waved her hands. "I don’t want a popsicle."
Sebastian Hawthorne shot her a sidelong glance but said nothing.
The driver just chuckled, retrieving an ice pack from the mini-fridge between the driver and passenger seats and handing it to Cecilia Croft.
"Miss Croft, this is to put on your face."
Cecilia Croft’s mouth fell slightly open. With a BUZZ in her head, she realized she had just made a fool of herself again.
’Her cheek, which hadn’t hurt much before, suddenly began to sting with a burning heat.’
’This man, Sebastian Hawthorne... did he awaken some special skill that guarantees my face gets slapped, one way or another, every time we meet?’
She gave an awkward smile and took the ice pack from the driver with both hands. "Thank you."
The driver’s face was friendly, but when he felt a sharp gaze land on him, he quickly added,
"It was Mr. Hawthorne who was so thoughtful."
’He wouldn’t dare take the credit.’
Cecilia Croft turned to the side to offer her thanks.
"Thank you, Mr. Hawthorne."
Sebastian Hawthorne grunted in acknowledgment, not looking at her as he pulled a tissue from the side.
Cecilia Croft pressed her lips together. Just as she was about to place the ice pack on her cheek, the man beside her reached out and took it from her.
She stared in confusion for a moment, only to see Sebastian Hawthorne wrap the tissue around the ice pack before handing it back to her.
Cecilia Croft hesitated for a few seconds before reaching out to take it.
"Thank you."
This time, Sebastian Hawthorne didn’t respond. He simply put on his headphones, took out his phone, and opened a game.
Cecilia Croft quietly averted her gaze and pressed the tissue-wrapped ice pack to her cheek. With the tissue acting as a barrier, the initial shock of the cold wasn’t too intense.
Feeling Sebastian Hawthorne’s kindness, a warmth spread through her chest, but it was mixed with a sense of awkwardness.
The atmosphere in the car was exceptionally quiet.
Sebastian Hawthorne was engrossed in his game, his skills still laughably bad. She watched for a few moments, at a loss for words. Her mind felt dull, so she turned her gaze out the window.
She shouldn’t have looked. The moment she did, her eyes were drawn to the car pulling up beside them.
Jessica Keller held a platter of freshly cut fruit, using a fork to feed a piece to Jude Sheridan as he focused on driving. Her fair face was alight with a blindingly happy smile.
Cecilia Croft’s brow furrowed in disgust. She tore her eyes away, suppressing a wave of nausea.
They say you always run into your enemies, but this was taking it a bit too far.
’Her mood, which had just started to improve, was instantly ruined by the sight of them.’
Jude Sheridan turned his head, dodging Jessica Keller’s forkful of fruit. His gaze fell on a familiar profile in the next car, and his expression darkened.
