Chapter 299: Chapter 299: Playing Both Sides
At this moment, the little puppy at her feet nudged Ann Vaughn’s leg, seeking attention, finally drawing her focus back.
"Cyrus Hawthorne, you’re so sly." Ann remembered, amused eyes full of teasing, "Using a puppy to apologize for you!"
A flicker of unease crossed Cyrus Hawthorne’s deep gaze, but it quickly returned to normal, his voice calm as he explained, "It’s a strategic necessity. What’s wrong with that?"
Strategic necessity, my foot.
Ann Vaughn couldn’t help but silently complain in her heart.
But who knew Cyrus would suddenly hold her small hand, bringing it to his lips for a gentle kiss, his deep, narrow eyes filled with a captivating smile, "So, did my strategy succeed?"
...Damn!
The blush on Ann Vaughn’s cheeks, dispersed by the cold wind, returned once more, making her look flustered as if she had been scalded.
She suddenly remembered they were still in the middle of a bustling street!
"Let go of me first." She struggled, her voice tinged with urgency.
"No." Cyrus tightened his grip on her cold little hand, his voice a low, seductive murmur, "Tell me the answer, hmm?"
Ann only felt her ears go soft, a faint blush sweeping across the corners of her eyes as she whispered in protest, "I forgive you, I forgive you. Stop bullying me!"
Hearing the soft and pitiful sound of the little one, the hidden darkness in Cyrus’s eyes only grew more unrestrained, "Good girl."
Ann hid her small head inside his coat, feeling a burning sensation spread across her whole body.
"Let’s go, I’ll take you back." After a while, Cyrus brushed the snowflakes off her hair, pulling her closer to his embrace as he led her toward where the car was parked.
"By the way, how did you manage to have the roses fall right in front of me perfectly? It’s not easy to get such vibrant roses this season, and those cards..."
Like a curious child, Ann began to ask, but before she could finish, Cyrus unceremoniously pushed her into the car’s back seat.
The man’s handsome face remained impassive and calm, the narrow eyes showing no emotion.
Only the lightly reddened eartips beneath the dark hair betrayed his unrest at the moment.
"Talk less, or I’ll throw you out." He threatened hoarsely.
Ann Vaughn: "..."
"One last question, that little dog..."
"Not mine, can’t keep it."
Now Ann was completely speechless. She had just started, and Cyrus had already seen through her little thoughts.
What else could she say?
So Ann simply stopped talking, turned her head to look out the window, and ignored him.
What she didn’t know was that since they got in the car, Cyrus’s gaze hadn’t left her for a moment, his long fingers on his knee tightening slightly.
As if restraining something.
If she knew, he wasn’t just wanting to look at her but wanted to hold her, meld her into his very being, making it impossible for her to escape his sight again...
Perhaps, everything would be for naught.
On the other side.
In a room on the third floor of the Sheridan Residence.
Jane Sheridan and a woman in a cheongsam sat on opposite ends of the sofa, the mess from earlier chaos downstairs still not cleaned, making them look particularly pitiful.
Especially the woman in the cheongsam, who, if not patched up in time, wouldn’t have been presentable right now.
"This is outrageous!" Stanley Sheridan slammed the table with a stern face, looking at the woman in the cheongsam, whose face closely resembled his late wife’s, full of heartache, yet afraid that his loud voice might scare his daughter, he turned his anger towards the bodyguards.
"What are you all doing? Told to protect the young lady and you can’t handle such a small thing?"
The six bodyguards remained silent, standing there taking the scolding.
"Dad, don’t blame them, it’s all my fault." Jane Sheridan, eyes brimming with tears, looked pitiful, "I just wanted to get along with my future sister-in-law, I didn’t expect her to suddenly get physical, it’s all my fault, I shouldn’t have taken Luna with me to see her."
Although Jane Sheridan wasn’t his biological daughter, he had raised her for many years and had some feelings for her.
Stanley Sheridan sighed, "Dad doesn’t blame you." Then suddenly he thought of something, eyes widening, "Future sister-in-law? Where’s the future sister-in-law coming from?"
"You didn’t know?" Jane looked bewildered, then shook her head somewhat anxiously, "No, nothing, I misunderstood."
"Her name is Ann Vaughn, the woman my brother likes, and from what we know, she’s involved with other men too. Bella wanted to stand up for my brother." The woman in the cheongsam, who hadn’t spoken all this time, suddenly said.
Jane turned her head, looking at her a bit reproachfully, "Luna, how could you say that..."
"Elliot’s crush?" Stanley Sheridan, hearing these words, instinctively felt something was off, "This Ann Vaughn is two-timing?"
Jane and the woman in the cheongsam didn’t speak, but their expressions gave away the answer.
Stanley Sheridan frowned, looking at his two daughters’ miserable state, he subconsciously formed some negative opinions about Ann Vaughn, thinking that if his son indeed liked her, he would have to speak to him properly.
With this in mind, Stanley reached out to pat the woman in the cheongsam’s face, "Alright, dad will stand up for you two. Even if he’s a king, anyone bullying our little princess won’t just get away with it!"
The Sheridan Family wasn’t known for much, but they were fiercely protective!
If he couldn’t even protect his beloved daughter and let her suffer so much grievance, Stanley Sheridan felt unworthy as a father!
"Thank you, dad." The woman in the cheongsam’s face relaxed a bit, still looking quite cold and expressionless, creating a sense of detachment.
Stanley sighed inwardly; such issues couldn’t be rushed. Someday, his daughter would fully integrate into this big family.
What mattered now was dealing with the person who bullied them.
After leaving the room, Stanley called his assistant, "Look into this Ann Vaughn’s background and teach her a lesson."
Assistant Yuri Shaw understood Stanley’s intention immediately and went off to handle it.
Inside the room.
As soon as Stanley left, Jane’s expression instantly changed, looking coldly at the woman in cheongsam, "Get out and clean yourself up. If you dare mess up tonight’s banquet, I’ll send you back to the gutter!"
The woman in cheongsam couldn’t help but touch her painful face, holding back tears, "Bella, don’t worry, I won’t let you down."
"You better not!" Jane coldly withdrew her gaze. If the banquet weren’t about to start, just looking at the woman in the cheongsam’s face made her want to slap it, "As long as Ann Vaughn is around, don’t expect peace!"
"Ha, then ruin her face, wouldn’t that solve it?" The woman in the cheongsam sneered coldly, eyes seeming to be poisoned.
Now, she had plenty of ways to deal with that woman, right?