My Fiancé's Scandals Never End, So I Married His Brother Instead

Chapter 13: Private Photo Album

Declan Nash reflexively turned his attention to her, hope reigniting in his eyes:

"Cece..."

"Declan Nash," Celia Sterling said, meeting his gaze. "I told you last time I want to call off the engagement. We’ve known each other for three years. You should know my temperament by now. When I say I’m calling it off, I’ll do it no matter what. Even if it wasn’t Silas Norwood today, there’s no longer a chance for you and me."

In Declan Nash’s charming eyes, the light, like shattered stars, instantly vanished.

Right.

He knew she wanted to end it.

But he never thought she’d actually succeed.

He had thought that as long as the engagement couldn’t be broken, his foolish escapades in Port Sovereign would eventually fade into a trivial old story. He figured if he just pestered her a little, it was only a matter of time before they mended their relationship.

But he never imagined he would lose her so suddenly, so completely off guard.

A chill spread through Declan Nash’s heart. He stood frozen in place, as if in a trance.

Silas Norwood’s eyes held a cool, aloof glint, like jade. He glanced indifferently at Declan Nash. "Should I give you some more time to reminisce with my fiancée?"

Justin Norwood’s heart lurched. "Declan is just having a hard time processing this. I’ll take him away now."

With that, he grabbed his son. "That’s enough. Stop making a fool of yourself here and get back home with me!"

Declan Nash was utterly crestfallen, yet his feet seemed rooted to the spot. Dejected but stubborn, he refused to move.

Justin Norwood was so angry he couldn’t bear to look. He signaled for the bodyguards at the door to come in, forcibly drag Declan away, and throw him into the car.

"Chairman Sterling, we’ve imposed. Goodbye." After bidding farewell to Kian Sterling, who was clearly enjoying the spectacle, Justin Norwood wiped his face with his hand and left with the equally distraught Mrs. Norwood.

Once the car drove away from the villa and there were no outsiders, Mrs. Norwood finally grabbed Declan Nash’s hand, her heart aching for him.

"With your status, what kind of woman couldn’t you marry? I’ll find you the best girl in our circle later. As for this Miss Sterling, with a brother that overbearing, if she really married into our family, our first branch wouldn’t be able to handle her. Who knows how much she would have made you suffer."

Declan Nash stared out the car window with a vacant gaze, saying nothing.

His face was haggard. From the struggle with the bodyguards, his skull necklace had scraped a noticeable red mark across his collarbone. His usually boyish face was now completely lifeless.

The more Justin Norwood looked at him, the angrier he got. "Enough with the romantic drama. Focus on the corporation. Now that the youngest is in power... he’s indifferent to family ties and ruthless. If you don’t start fighting for your place, in eight or ten years, who knows how far our first branch will have fallen."

"So, you were afraid of my youngest uncle, and that’s why you handed my Cece over to him as a favor?" Declan Nash asked, his voice chillingly quiet.

"You bastard! Back then, Kian Sterling came to our door, dead set on calling off the engagement. Projects worth tens of billions were at stake! If he’d pulled out because of this, never mind anyone else, those vultures in The Norwood Family clan would have eaten you alive! I stubbornly refused to end the engagement, but they didn’t want you anymore. If the youngest hadn’t stepped up, there would have been no way to resolve this mess."

Mrs. Norwood’s voice softened. "Alright, stop yelling at our son. It’s not like he actually cheated. It was just a small scandal. The Sterlings are just intolerant of any imperfection. In this matter, our Declan is practically innocent."

"Him, innocent? He was messing around with Kian Sterling’s woman!" Justin Norwood laughed out of sheer anger. "If you had fooled around with any other woman, I could have handled it for you. But no, you had to go and get engaged to the man’s sister while playing around with his lover. Forget the Sterling Family, any prominent family in our circle would choose to break off an engagement over a scandal like this."

Declan Nash’s face went pale. He lowered his eyes and said no more.

The ride back for the second branch of the family wasn’t exactly peaceful either.

Second Madam Norwood was dripping with sarcasm, green with envy. "Being in power really makes a difference. He just throws out a sky-high betrothal gift just like that. When our Ian gets married in a couple of years, I’m afraid we won’t even be able to afford a tenth of that..."

Jude Norwood, the second master, looked gloomy. "The money is a small matter. With this engagement switch, we’ll be suppressed by the youngest for the rest of our lives."

"An engagement switch? What does that have to do with our second branch? The first branch is the one that’s been disgraced."

"What do you know? Before, Declan was the one marrying into the Sterling Family. We could have allied with the first branch, and with the Sterlings’ help, we might have been able to squeeze some shares out of the youngest. But now, Kian Sterling and the youngest are in the same boat. Hmph..."

Second Madam Norwood felt as if cold water had been poured over her, and she instantly fell silent.

Silas Norwood was the last to leave.

The cars of the first and second branches had long since disappeared. Only then did he take the initiative to pour Kian Sterling another cup of tea, his tone exceedingly polite.

"Brother-in-law, goodbye."

After speaking, he turned to Celia Sterling. He reached out with his well-defined hand, his fingertips tracing the rim of the cup she was holding, sliding down until they finally brushed against her fingers.

He touched her and immediately pulled back.

"Just getting a feel for the size," he explained, his voice gentle and restrained. "It’s time to prepare the wedding rings."

Celia Sterling’s heart skipped a beat.

She let out a slightly awkward, "Oh."

"Cece, goodbye." Only then did he bid her a proper farewell and turn to leave.

Kian Sterling leaned lazily against the doorway, casually loosening his dazzling diamond collar pin. His eyes, holding a hint of derision, rested silently on Silas Norwood’s cool, receding figure.

"I overlooked something," Kian Sterling said with a cold, humorless smile. "Cece, I’m suddenly starting to regret handing you over to Silas Norwood."

Celia Sterling hummed in confusion. "Why?"

Kian Sterling lifted Celia’s hand, the one Silas had just touched, his tone dark.

"In front of me, Declan Nash wouldn’t dare hold my Cece’s hand."

He paused. "Declan Nash is afraid of me. Silas Norwood... isn’t. Cece, he’s not like the naive Declan. Don’t fall completely in love. Always hold a little something back for yourself."

Celia Sterling was a little annoyed. "Brother, we barely know each other. What’s all this talk about love...?"

Kian Sterling gave a cynical laugh but didn’t reply.

The understated Guster merged unhurriedly into the flow of traffic.

The driver raised the partition.

In the back seat, Silas Norwood handed a large pile of documents to his assistant, Theo Chambers.

"You will personally follow up with the legal team to handle the relevant gift arrangements."

Theo Chambers took the heavy stack of documents. "Yes, Boss."

Silas Norwood said no more. He picked up his personal phone and, with his gaze lowered, casually opened a hidden photo album.

Theo Chambers kept his eyes fixed straight ahead.

But having followed Silas Norwood for many years, he had long known that his boss’s hidden album contained nearly a thousand photos of women, which he would look at whenever he had a free moment.

He was always too far away to see the women’s faces clearly. He could only infer from the vibrant or conservative styles of dress, and the slender or voluptuous figures, that the nearly one thousand photos were likely not of the same woman.

In the past, whenever Silas Norwood looked at the album, the atmosphere around him would become incredibly heavy.

Today, however, the mood inside the car was exceptionally peaceful.

Theo Chambers couldn’t resist sneaking a peek out of the corner of his eye. It was still the same album, full of photos of all sorts of women, their faces indistinct. Silas’s cool, jade-like fingers slowly swiped through them one by one. There was none of the usual suffocating coldness. On the contrary, his expression and movements were quite leisurely. His half-lidded, amber eyes held a faint glimmer that others couldn’t decipher.

Theo Chambers was slightly lost in thought.

He held a thick stack of documents. The Boss’s handwritten signature was forceful and strong. Next to it was Miss Sterling’s delicate and graceful script.

’So, the Boss has someone new now. Has he let go of all those ’old flames’ on his phone?’

The car arrived at Silas Norwood’s villa. Silas finally closed the album and gave a cool command to his daydreaming assistant.

"Starting this week, cut down on all non-essential appointments. Ensure I have time for at least two dates a week with my fiancée."

He paused. "And cancel all social engagements after nine p.m."

After nine p.m....

Late at night, when all is quiet, a man and a woman alone... The atmosphere was thick with ambiguity.

Theo Chambers couldn’t be sure if his boss had actually taken the promise of a ’simple romance’ he’d made to Kian Sterling to heart.

"...Yes, Boss."