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

Chapter 64: A Melon Twisted from the Vine

On Declan Nash’s end of the line, Silas Norwood’s words sent everything into utter chaos.

Ignoring Justin Norwood’s fury and Declan Nash’s stunned silence, Silas Norwood hung up, silenced his phone, and put it back on the charger.

Celia Sterling didn’t wake up until nine in the morning.

She glanced at the bed. The sheets were perfectly smooth and undisturbed, except for where she had slept. Clearly, Silas Norwood hadn’t shared the bed with her. Her gaze swept around the room. A half-empty bottle of red wine stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, and the sofa looked slightly rumpled, suggesting Silas had rested there for a while.

Breathing a quiet sigh of relief, Celia Sterling got out of bed to freshen up. Just as she finished changing, Silas Norwood walked in, carrying a steaming hot breakfast.

"You’re awake?" He placed the exquisite breakfast on the table and called to her gently, "Have you freshened up? Come and eat."

"Was this made by that chef you brought over from Metropia?"

"The breakfast on the yacht didn’t look very appetizing," Silas Norwood explained. "Hiring a head chef from Metropia for a day is expensive. We have to get our money’s worth."

Celia Sterling let out a surprised laugh. "I didn’t realize you even had a concept of ’expensive,’ Silas."

"Things are different now," Silas Norwood teased. "I’m just a penniless young man, so naturally, I have to pinch every penny."

After a few lines of lighthearted banter, the slight awkwardness Celia felt from sharing a room with him for the first time completely disappeared.

She picked out a few of her favorite items and asked while eating, "Silas, did you not sleep last night?"

"I got about two hours on the sofa."

’The bed is more than wide enough,’ Celia thought. But she worried that would sound like an invitation, so the words that came out were, "You’re really good at staying up late, Silas."

"This is my first time sharing a room with a girlfriend, too." Silas Norwood casually placed a beef potsticker on her plate. "It’s only natural I’d be too excited to sleep."

Celia coughed lightly. "It’s your first time too, Silas...?"

"You’re the only girlfriend I’ve ever had, Cece," Silas Norwood explained in earnest. "During the family power struggles years ago, my uncle and my second brother both fell for honey traps. I learned from their mistakes and was extra cautious around women. Later, after I took over, I met a dozen or so suitable candidates from good families, but we just didn’t click. And so, here we are."

Celia felt a little flustered. "Silas, you don’t have to explain all that to me. I respect your past, whatever it may be."

"It’s better that I do," Silas said, not mentioning the gut-wrenching phone call from the middle of the night. "I wouldn’t want Cece to think that a man my age has been with so many women he’s... worn out."

The conversation was starting to get a little racy.

Celia silently chewed her potsticker, saying nothing more.

The yacht had docked at Whitestone Isle in the early hours of the morning. The island boasted a pleasant climate and, thanks to its unique location, exceptionally rich waters for sea fishing.

After breakfast, Silas Norwood took Celia Sterling fishing.

The two of them disembarked from the yacht and picked a spot in the fishing area, where Theo Chambers was already waiting with Silas Norwood’s fishing rod.

"The tiger-head fish and grouper in these waters are quite special. If we can catch one, I’ll have the chef make you a soup tonight." Silas Norwood patted the spot beside him. "Come here. Sit next to me."

Celia sat down next to him, watching curiously as he skillfully handled the fishing rod.

"You’ve never been fishing before, Cece?"

"No."

"I’ll teach you." Silas Norwood reached out, wrapping his arms around her from behind in a loose embrace, and patiently explained the basics of casting.

Not far off, Theo Chambers and Assistant Thorne sat on beach chairs in the staff area, watching their boss—a man who was normally decisive, aloof, and utterly ruthless—act so gentle and patient with the young woman, his voice laced with a hint of affection. Both men looked on with a sense of wonder.

"I remember arranging so many blind dates for the Boss," Theo Chambers mused. "Forget a gentle tone—he wouldn’t even spare them a single pleasantry. I set him up with all sorts of heiresses, but he never even showed his face. It was a total bust. Now I finally get it. The Boss likes to be taken by force."

Assistant Thorne paused. "What do you mean, ’taken by force’? Don’t be crude. The Boss is a man of integrity; you can’t use such vulgar language to describe him."

"Get your mind out of the gutter! I was talking about the marriage swap," Theo Chambers said, lowering his voice. "If Eldest Young Master Norwood hadn’t screwed up so royally, forcing the Boss into this, he’d probably still be his cold, aloof self, not bothering with a single woman. Chairman Sterling played hardball, forcing the Boss to step up personally. Who says you can’t force a good thing? Look at him now—the Boss seems to be adapting to his role as ’fiancé’ quite well."

"Who would have thought the Boss could be forced into something so easily?" Assistant Thorne shook his head. "I was even starting to think he didn’t like women."

"Oh, he likes them," Theo Chambers said evasively. He recalled that the Boss had a photo album filled with pictures of many different women, though he hadn’t seen him look at it ever since Miss Sterling came into the picture.

Fishing is, above all, a test of patience.

Three hours later, Celia Sterling was admiring two wriggling groupers. She couldn’t resist snapping a few photos to send to Kian Sterling, showing off with the caption: "I caught these."

Kian Sterling replied instantly with a voice message: "Look at my Cece, all capable after just one trip."

His tone was endlessly doting.

Even more excited now, Celia went ahead and posted a picture to her social media feed.

Assistant Thorne handed the two fish to the head chef, and by the time lunch began, a delicious fish soup had been placed in front of Celia Sterling.

"I don’t usually eat anything with a fishy taste," Celia Sterling said, taking a satisfying sip of the soup. "But it seems to taste better when you catch it yourself."

"I’ll take you fishing again whenever I have the time," Silas Norwood said, trying a spoonful himself. "Finish your soup, then go take a nap. There’s an event tonight, and I’ll take you night diving after it’s over."

The original plan had been to dive during the day. However, Silas had been drinking, stayed up most of the night, and had only gotten two hours of sleep. Celia had also stayed up quite late on a long video call with Kian Sterling. So, apart from the relaxing pastime of fishing in the morning, an afternoon nap was essential preparation for the night dive.

Celia, however, was focused on the so-called "event." She paused. "An event? Don’t tell me it’s..."

"No push-ups," Silas said. He had clearly looked into it. "It’s just a showcase. Most of the members come from business families. Besides just relaxing, they also bring gift sets of their family’s brands to share and sample. A lot of deals get signed at these yacht gatherings."

"Did you bring anything, Silas?" Celia joked. "With a face like yours, you could probably charm them into signing a few deals yourself."

"No," Silas answered seriously. "According to my ’persona,’ my family only owns a tiny plot of land. What kind of brand products would I have? But I can bring some the next time we attend a gathering like this."

"And why could you bring some next time?"

"As everyone knows," Silas said, gesturing toward a large group of members in the dining hall who were looking their way. He enunciated each word clearly, "I’m dating a very rich girlfriend."

Celia met his gaze, her eyes earnest. "In that case, I’ll be sure to prepare in advance next time. I’ll definitely put on a good show for my boyfriend."