novelraw Chapter 201: Are We Considered Husband and Wife?
Chapter 201: Are We Considered Husband and Wife?
Chapter 201: Do We Count as Husband and Wife?
"David!"
Suddenly, a woman’s voice called out.
Rachel Royce turned to look and saw a beautiful woman with an extraordinary air about her. She had long, golden hair, amber eyes, and a figure comparable to a supermodel’s. One glance was all it took to see the aura of a high-society debutante.
When David saw her, he asked in surprise, "Eleanor, what are you doing here? When did you arrive?"
Eleanor ignored David’s question. Her gaze fell upon Rachel Royce as she extended her hand and introduced herself. "Hello, my name is Eleanor. I’m David’s fiancée. May I ask what your relationship is with David, miss?"
David froze, his brow furrowing in displeasure. "Eleanor, we’re not engaged yet."
Eleanor just kept looking at Rachel Royce.
Relying on a woman’s sixth sense, Rachel Royce could clearly feel the other woman’s hostility. She naturally understood the meaning behind her words; this Miss Eleanor must be an arranged marriage partner chosen by his family.
Rachel Royce extended her hand to shake Eleanor’s. "Hello. I’m Evelynn. David and I are classmates and friends."
"I see. Miss Evelynn, you’re very beautiful. The most beautiful Eastern woman I’ve ever seen. No wonder David cares about you so much that he brought you to the banquet."
"Thank you. Miss Eleanor, you are also very beautiful today. You and David make a great match."
Eleanor smiled. "Thank you. In that case, Miss Evelynn, you can let me have him for today."
Rachel Royce replied, "Miss Eleanor, you’re overstating things. He is your fiancé; there’s no question of ’letting you have him.’"
Watching the two women completely ignore him and hearing their exchange, David turned to Eleanor, his tone displeased. "Eleanor..."
Just as he was about to say something, the phone in Rachel Royce’s purse began to vibrate.
She took out her phone, saw the caller ID, and said to them, "Excuse me, I need to take this call."
"Evelynn!" David said anxiously.
Eleanor grabbed David’s hand. "David, I can tell that Miss Evelynn doesn’t like you at all."
David pulled his hand back and looked at Eleanor, his voice growing sharp. "Eleanor, this has nothing to do with you. Don’t make me get tired of you."
Eleanor was unconcerned. "Go after her, then. From now on, she’s no longer your date."
Rachel Royce walked toward Julian Jennings and Thomas Sterling, phone in hand. When they saw her coming, they moved to meet her.
Just then,
the lights suddenly dimmed.
In an instant,
The entire banquet hall was plunged into pitch-black darkness.
Gasps of surprise rose and fell throughout the room.
Someone accidentally bumped into a table, followed by the CRASH of shattering glasses.
Rachel Royce jumped, startled by the sudden darkness.
She was just about to turn on her phone’s flashlight when a strong grip suddenly seized her wrist.
Rachel Royce tensed up, her eyes widening as she stared at the person who had appeared beside her.
Her eyes hadn’t adjusted to the dark, so she couldn’t see the person clearly, but she recognized the familiar scent of his cologne.
"You!"
Immediately after,
she was dragged outside.
"Tristan Sterling!"
The man in front of her didn’t react.
It wasn’t until they were out of the banquet hall that she could make out the man’s silhouette in the pale moonlight.
"Tristan Sterling, what are you doing? Let go of me!"
Rachel Royce couldn’t break free. She stumbled along behind his long strides, trying to keep up in her high heels while holding up her dress with one hand.
"Ah!"
Tristan Sterling, still gripping her wrist, felt her whole body sag downward.
He turned to look.
Rachel Royce had crumpled to her knees, one hand braced against the ground while the other was still being pulled by the man.
Her face was pale with pain.
The phone in her hand had fallen a few feet away, its screen shattered.
Tristan Sterling bent down and scooped her up into his arms, bridal style.
Rachel Royce looked up at the detestable man before her. "Tristan Sterling, are you insane?" She wanted to slap him, but her hand was scraped and bleeding, so she forced herself to hold back.
Tristan Sterling glanced at the blood seeping from her palm, then at her furious face, and said coolly, "If you had just listened to me, you wouldn’t have had to suffer like this."
Rachel Royce was so angry she wanted to bite him. "Why on earth should I listen to you? Isn’t it your unreasonable, brutish behavior that got me hurt?"
A black sedan slowly pulled up.
The driver got out and opened the car door.
Tristan Sterling placed her in the car, fastened her seatbelt, then turned to pick up the phone she had dropped before getting in himself.
The car drove away from the manor.
Back at the manor, the lights gradually came back on.
「Inside the car.」
Rachel Royce looked at her shattered phone. Just before it had been smashed, it had rung once. She had seen that the call was from Julian Jennings.
Now the phone wouldn’t turn on, so she couldn’t call him back.
A dense, stinging pain throbbed in her palm and across both of her knees.
At that moment, the sound of a video call came from Tristan Sterling’s phone. He picked it up and answered.
"Daddy."
Melissa’s voice chirped.
"Have you eaten breakfast?"
It was eight in the morning back home.
Melissa said, "I already ate. Is someone with you, Daddy?"
Tristan Sterling turned slightly and angled the phone.
"Aunt Evelynn!" Melissa’s excited voice rang out.
Rachel Royce turned to look, not yet having had the chance to compose herself.
"Aunt Evelynn, what’s wrong? You look unhappy. Did Daddy bully you again?"
Hearing Melissa’s words, Rachel Royce was momentarily at a loss for what to say.
Melissa immediately got angry, huffing at her father, "Daddy, why did you bully Aunt Evelynn?"
Tristan Sterling glanced sideways at the silent woman beside him, then looked back at Melissa and placated her, "Daddy will apologize properly to Aunt Evelynn when I get back."
Melissa sat cross-legged on her bed with her little hands tucked in. "Hmph! Daddy, apologize now. I want to watch you apologize."
Tristan Sterling turned his head toward Rachel Royce and said, "I’m sorry."
Rachel Royce turned her head to look out the window, not responding.
Melissa let out an indignant "Hmph!"
Tristan Sterling looked away from Rachel and back at Melissa, coaxing, "Alright, Melissa. Daddy will apologize properly to Aunt Evelynn when I get back."
"Aunt Evelynn is ignoring Daddy, so I’m going to ignore Daddy too."
Tristan Sterling sounded helpless. "Daddy will apologize properly. Be good at Grandma’s house. I’m hanging up now."
He ended the video call.
The car fell into a heavy silence.
Tristan Sterling looked at Rachel Royce again, his gaze sweeping over the injured palm resting in her lap.
They drove on in silence.
As she saw the car driving farther and farther away, Rachel Royce turned to the man and asked coldly, "Where are you taking me?"
Tristan Sterling didn’t look at her. "You’ll know when we get there."
Rachel Royce took a deep, quiet breath. "Tristan Sterling, I’m nobody to you. We can go on being complete strangers."
Tristan Sterling shot her a glance and scoffed, "Complete strangers? Then why did you bring up divorce with me?"
Rachel Royce let out a cold laugh. "In your eyes, do we even count as husband and wife?"
Tristan Sterling looked at her.
After a brief silence, he averted his gaze and said nothing.
Rachel Royce let out a derisive snort.
Suddenly, his phone began to vibrate. He picked it up, saw the caller ID was Zion Alden, and pressed the answer key. "Hello!"