What Elise said prompted murmurs from the crowd around them.
“That’s right. Isn’t she a bit too full of herself?”
“Who does she think she is? She’s spoiled rotten by the Mosses, but the others aren’t obliged to
do the same.”
This was the first time Katie was humiliated. In a fit of anger and resentment, she jumped on Elise
and tried to shove the latter, only to fall to the ground with a loud thud when the latter dodged her.
Elise waved her hand in a helpless gesture. “Everyone saw that, right? I didn’t even lay a finger on
her,” she said. Then, she bent down and threatened in a sweet voice, “I know it was you who
knocked me into the pool just now, Katie. If you dare mess with me again, I promise you that your
beloved Matthew will be the first to know that.” Then, she raised her voice and asked with a smile,
“Want me to help you up, Miss Moss?”
When Katie heard this, her little face instantly turned as pale as a sheet, and she hastily stood up
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtand fled.
Meanwhile, Alexander had been silently watching all this from a distance. He’d thought Elise would
let herself be trampled on like a doormat, but it seemed that she wasn’t as stupid as he’d thought.
Without him realizing it, his lips curved into a faint smile, as if he had found an interesting prey.
As the farce came to an end, Elise quickly lost her newfound interest. She threw a glance at
Ashlyn, saying, “I’m sorry, Miss Lawson, but it’s almost time for me to leave.”
“Sorry for what happened just now,” Ashlyn replied in feigned friendliness. Inwardly, though, she
was mad at Katie for making a fool of herself in trying to be clever.
Elise then turned around, only to hear a loud rip behind her. The zipper’s broken? Sh*t! So bad
things do come in threes! She could only clutch the zipper tightly to keep her dress from falling
down. Even though she had her back to Ashlyn, she could imagine the woman’s gloating sneer.
Seeing what had happened, Matthew, who was next to Elise, wanted to take off his suit jacket to
give it to Elise. To his surprise, however, Alexander had put his suit jacket on her before he could
do so. “What’s wrong with your dress?” asked the man in a deep voice.
“My back zipper popped open.”
Alexander seemed to have figured out who the culprit was after darting a look at Ashlyn. “Since
that’s the case, we’ll be leaving first.”
Ashlyn restrained herself at once when she heard Alexander’s chilly voice. When did he get here?
she thought. The corner of her lips twitched. Unwilling to resign herself to this, she asked, “Why
don’t you let someone else escort Elise home instead, Alexander? I’ve just come back from
overseas, and I haven’t danced with you today!”
“There’s no need for that,” Alexander replied flatly. Then, paying no more attention to Ashlyn, he
turned to Elise and said, “I’ll send you home.”
“Uh, okay,” Elise responded. She didn’t expect that Alexander would stand up for her.
Seeing that Alexander was leaving the party early, Danny exclaimed in disbelief, “Are you leaving,
Alexander?” When he lowered his gaze and saw Elise wearing Alexander’s suit jacket, he yelled,
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm“Hey, you’d better know what’s good for you, you ugly woman! Don’t hit on Alexander!”
Elise rolled her eyes hard. How I wish I could leave alone! It’s really embarrassing to leave like this
with so many people watching, she thought. Furthermore, she felt like Ashlyn was going to skin her
alive with her eyes. However, Alexander kept a stern face and wouldn’t respond to her, so she
could only cling onto his suit jacket in embarrassment.
……
Matthew gazed at Elise’s receding figure while holding the suit jacket that he didn’t get to hold out
to her. An inexplicable feeling arose inside him. Why’s Alexander so kind to her? Just because of
Grandpa’s requests?
……
Ashlyn felt abandoned as she watched Alexander leave with Elise. Filled with bitter jealousy, she
trembled all over with rage. You’re nothing but an ugly and uneducated country bumpkin! What
makes you think you can steal Alexander from me? You won’t get off so easily, Elise Sinclair! Just
you wait and see!