Alice had a huge reaction when she learned it was Silas Sterling.
"Uncle Sterling already suspects our relationship? But I don’t know when he could have seen us. He hasn’t confronted about it, and also..."
Wyatt Sterling looked down at her. "And also what?"
Alice ntioned what Silas Sterling had said to her in the ancestral hall, including the part about changing her last na. Wyatt Sterling listened without any visible emotion and simply asked in a level tone, "Do you want to?"
"I don’t."
She shook her head.
’I don’t want the Sterling surna. It’s like a heavy shackle that would bind for life.’
Wyatt Sterling’s gaze fell on her side ponytail. "If he says anything like that again, you don’t have to pay him any mind."
’This hair tie really suits her.’
Alice couldn’t understand Wyatt Sterling’s attitude. "But Uncle Sterling already suspects us..."
"Alice, I know Silas Sterling better than you do," Wyatt Sterling said, enunciating each word.
Alice’s red lips parted. "Uncle Sterling won’t lay it all out for Grandpa, will he?"
Wyatt Sterling grunted in affirmation. "Don’t worry."
But the one thing Alice couldn’t figure out was, "Why would Uncle Sterling know? When did he start suspecting?"
Wyatt Sterling remained silent, his nonchalant gaze keeping her in suspense, which drove Alice crazy.
He glanced up. Mason Cheney was long gone from the driver’s seat. After reporting in, he had tactfully gotten out of the car.
Alice waited eagerly for him to continue. He didn’t, instead pointing in front of him. At first, Alice didn’t understand, until she saw his loosened belt buckle.
She had been the one to unbuckle it, and it had stayed that way the whole ride, still undone.
He said softly, "Buckle it for ."
Alice’s hand went to it, but she hesitated, not making the next move. She had only learned how to unbuckle it, never how to fasten it.
"Knowing how to unbuckle your man’s belt isn’t a real skill. Knowing how to buckle it is," he said.
’You’re not my man!’ Alice wanted to retort.
The words only ran through her mind. Then, she humbly asked for his guidance. "Third Uncle, can you teach ? I don’t know how."
Her posture was just right for asking for help, her gaze was perfect, and her tone was pitched perfectly—any more and it would have sounded stiff, any less and it would have lacked sincerity. Wyatt Sterling found himself completely wrapped around her finger.
He took her hand in his and personally taught her how to fasten the belt buckle. Once it was done, his hand smoothly intertwined with hers, and he pressed her down for a kiss.
It was just the two of them in the car. With the windows closed, the heat between them intensified. Wyatt Sterling was deeply aroused, nibbling and sucking on her lips. His mouth then moved on, burying itself behind her ear to kiss her neck. Noticing how violently she was trembling, he was utterly captivated. "You’re so well-behaved today."
Alice panted in small gasps. Hearing his praise, her heart beat a little faster. A dense, tingling numbness spread from her head to her toes. It was both uncomfortable and exhilarating—such a complex physiological reaction.
It was the middle of the day, so Wyatt Sterling didn’t actually do anything serious in the car.
After they had both cald down, he gently patted her back. "Get out."
Alice’s legs were weak when she got out of the car. A normal kiss wouldn’t do this to her, but a deep one did. It always took her a long ti to recover.
A hand steadied the small of her back. It was Wyatt Sterling’s. He said deliberately, "If you beg , I can carry you inside."
Alice nearly rolled her eyes into the back of her head. "No, thanks."
"Stubborn as a mule."
Though he called her stubborn, his arms were already reaching out to sweep her up into a bridal carry, and he strode inside.
Alice hadn’t been back to Shorecrest in the past few days, so she didn’t know that Julian Dalton and Yael had already moved out. She only found out upon returning today.
The housekeeper had already prepared a al.
At the dinner table, she asked Wyatt Sterling, "Has Mr. Dalton seen Yael’s birth mother yet?"
Wyatt Sterling: "No."
Alice guessed, "Is it because Yael’s birth mother refuses to see the two of them?"
Wyatt Sterling shot her a look. "This has nothing to do with you. You’re being too nosy."
Julian Dalton’s family affairs really had nothing to do with Alice. She shouldn’t have asked so many questions.
But now that she knew the beginning of the story, not knowing the end would be like watching a TV show with a terrible finale.
She said, "I just want to know if Mr. Dalton’s family can be reunited."
"They can’t."
Wyatt Sterling placed a bowl of steaming, fragrant clam soup in front of her.
Alice didn’t touch it, continuing to ask, "Why can’t they reunite? Did sothing unexpected happen?"
She now had the stubborn air of soone who wouldn’t eat unless he told her.
Wyatt Sterling said in a low voice, "The woman already forgot about him. What reunion is there to be had?"
"Forgot... Does she have amnesia? Or is she just pretending not to know him?"
"Are you done yet? Why are other people’s affairs so important to you?"
"I was just asking..."
"Eat."
Alice ate while holding her breath, not asking another question about Julian Dalton’s family. Since Wyatt Sterling was deliberately avoiding the topic, the situation was probably terrible. ’Does that an Yael won’t get her mother back either?’
Not long after the al, Alice received a call from the show’s director.
She stepped away from Wyatt Sterling to answer it.
The person on the other end asked if she could make it to the recording on ti. Alice deliberately feigned hesitation. "You don’t have enough people?"
The director picked up on the hesitation in Alice’s voice. "You’re not thinking of backing out, are you?"
Alice said, "My family is very strict."
The director’s voice grew louder. "This is a legitimate dating show! You knew that when Miss Lancaster introduced it to you. Besides, my show has already aired several episodes, and the ratings and reviews are great."
Alice said, "I know."
The director asked, "So are you still coming? We’re really short on people."
Alice gave the sa reply: "I’ll think about it."
Not long after she hung up, lody Lancaster sent her a ssage on WeChat: [You’re not going anymore?]
Alice scoffed internally. She was just testing the waters, and lody Lancaster had imdiately sent a ssage, terrified she wouldn’t go.
Soon, lody Lancaster sent two more ssages: [You already agreed the other day. It’s not good to back out now.]
[Or should I say, do you want to have a little chat with Old Master Sterling?]
Alice fought back her disgust and didn’t reply right away.
lody Lancaster must have gotten anxious, because she called directly. Alice stared at the caller ID on the screen before finally pressing the answer button.
"Alice, are you really not going?"
On the other end of the line, lody Lancaster’s tone was urgent and a little aggressive.
In contrast to lody Lancaster’s urgency, Alice was perfectly calm. "I’m kept on a tight leash. I’m not sure if I can go."
"A tight leash? Did you tell your mother?" lody Lancaster asked.
Alice humd in response, then said slowly, "No, my mother doesn’t know. If she did, there’s no way she’d let go."
This ti, lody Lancaster’s tone was hesitant. "Then who isn’t letting you go?"
’She just wanted to stop Alice’s crooked ideas, afraid that one day Alice would actually manage to snatch Wyatt away. She had seen it with her own eyes that day—Wyatt reaching out to Alice, a look of tenderness in his eyes...’
’They were uncle and niece. Wyatt might not dare to cross that line, but if that little bitch Alice put her mind to it, any man would eventually lose control...’
’Every ti she thought about this, lody Lancaster’s heart pounded with panic.’
"Why aren’t you saying anything? Who is it that won’t let you go?"
Listening to lody Lancaster’s frantic voice, Alice replied unhurriedly, "I’ll go."
"Go where?"
Wyatt Sterling’s voice ca from behind her.
It was just loud enough for lody Lancaster to hear on the other end of the call.
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