"Matteo!" Charles hissed, stepping forward only to be held back by Horace’s cane.
"Is there a reason for your change of heart?" Horace calmly asked. He was no longer wearing a warm smile, and instead, his expression was that of a cold-cutting and ruthless businessman on the prowl for the best interest.
"I never had a change of heart," Matteo replied, finally tearing his gaze away to et Horace’s straight-on. "I never agreed to marry Emline. Ti and ti again, I’ve expressed that Alia is the woman who will be my wife."
He didn’t falter and instead continued, "The engagent was agreed upon between our families. It could’ve been Aiden that Emline married, but he wasn’t her choice. In this case, Emline isn’t my choice." He looked at Alia when he spoke the next sentence. "Alia has been recognized as a Hawthorne heiress. In that case, even if I married her, there should be no difference."
With his words, Horace looked thoughtful. He nodded, looking at Alia.
"And what about you?" Horace asked. "Do you share the sa sentints as the young man?"
At the sa ti, Emline finally couldn’t take it anymore. She charged forward, tears welling in her eyes.
"Matteo, how could you say that?" she wailed, catching the attention of a few other onlookers nearby. They originally hadn’t been completely listening in, but after the commotion Emline made, they couldn’t help but eavesdrop.
Emline turned to Alia, and her eyes swept down her entire body. From the exquisite hairstyle and makeup, all the way to the stunningly glittery dress, Alia looked every inch like an aristocrat who deserved to stand by their side, shoulder to shoulder. However, Emline didn’t want her here― not when Alia’s presence would an that everything would forevermore be changed for Emline.
Her eyes landed on the huge sapphire and diamond necklace that Alia wore, and her clenched fists quivered in rage. As much as she wished that necklace was a fake, she had spent her entire life bathed in luxury. She knew a fake jewel all too well when she saw one, and the one around Alia’s neck was unfortunately very real.
Regardless, she reached forward and attempted to snatch it, but before her fingers could curl around the necklace, Alia stepped away.
"What are you doing?" Alia snapped, frenzied.
She hurriedly pressed her hand over her necklace, securely pressing it against her chest so that the only way soone could pry it off of her was if they dug through her cold dead hands. This necklace belonged to her mother, and she would be damned if she let anything happen to it― she couldn’t let what happened with her mother’s flute repeat itself again.
"Where did you get that?" Emline asked.
"This was my mother’s," Alia hissed. "Did your mother never teach you not to touch soone else’s things?"
"I could say the sa! You must have stolen this!" Emline screeched, pointing to the necklace, red-eyed. "How could you have afforded such a luxurious accessory? That sapphire — if it’s even real — has to at least be ten carats!"
"Alia didn’t lie," Horace suddenly said, causing Emline to quietly look at her grandfather in horror. When facing his granddaughter, his smile had returned, warm and benevolent. "This necklace was your grandmother’s. We gifted it to Elaine on her eighteenth birthday. It’s only right that her own daughter now wears it."
"Just because she has Aunt Elaine’s necklace doesn’t an she’s actually her daughter!" Emline said, exasperated. Big fat tears stread down from her eyes, leaving a shining trail down her porcelain cheeks. "Her real mother could’ve stolen it―"
"That’s enough, Emline," Horace firmly said. His smile was gone, and he thumped his cane against the floor, its sound resonating. Emline jolted in surprise― her grandfather had never spoken so harshly to her before. "Alia is family. She just returned ho. As her younger cousin, you should be treating her with respect and graciousness benefiting soone of your station."
"Grandpa..." Emline’s lips wobbled. More and more tears stread down her face as she looked at Alia, her eyes burning with hatred. "Have you forgotten what she did to ? I am ruined because of her! Not to ntion..."
She turned to Matteo and sobbed even harder.
"Matteo, how could you?" she choked out.
Her voice was muffled, a blush of embarrassnt blooming across her cheeks. She didn’t care that there were so many others listening into what should’ve been a private conversation― in fact, Emline welcod it.
"That was my first ti. You promised that you would marry if I... If we..."
Matteo’s face paled. He was sure he would’ve never said such a thing, but there was no evidence he had on hand to prove otherwise. There were photos spread far and wide across the internet to support Emline’s claims while Matteo had none.
"I did not spread the photos," Alia said, furrowing her eyebrows. "Why would I have a cara in Matteo’s room?"
"I don’t know, you tell !" Emline countered. "For all I know, you could just be a creepy, obsessive stalker who is eyeing the Montgory fortune."
"Alia lives with ," Matteo cut in, stepping forward to block Alia from Emline’s view when the latter got a little too close. Her long nails were just inches away from jabbing out Alia’s eyes, and Matteo could stand still no longer.
His hands reached down and held Alia’s, his tight firm and oddly comforting. At first, Alia was surprised by his actions, but she didn’t question it now that they needed to get Emline off their backs. Even if she was irritated with him at the current mont — not to ntion very confused — an enemy of an enemy was still a friend.
"You, on the other hand, broke into my apartnt while I wasn’t around," Matteo reminded. "I have never given you the passcode to my ho, and yet you appeared while I wasn’t there. Wouldn’t you be a bigger suspect?"
"Matteo..." Emline sobbed. She shook her head and hiccuped, looking desperately at her grandfather and the rest of the n. "But why would I release my own photos to the internet? Who else could’ve possibly done such a thing, if not her? Why would I ruin myself like this?"
She cried out, "No one will marry ! Do you know what they’ve been saying about on the internet? I am nothing but worn shoes!"
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