âZachary, weâve been friends for such a long time. You wonât reject my invitation to be my dance partner, right?â Zacharyâs silly expression was too cute. On the surface, he had a solemn expression, but anyone who knew him well would know that he was in a daze and at a loss for what to do.
I was amused by his reaction and stuck out my tongue at him. No matter he was willing to be my dance partner or not, I dragged him to the dance floor. Even though Mom still looked unhappy, her expression had relaxed a little.
Zacharyâs dance style was the same as his personality, scrupulous and methodical. If he participated in a dancing competition, I believed he would claim first because his movements were too standard.
Sliding into the center of the dance floor, he suddenly piped up, âYvonne, Iâm a married man, and Iâve never thought of divorce. Neither do I want to be a two-timer. Although youâre my savior, this is a matter of principle.â
All of a sudden, I was nonplussed and began to wonder why he was so simple-minded.
âI only invited you for a dance. You donât have to let your imagination run wild,â I responded flatly.
âEvery discerning guest knows that you should do this dance with your significant other,â he replied gloomily. âI can already predict the headline of the newspapers tomorrow.â
âI think you should worry about how to explain it to Mr. and Mrs. Zimmer.â Having said that, I could not help but chuckle. No wonder Sabrina loves to tease him. This is fun.
âI think Iâll die a horrible death. Can we turn back time?â
After the opening dance, Mark brought me around to greet every guest. Every time he introduced me, he had a serious demeanor and kept emphasizing that I was his daughter.
Compliments from the guests came one after another â what a young and promising painter, beautiful and charming lady, as expected of the daughter of the Goldstein family, and so on. I found it strange because those words were used to describe Crystal in the past. Now that my identity was different, they also praised me the same way. It could be said that my net worth had skyrocketed.
After a while, Sabrina came over and whispered into my ears, âYour prince charming is waiting for you in the rose garden.â
Immediately, I understood the meaning of her words. Since I was not used to all the flatteries, I excused myself and quietly left the banquet. When I was on my way to look for Christopher in the garden, Crystal suddenly appeared and blocked my way.
As we were in the Goldstein residence, I hoped she was not thinking of embarrassing me because that would be absurd. Casting a brief look at her, I questioned, âWhatâs the matter?â
In response, she snorted. âYvonne, donât be too full of yourself. Even if youâre the daughter of the Goldstein family, I wonât admit defeat. Sooner or later, Iâll rise to a status so high that you canât reach it.â
I could not understand. Is she living her life to prove that sheâs better than others? âIs that the only thing youâre pursuing? What benefits do you get by trampling on me?â
Curious, I questioned again, âOther than that, do you have nothing else to pursue? Your happiness, a lover, and a good career arenât important to you?â
âAll those are ruined by you! Yvonne, Iâll take back what youâd taken from me. Just you wait and see!â With that, she turned around and walked upstairs.
Her provocation took me by surprise. Also, I had never expected her to go upstairs in front of me. Thinking of what she was holding earlier, I frowned and queried the servant passing by, âWhy did Ms. Yates go upstairs? Was she upstairs just now?â
âYes, Ms. Yates was upstairs, together with Mrs. Goldstein. She should be going back to look for Mrs. Goldstein now,â answered the servant respectfully.
âShe was upstairs for the whole time? Are you sure?â I inquired in surprise.
âYes. After you finished the opening dance, she went upstairs with Mrs. Goldstein and stayed until now.â