Faux Vows, True Desires
Chapter 128

After leaving Pinehurst Hotel, Cecilia immediately called her friend.

When Lucinda picked up, Cecilia vented out her frustrations.

After hearing Cecilia's rant, Lucinda asked in surprise, "Are you telling me Owen's grandpa and your grandpa became friends and they set you and Owen up?"

What's going on?

"Lucy, you're shocked too, right? I never imagined I'd be set up with that annoying Owen. He even thought I was sucking up to his grandpa so that he'd force Owen into a date with me, how ridiculous!"

"I'd rather stay single than marry him, a man who's heart is with another woman, only a fool would marry him."

Despite being surprised, Lucinda still asked out of curiosity, "So, how did it go when you two met?"

"There's nothing much to say, I purposely wore ugly makeup and he intentionally made weird faces. I was afraid he might start liking me, and he was afraid I might start liking him, so in the end, both of us didn't develop any feelings."

Lucinda burst into laughter.

Cecilia said, "Lucy, are you gloating over my misfortune?"

"No, I just replace the thing between you and Owen amusing."

"I don't want anything to do with him. Lucy, where are you right now? Wanna hang out? Let's grab a drink together."

Feeling bummed about the Owen situation, Cecilia wanted some company to drink and vent.

"I'm at Ascend Estate, Stefan's place. I'm hanging out with him right now, so I might not be able to join you."

Cecilia retorted, "You've got a husband now and care less about your friend."

Without hesitation, Lucinda replied, "Of course, I prioritize my husband over my friend. You won't be spending your life with me. When you get married, you'll only have eyes for your husband and kids, would you still care about me? Stefan, on the other hand, will be with me for life."

"You don't care about me anymore!"

Other than repeating this, Cecilia didn't know what else to say.

Lucinda's words were cold, but realistic.

A husband would be with her for life, while friends, no matter how close, all have their own families, and can't possibly put her first.

"Fine, carry on with Stefan. I'll pass on the drinks too, I'll just get some beers and drink at home. By the way, I heard Ascend Estate is beautiful, is it true?"

Cecilia asked curiously.

In the past, hearing about the mystery and beauty of Ascend Estate, Cecilia never had the luxury to visit. But now that her best friend has become the lady of the Anderson family, Cecilia couldn't help but be curious and wanted to visit Ascend Estate.

"Yes, it is beautiful. One day, I'll invite you over and show you around for a few days."

Cecilia grinned and said, "I'll wait for your invitation then."

Lucinda chuckled, "Okay! When Stefan and I have our wedding, you'll have to be my bridesmaid."

"Don't worry, I'll definitely be your bridesmaid. Lucy, I won't interrupt your sweet time with Stefan anymore, bye."

"We'll meet in two days."

Lucinda's shop needed some tidying up, both Cecilia and Lucinda were shop owners and had to visit the shop often, they couldn't be irresponsible owners.

After hanging up, the man beside Lucinda asked, "Cecilia and Owen are going on a blind date?"

Lucinda nodded, "Cecilia said it was arranged by Owen's grandpa, Stefan, do you think there might be any hidden motives?"

She wasn't against her friend marrying into a wealthy family, but the sudden development of events felt unusual to Lucinda.

Stefan pondered for a moment then said, "Trenton really dislikes Ruby, Owen has done so much for Ruby, even almost causing trouble for the Ikella group. I told Trenton about what Owen did. Trenton was very angry this time, I guess he might want to settle Owen's marriage."

Stefan stopped there, he didn't expect Trenton would target Cecilia.

Perhaps, besides Ruby, only Cecilia has been close to Owen, Cecilia might not be the ideal daughter-in-law in Trenton's eyes, but compared to Ruby, Trenton would naturally lean towards Cecilia. Lucinda's face changed, she asked, "Is Owen's grandpa trying to use Cecilia to stop Owen from being with Ruby? Wouldn't that put Cecilia in danger? Owen is so in love with Ruby, what happiness could Cecilia get from being with him?"

Stefan thought for a moment then said, "Owen will definitely resist, but he might not be able to succeed. If his grandpa really forces him to marry Cecilia, he might just do it." "Cecilia won't marry him."

"Lucy, we don't know what will happen in the future, we can only wait and see. If Cecilia needs help, for your sake, I'll definitely step in, I won't let her get hurt."

This only applied to physical harm.

If it's emotional harm, sorry, he can't help.

"It's all my fault. If it weren't for me, Owen and Cecilia wouldn't have met."

Lucinda said guiltily.

Stefan quietly looked at her.

"Lucy, are you blaming me? Because of me, you were harassed by Ruby, then by Owen, all these things happened because of me."

Lucinda stayed silent.

He was right.

But she couldn't bear to blame him.

Stefan played up being hurt, hanging his head low, and said with a mournful tone, "You're blaming me, aren't you? You should, I shouldn't have deceived you about who I am, it's all my fault. Go ahead, Lucy, hi me, yell at me."

Lucinda didn't know what to say.

What should she do when her husband looks so painful and sad?

Comfort him, right?

Lucinda quickly hugged Stefan's shoulders, soothing him, "Honey, it's okay, I'm not blaming you. After all, you didn't want any of this to happen. It's all Ruby's fault. You rejected her ten years ago, yet she still can't leave you alone. It's all Ruby and Owen's fault."

"Owen is such a blockhead, it's a miracle that the Ikella group hasn't collapsed under his leadership. He loses all sense of reason when he's in love, especially when it comes to Ruby. His IQ just drops drastically. Darling, becoming enemies with someone like him really tarnishes your reputation."

"Babe, stop blaming yourself, it's really not your fault. Look at me, I'm not blaming you at all."

Stefan kept his head down, "You shouldn't blame yourself either, it's not your fault." "Alright, I won't blame myself."

At this point, Lucinda felt like she was pacifying a child, agreeing to anything Stefan said.

"Then, give me a couple of kisses, and I'll feel better."

Upon hearing this, Lucinda immediately let go of him.

"Stefan, you're doing this on purpose, aren't you?"

Stefan raised his head, his face full of smiles. Lucinda realized he had fooled her, but it was too late to escape. He swiftly pulled her back into his arms, firmly holding her head with one hand while his hot lips covered hers.