CHAPTER 94: PITIFUL CRUSH

Braelyn’s POV

He was staring at me. My throat dried. Amelia said something to him; he only nodded before our gaze met again.

We held each other’s gaze for a moment before he finally averted his eyes. The entire time I could not breathe even if I wanted to.

Ronan had approached Raphael to whisper something to him. After which, he excused himself and left the room.

I felt a hand sneak up my bare back, and my head snapped back to Lucien. "If you want people to have an ambiguous idea of us. You should learn to ignore him." He said

..

My lips parted, before the words could sound, we were approached by another guest I didn’t recognise. I only nodded at his greetings before turning my attention elsewhere.

The hall was filled, despite the entire room being masked I could still recognise some familiar figures

There were a couple of familiar faces, including members of the Volkov family. Practically, they were all here, including Natasha, who was a model on tour. It’s easy to recognise her even with a mask. Her striking silver hair stood out.

The room was bustling, and guests were exchanging soft pleasantry. Lucien handled the crowd with impeccable grace. To be honest, I was surprised he had this bearing in the first place. Charismatic but a bit arrogant which he failed to hide when making a snarky comment about a guest who tried to curry favour with him

I had laughed, then I was unable to hold it while Lucien smiled. The man was so embarrassed that he made an excuse to slip out..

"You didn’t have to be that harsh." I sneered at Lucien. His lips were still tugged upwards.

"You can’t blame me. Your husband’s gaze was getting under my skin." He said. Something caught his attention, I looked over and then spotted a tall blonde figure approaching. My brows furrowed, could it be Joey?

I immediately recognised that smile.

My eyes sparkled with surprise. I wasn’t expecting to see him here. "You look stunning Lynn." He grinned as soon as he got to our side. Lucien rolled his eyes.

His graceful demeanour cracked for a moment.

"I can say the same about you, Mr Alvarez. It’s a pleasant surprise to see you here." I chirped. He still had that boyish grin.

"I wasn’t planning on coming either, but my father couldn’t make it, so I had no choice." He replied, reaching out for my hand to place a soft kiss.

Lucien snorted at him, he didn’t bother to hide his annoyance. "Let’s believe that’s the only reason you came." He drawled, his gaze flickering across the room to a figure I didn’t notice earlier.

A slender figure with soft brunette curls. She wore a peach dress matched with a silver mask. I didn’t recognise her at first, but a name came to mind.

Amber...

Joey came from an influential family. After doing my research, I found out he was the black sheep of the Alvarez family, one of the biggest partners and external shareholders in the Volkov Apex holdings.

It wasn’t off he was here, but Amber, on the other hand, didn’t have those connections. She used Joey as a ticket in here.

In a few words, he and Lucien were birds of a feather.

Joey’s lips pursed. He glances at me. "You would not mind if I borrowed Lucien for a moment, " Lucien glared at him.

"This better be important." He grumbled. I smiled at them.

"Sure, go ahead." Lucien was a bit hesitant to leave but after Joey whispered something to him. He finally left, and their backs disappeared behind the door.

The shrieking sounds of the mic rang through the sound system. The MC finally got on stage and started.

.

"Welcome, lady and gentlemen, to the annual Volkov Apex holding fund raisers event... before we get into the main event, I would love to invite Miss Sinclair to address the crowd."

A round of applause echoed through the hall. Originally Amelia’s project launch wasn’t meant to be in the program but was put in since this was a perfect opportunity to boost its popularity

Under everyone’s applause, she got up to the stage. Her movements were soft and refined. "It’s an honour to have this opportunity..." She started sweetly cracking some jokes while the projector lit behind her

The audience’s attention was quickly caught by her and I was impressed. She might actually succeed. I scoffed at myself, finding my wine more interesting than her moving presentation.

Raphael wasn’t back. I wondered if he was going to miss Amelia’s presentation.

"Isn’t it the Charming Mrs Volkov?" A sultry voice drew beside me, followed by the soft clicking sounds of heels. I smirked a bit, irritated, but my smile didn’t falter.

. Amber stopped by my side. Her eyes carried a hostile glint."Do you mind?" She said, raising a toast. She was still polite on the surface but vehement underneath.

"Sorry, I can’t. My wrist already hurts from endless toasts. " I turned her down, not bothering to be polite. She forced a smile.

"Of course I understand." Her gaze didn’t leave me. "After all, it must be hard to openly have an affair while you are married." She added in a whisper.

I couldn’t help but laugh. She wasn’t hiding her intentions. She used Joey just to get close to Lucien. Her brows furrowed at my laugh. Amelia’s voice was still in the background as she continued to address the crowd

"What’s so funny? You can’t deny it." She hissed through gritted teeth

I scoffed at her, taking a sip of my drink. "It’s nothing, I just find you amusing. " I started watching how her face changed

"Since you have nothing important to say. I will excuse myself." I nodded at her. Amelia’s cheeks reddened with humiliation. She tried to trip me by setting out her feet. Unfortunately for her, I was on high alert since she approached me.

I avoided her leg and then yanked her hand. She lost balance, and before she could react, she tripped, almost falling before I caught her. In the process, my red wine splashed across her peach dress, or more often, I splashed it on her.

"You.." she could barely say. Her body trembled with anger, humiliated by her ploy going sideways. I gasped as attention was drawn to us, then quickly pulled out a hankie to wipe the stain, while in reality, I was making it worse. "I am so sorry..." I apologise under the gaze of the few onlookers.

Our little confrontation didn’t draw much attention and they considered it an accident.

"What ....are you doing?!" Amber stammered too angry to make a proper statement.

My voice dipped, and a calm whisper rang between us. "Next time it won’t be just the wine but might be acid." Her eyes went wide.

A waiter had already run to our side. I politely handed over the wine glass to him, then gingerly pulled Amber’s arm. "I will take you to the restroom. I am so sorry.." I apologised again hiding my smirk

She couldn’t pull away unless she created a scene. Once we got out of the hall I dropped the act immediately.

"You did that on purpose." She snapped. I snickered at her, crossing my arms across my chest..

"You are truly pitiful. You have loved him for a long time but still can’t confess." I sneered and her expression froze. Every confrontation she had in mind disappeared.

She clenched her arms by her side, eyes Razor sharp. "You are using him." She stated with disdain.

A chuckle slipped out. "The same way you are using Joey." She was stunned once again. I turned around to leave her not bothering to see her reaction when I added.

"It’s better you stay in your lane. Lucien was the one who said I should use him knowing fully well that I am married." I left the words hanging between us..

She went completely silent. I finally gave her a glance over my shoulder. She looked devastated. "Isn’t it pitiful he chose a married woman over the girl who quietly stood by his side?" My words stung like venom, but I didn’t stay long enough to see her unravel.

My footsteps faded away farther from the hall with the passages. I wasn’t in the mood to listen to Amelia’s presentation and wanted to get some air

I slowed down as a familiar voice drifted to my ears."Things might get worse than expected...."

It was Raphael’s voice. He was talking to someone