Chapter 95: Chapter 95: She’s Too Heartless to Jude Sheridan? Ridiculous.

Cecilia Croft carried the sobering soup to her bedroom door. She’d been about to push it open and walk right in, but hesitated and knocked instead.

"I made you some sobering soup."

Because there were people downstairs, she kept her voice as low as possible.

However, there was no sound from Sebastian Hawthorne inside. A flicker of confusion crossed Cecilia Croft’s eyes as she pushed the door open a crack and peeked in.

’There probably wasn’t anyone in the world more pathetic than her.’

’She even had to be this careful just to enter her own room.’

The light in the room was on, but the man who had been sitting in the vanity chair was nowhere to be seen.

The faint sound of running water came from the bathroom.

Cecilia Croft pushed the door open and walked in. Just as she set the bowl on the table, Sebastian Hawthorne pushed open the bathroom door and walked out.

His black shirt was speckled with water, and droplets still clung to his face.

Cecilia Croft was stunned for a moment.

’This man sobers up way too fast!’

When Sebastian Hawthorne came out and saw Cecilia Croft, he spoke calmly.

"I used your bathroom."

Cecilia Croft nodded dazedly, replying magnanimously, "It’s no problem. Go ahead."

Sebastian Hawthorne grunted an "Mm," walked past her, and pulled a tissue from her vanity to wipe his face.

The atmosphere turned awkward for a moment. Cecilia Croft pursed her lips, glanced at the sobering soup on the table, and said quietly,

"I made some sobering soup for you. I’m not sure if you’ll like it, but would you care to try some?"

She hesitated as she spoke, but still picked up the bowl and held it out to Sebastian Hawthorne.

Without a second thought, Sebastian Hawthorne took the bowl from Cecilia Croft and downed the sobering soup in one go.

He showed no trace of hesitation.

’He was completely unafraid of her and Ruby Croft setting a trap for him.’

After finishing the soup, Sebastian Hawthorne looked down at the woman before him. Her pretty eyes were bright and fixed on him, her face full of anticipation.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. The restlessness he had just suppressed seemed to well up again.

Sebastian Hawthorne knew he couldn’t stay here any longer.

’He’d intended to toy with her, but now it seemed he was the one being played.’

Cecilia Croft reached out and took the empty bowl from Sebastian Hawthorne. Seeing that he looked like he wanted to leave, she spoke.

"There are still a few guests downstairs who haven’t left."

Sebastian Hawthorne nodded, but his steps didn’t falter in the slightest.

Cecilia’s heart clenched, and she quickened her pace to follow him.

"If you go down now..."

Before she could finish, Sebastian Hawthorne was already at the top of the stairs.

Cecilia Croft bit the corner of her lip lightly and closed her eyes for a moment.

The guests downstairs were about to leave, but when they saw Sebastian Hawthorne slowly walking down the stairs, they all stopped.

Ruby Croft also turned to look back inside.

Her gaze was calm, her expression betraying no hint of panic.

Cecilia Croft took a sharp, deep breath. Steeling herself, she forced a smile and walked to the landing. Looking down at Sebastian Hawthorne as he descended, she said in a gentle voice,

"Be safe on your way home. And text me when you get there."

’At this point, this was the only way to salvage the situation.’

Sebastian Hawthorne walked into the living room, stopped, looked back at Cecilia Croft, and nodded.

"Alright."

He agreed without hesitation and strode toward the door.

When Cecilia saw the doubtful looks on the faces of the guests standing near Ruby Croft fade, she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

But she wasn’t completely at ease, afraid they’d see through the deal that was already supposed to be settled. So she added,

"Let me walk you to the door."

Without waiting for his reply, she trotted down the stairs to his side.

Seeing Cecilia Croft’s behavior, the guests standing near Ruby Croft exchanged suggestive smiles.

As Sebastian Hawthorne strode out of the living room, the guests instinctively made way for him, calling out with smiles.

"Mr. Hawthorne, take care."

Sebastian Hawthorne nodded slightly and walked past them.

With a fixed smile on her face, Cecilia Croft kept pace beside Sebastian Hawthorne. To keep up appearances, she even had to initiate conversation with him.

"Mr. Hawthorne, when are we going to Silvercrest?"

"Tomorrow," Sebastian replied.

Cecilia paused, taken aback. "Um... you..."

The moment she spoke, she felt the weight of several pairs of eyes on their backs. She lowered her voice, leaned closer to Sebastian Hawthorne, and spoke quietly enough that only he could hear.

"Why didn’t you give me any heads-up?"

’Leaving tomorrow is so sudden.’

"I’m telling you now," Sebastian said.

Cecilia was speechless.

Sebastian Hawthorne glanced down at her. "What? Silvercrest is your old stomping grounds, isn’t it? Are you afraid of a surprise visit?"

Cecilia shook her head. "Not really."

’It was just that she was worried about Ruby Croft’s health.’

Sebastian Hawthorne nodded. "Good."

Cecilia pursed her lips and asked quietly, "If I do a good job in Silvercrest, can I come back to Karthus often?"

Sebastian Hawthorne looked down at her, his gaze holding an emotion Cecilia couldn’t quite decipher.

Cecilia’s heart tensed. She quickly forced a placating smile.

"I promise I won’t let it interfere with any work."

Sebastian said, "You were in Silvercrest for so many years, and now all you can think about is running back to Karthus. Is there nothing at all you’ll miss about Silvercrest?"

A look of resignation flickered in Cecilia’s eyes, and her voice was soft.

"If there was anything for me to miss in Silvercrest, it would have been my grandmother. But she’s passed away, so now there’s nothing left for me there."

’Now, Ruby Croft was the only family she had left.’

’Her sister was having health problems again, so naturally, she wanted to rush back to Karthus.’

Sebastian glanced down at her and commented nonchalantly on her statement.

"You’re so heartless."

Cecilia froze for a second. Then, realizing what Sebastian meant by that, she fell silent, having nothing to say in her defense.

’She couldn’t deny that she was heartless.’

’Since Jude Sheridan chose to betray her, he should be able to handle her being heartless.’

The two of them walked out of the Croft family’s main gate.

When Assistant Scott saw Sebastian Hawthorne, he drove the car over.

Cecilia Croft walked forward and opened the car door for Sebastian Hawthorne.

Just as Sebastian was bending to get into the car, Cecilia gave it a thought and added in a low voice,

"Being heartless, it’s not my fault, is it?"

’Nice people get taken advantage of, and she couldn’t afford to be a fool—not one who still held a flame for Jude Sheridan after everything he’d done.’

Sebastian gave Cecilia an indifferent "Mm" in reply.

Cecilia hadn’t dared to hope for a response from Sebastian, so when he actually gave one, her heart eased. Forcing another smile, she closed the car door for him.

"Drive safe. Good night."

Sebastian looked up at her through the car window, the dim interior hiding the emotion in his eyes.

All she could see was a slight nod as he murmured back, "Good night."

Cecilia took a respectful step back.

The man in the car instructed Assistant Scott in a low, deep voice.

"Drive."

The car started, and soon vanished into the night.