Elara Hale stopped and arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow at her. "And what if I did? What would I do then? Keep fighting for him?"
She scoffed, looking at Isabella as if she were a fool, her scorn unconcealed. "Miss Lancaster, are you alright? You don't actually think I'm some brainless villain from a novel, do you?"
"You thought that if you told me who Mr. Blackwood's beloved is, I would go and lose my mind on her?"
Isabella's face froze, her expression that of someone whose thoughts had been laid bare.
Elara Hale couldn't help but laugh. "I, Elara Hale, know when to love and when to let go. Since Mr. Blackwood's heart is already taken, I certainly won't continue to pester him. But you..."
Suddenly, she broke into a radiant smile, her voice deliberately raised, her tone teasing, “No way, no way? Miss Isabella Lancaster, you can't possibly still be clinging to the 'fiancée' title and pestering him, even when you know Mr. Blackwood already has someone, can you? What, are you trying to be the other woman?"
"You...!" Isabella was furious that Elara Hale was deliberately drawing the attention of the crowd to make a spectacle of her.
Her face turned pale with anger.
She had intended to humiliate Elara Hale, but instead, she had been publicly branded with such a shameful label.
Even if that was exactly what she was thinking, it couldn't be said out loud!
She had her pride!
Elara Hale gave Isabella a disdainful look, sneered, and walked away without another word.
As a socialite groomed by a prestigious family, she was hardly a fool with a head full of nothing but romance.
She had chosen Nicholas because of the Blackwood family behind him.
A powerful alliance between the Blackwood and Hale families would have been ideal.
But if that wasn't an option, their current business partnership was still a golden opportunity to make money together.
Though...
She was a little disappointed.
After all, a man of Nicholas's caliber would have been an excellent choice for a partner.
She wondered what kind of girl had managed to capture Nicholas's heart.
Elara Hale walked away with complete grace.
She left Isabella standing there alone, humiliated and furious, her nails digging so deeply into her palms that she didn't even notice.
She felt the stares from those around her like daggers in her back.
It was all Serena's fault!
If it wasn't for that damned country bumpkin returning to the Lancaster family, she would be the one in the spotlight right now!
The one publicly acknowledged by Old Mr. Blackwood, standing by Nicholas's side, basking in everyone's envious gazes...
That should have been her, Isabella!
She wouldn't be in this embarrassing and humiliating situation!
It was all because of that damned country bumpkin, who had stolen everything from
her!
"Isabella, calm down." Karen
grabbed sabella's arm, whispering
words of comfort. "Don't listen to Elara Hale's nonsense She's just making excuses to protect her own pride because she couldn't win."
She patted Isabella's hand. “You're not completely out of options yet."
"Think about it. In a perfect
opportunity like this, Nicholas
already admitted he has someone
he loves, so why didn't he use the chance to publicly announce Serena?"
"Doesn't that mean... Nicholas is also weighing his options?"
"Because Nicholas knows that a country bumpkin like Serena is not presentable. Once their relationship is public, he'll be humiliated and become a laughingstock