"Yes! If this young lady is Mr. Blackwood's guest, a guest of the Blackwood family, she must be extraordinary! Then show us a thing or two! Let me see what qualifies you to be treated so specially by Mr. Blackwood!"
The two socialites, as if they had found a new line of attack, looked at Serena with a sneer.
They didn't believe for a second that a bumpkin from the countryside could perform anything elegant. If she wanted them to apologize, she'd have to prove she was worthy first!
Serena sat lounging lazily, taking an unhurried sip of her lemonade with an air of refined elegance. She didn't even bother to lift her eyelids. "If you want to know what qualifies me, you should be asking Nicholas, not me."
She didn't need to prove anything to them. They didn't approve? They didn't believe her? They could take it up with Nicholas. Did they dare?
But in the eyes of the two socialites, this was clearly the country girl admitting she didn't know how to do anything and was too scared to go on stage and embarrass herself!
A person like that, and Patton dared to call her an honored guest of the Blackwood family? Talk about the Blackwood family's rules? He was so desperate to protect his little mistress that he had no shame left, willing to tell any lie!
And mentioning Mr. Blackwood... if they really did go to Mr. Blackwood, she would be the one panicking!
The socialite sneered, "What's wrong? Scared? Where's that guts you had when you hit me? You're just a crass hick, a low-life commoner..."
Her words suddenly died in her throat.
Because the girl who had been lazily looking down suddenly lifted her gaze. Her cool, clear eyes rested on her.
Just one look sent a cold shiver down the two socialites' necks. All the words they wanted to say were stuck in their throats, unable to come out.
That commanding and terrifying presence... could it really come from a country brat?
At the head table, Old Mr. Blackwood watched the farce, his brow furrowed slightly.
He was especially displeased listening to the two socialites pointing at Serena, every word a deliberate insult.
His expression soured.
Just as he was about to get up, Isabella, with a sharp eye, caught the change in Old Mr. Blackwood's
expression. She wanted to be then et
first to speak up and defuse the situation for Serena, hoping to demonstrate her own superior grace and composure in front of the ald man. She wanted to make it crystal, clear to him the difference between her and Serena!
"Miss L-"
She had barely uttered a single syllable when Karen grabbed her arm again. "Miss Lancaster, don't mind Ms. Harland and Ms. Winslow. They're just a bit too
straightforward, which led to this misunderstanding."
"After all... you grew up in the country. Coming to an event like this, it was only natural for them to be concerned about the Blackwood family's security and suspect you didn't have an invitation. If you had Just show it to them, this w whole thing would have been over. But then you had to lose your temper and hit someone, which... just made things messy, didn't it?"
Karen's lips curved into the elegant smile of a top-tier heiress. "They are good friends of Isabella's, and the rumors of an engagement between our families have been circulating for a while, which led to some
misunderstandings. When they heard Patton say you were Nicholas's guest, it's understandable
they'd be a little upset."
"This is Brianna's coming-of-age party. Making too much of a scene would ruin her mood, don't you think?"
Her words sounded reasonable enough, as if she were the hostess stepping in to resolve the conflict.
But the underlying message was sharp and piercing.
However, she was right about one thing. This was, after all, Brianna's coming-of-age party.