Chapter 787: Female Companion

Una picked up the wrinkled dress. "I'll iron this for you, just wait."

Ten minutes later, Una handed the freshly ironed dress to Edith.

Edith looked at it and thought, 'This will have to do.'

Once she got through this busy period, she needed to prepare a couple of decent dresses for herself.

Edith quickly did her makeup and went downstairs with her bag at seven o'clock sharp.

A Bentley was parked downstairs, and Edith immediately saw Colin sitting inside. She hurriedly opened the back door.

"Sit in the front," Colin said.

Edith retracted her foot."Isn't the front seat reserved for your girlfriend?" she blurted out instinctively.

Colin's car had always had the front seat reserved for his girlfriend. When they were dating, he had forbidden anyone else from sitting there for her sake.

Thinking about those times, she felt a bit sweet.

She thought Colin would still have this habit, so she went for the back seat.

"Sit in the front," Colin repeated.

Edith had no choice but to walk around to the front passenger seat.

It dawned on her that after all these years, Colin's habits must have changed.

Edith silently scolded herself, warning herself to think carefully before speaking in the future.

They drove in silence to their destination. After getting out of the car, Colin tossed her a box.

"What's this?" Edith curiously opened it to find a delicate light purple evening gown inside.

"Go change into this."

Edith looked at her own dress and then at the one in the box, sighing inwardly.

'Has Colin anticipated that I won't have a decent dress?' Edith thought inwardly.

She wasn't intentional; she really hadn't expected to attend a banquet on such short notice. Otherwise, she would have bought a high-end dress in advance.

Edith went to the restroom to change. When she came out, Colin was waiting not far away, glancing in her direction from time to time.

Seeing Edith carefully walking out with her dress held up, Colin was momentarily stunned.

Edith's tanned skin was sexy, and she had maintained her figure well. The light purple strapless evening gown accentuated her slender shoulders and collarbones, making her look even more graceful.

She smiled at Colin, and his heart warmed. "I'm ready."

Colin turned slightly, bending his arm to signal Edith to take it.

Their appearance drew quite a few glances. Edith thought it was just an ordinary banquet, but she saw many familiar faces—people she had tried hard to connect with but never could.

If she could strike a deal with these people... Edith quickly stopped her thoughts. She was here as Colin's date, so she should focus on being a good companion and let everything else happen naturally.

"Colin." Someone approached Colin and glanced at Edith, asking with a smile, "And who is this?"

Colin replied, "My date."

The person smiled knowingly.

Colin had attended many banquets, but the only female companion he had ever brought was his sister.

"This lady looks familiar." A woman looked at Edith and suddenly remembered, "Aren't you the one who was tricked into marriage by the Murphy Family, Edith?"

A flash of embarrassment crossed Edith's face, but she maintained a polite smile and didn't deny it.

As soon as she said that, people around who heard started looking over and whispering. "So it's her. It's strange that she was tricked into marriage by the Murphy Family for so many years."

"Yeah, I heard she knew about Jasper's issues long ago. She didn't divorce early or late, but only filed for divorce when the Murphy Family was about to fall. Maybe she saw that the Murphy Family was losing power and decided to leave."

"Isn't that just kicking someone when they're down? This woman is too scheming."

"Don't you think she's pitiful?"

"She brought it on herself."

Suddenly, Edith became the target of everyone's criticism.

There were also malicious speculations about Edith online, but she had never paid attention to them, so she didn't feel much.

Now, being talked about by the people around her, Edith felt utterly humiliated, her face burning.

She lowered her head, comforting herself that it was okay, being talked about wouldn't hurt her. After all, she had been ridiculed enough over the years.

Just as she was about to lift her head, someone suddenly held her hand, the warm touch directly warming her heart.

She looked at Colin in surprise.

Colin's face was dark, and he coldly swept his gaze over the people around them. "Edith is my date. Does anyone have an opinion about my date?"

The faces of those gossiping changed, and they quickly shook their heads. "No, we have no opinion at all."

How could they dare to have a opinion? Colin was from the Blackwood Family, and they didn't want to be resented by the Blackwood Family.

Moreover, the Blackwood Family's granddaughter, Sophia, was the mistress of the Lancaster Family.

With these two powerful families joining forces, who would be foolish enough to offend the Blackwood Family?

Colin led Edith to the side.

Edith looked up at his handsome profile, feeling very warm inside. "Thank you."

Colin led her to a sofa and sat her down. "Sit here for a while."

With that, he left Edith there and walked away.

Edith didn't mind, smiling contentedly.

She sat quietly, waiting for Colin to return, occasionally feeling some strange looks, but she pretended not to notice.

A few minutes later, Colin came back with a tray. "You didn't have dinner, right? Eat something first; there's a dance later."

"Thank you." Edith accepted it without hesitation.

In her rush, she hadn't eaten anything, and she was already hungry.

While she ate, Colin sat beside her."Aren't you eating?" Edith felt a bit embarrassed and wanted to share a piece of cake with him.

Colin replied, "I ate in the afternoon."

Edith had no choice but to stuff the cake into her own mouth.

With Colin by her side, no one dared to bother Edith.

When the dance started, Colin placed his hand on Edith's waist, and she rested her hand on his broad one as they moved to the music.

"Why do I feel like Edith and Colin look like a couple?" someone watched them dance, finding it intriguing.

"I think so too. This is the first time Colin has brought another woman to a banquet. He must be interested in Edith."

After finishing a dance, Colin was called away, and Edith found a place to wait for him.

A man approached, extending his hand gentlemanly. "Hello, Ms. Astor, may I have this dance?"

Edith smiled faintly and declined, "I'm sorry, I'm Mr. Blackwood's date tonight. I don't dance with others."

The man looked disappointed. "You dance beautifully."

"Thank you."

"Are you sure you won't dance with me? Colin wouldn't mind his date dancing with someone else." The man persisted.

"Sorry, sir, if you want to dance, you should find your own date."

He replied, "I didn't bring a date tonight."

Edith was surprised. "I thought tonight's banquet required a date."

"It's not mandatory if you really don't have one."

Seeing that Edith had no intention of dancing, he reluctantly left.

Ten minutes later, Colin returned. "We can leave after a little while longer."

Edith looked at him deeply. "Colin."

"What?"

Edith wanted to ask why he had her as his date tonight when it wasn't mandatory to bring one.

The question lingered on her tongue, but in the end, she didn't ask anything.