Chapter 187 Alexander's Jealousy
Michael's face turned beet red with humiliation.
They were publicly humiliating him out of jealousy for his outstanding talent, afraid that he would become the Hughes family heir and crush the Howard and Windsor families beneath his feet.
Michael didn’t dare guess whether Anthony would force him to leave because of Catherine and Alexander. If he were not allowed to participate in the stone gambling event, he would truly have no place in the Hughes family!
"Grandpa, I'm the one who organized today's stone gambling event. Without me here, it might be hard to carry on."
Catherine said coolly, "Alexander, let's go. I'll tell Charles that the Windsor family doesn't need to associate with the Hughes family anymore."
"Whatever you say."
Anthony gritted his teeth, "Michael! Let your brother run things, and you assist him!"
"Grandpa!"
Michael was unwilling to accept this. He had worked so hard preparing for this event for so long, and he was the one who invited the King of Stone Gambling. Why should it all become a stepping stone for Maurice Hughes?
"Are you saying my words don't matter anymore?"
Michael clenched his teeth and said, "Yes, sir."
Anthony had absolute authority in the Hughes family. Even though Michael had used special means to gain a chance to prove himself, he still didn’t dare disobey Anthony's orders.
Emilia jumped up excitedly and waved into the distance: "Maurice! Grandpa wants you to host the meeting! He’s being so good to you!"
Watching Emilia, Michael felt his heart ache with bitterness.
"Emilia, haven't you always wanted a chance to meet Mr. Howard? Today is a great opportunity."
Anthony looked at Emilia. If she could catch Alexander's attention, the Hughes and Howard families would gain more opportunities to cooperate in the future, and it might even become possible for the Hughes family to completely take over the Windsor family.
As for Alexander's engagement to the Windsor family, arranged marriages were common among wealthy families. Alexander could choose whoever he wished, and Anthony didn't take it seriously.
"Emilia wants to meet Mr. Howard? Why haven't I heard you mention this before?"
Emilia froze for a moment, then quickly put on a sweet smile.
"Now you know, Grandpa. Not only have I met Mr. Howard, I've also met Mr. Howard's fiancée!"
She turned to look at Catherine, holding her hand, "Catherine and I are already friends!"
Meeting Emilia’s pleading gaze, Catherine felt her hand trembling slightly. Emotions did not lie—Emilia was afraid.
Clearly, she was uncomfortable when facing Anthony.
Catherine nodded, "Ms. Hughes is quite interesting."
"Just call me Emilia~"
Anthony's gaze was heavy, as if he were evaluating the relationship between Emilia and Catherine and judging the possibility of using Emilia to get close to Alexander.
"Since Emilia and Catherine get along well, you can keep Catherine and Alexander company today. Don't embarrass the Hughes family."
"Okay!"
Anthony gave Emilia a meaningful look, his eyes filled with pressure and warning, making her back instantly stiffen.
Michael wheeled Anthony away, glaring viciously at Catherine before leaving.
He had humbled himself so much—why couldn't Alexander see his sincerity?
Was he really that much worse than Alexander?
Emilia watched them leave and quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Catherine's voice came coolly: "You're afraid of your grandfather."
Emilia smiled bitterly. "You'd better not know why I'm afraid of my grandfather. He's really scary! When he told me to keep you company just now, he was probably telling me to seduce Alexander. Don't worry, I'm not interested in Alexander, but I have to stay with you, otherwise..."
Emilia was quite frank.
She shuddered, unwilling to recall what punishment Anthony would give her if she disobeyed.
"Please, Catherine, I'm not here to break you two up, I'm here to join you! Let me stay with you. I swear I won't seduce Alexander—at most I'll seduce you!"
Catherine looked at Emilia, momentarily at a loss for words.
Alexander's face darkened. He reached out to pull Catherine's hand, saying coldly: "Emilia, you'd better stay away from Catherine!"
"If I stay away from her, I'll have to get closer to you—and you’d find that annoying while I’d find it disgusting! Catherine, let me stay with you! Please, please, I'm begging you!"
Emilia looked at Catherine with round eyes, acting pitiful and cute.
Catherine knew something about Anthony’s methods and what he was capable of.
The Hughes family had made their fortune early on through shady businesses. After becoming independent from the Harrison family, they dealt in gray-area industries. The clothes Anthony wore symbolized the criminal organization Blade of Dusk.
Blade of Dusk had no legitimate operations, and the Hughes family's business over the years had been closely tied to the underworld.
"I want to know some things about the Hughes family."
Emilia breathed a sigh of relief.
"Sure, I'll tell you whatever you want to know."
As long as Catherine let her stay with them, everything would be fine. Otherwise, once they left, Anthony definitely wouldn't let her off.
Emilia led them toward the venue, holding Catherine's hand and explaining in a low voice.
"I did say before that I was interested in Mr. Howard, but I had no choice. My grandfather wanted me to marry one of his business partners’ sons."
"You don't like him?"
"Are you kidding? That guy is even uglier than Michael!"
Catherine understood—Emilia liked good-looking people. She wasn't friendly to Esme and Michael mainly because they didn’t meet her standards.
What a simple reason!
"As for Mr. Howard, he has high status, lots of money—and most importantly, he ignores me! He doesn't reply to my messages. Last time I went to see Felix, and Felix was nice too. It made reporting back much easier!"
Catherine said in surprise: "You went to see Felix also just to report back?"
"Yeah, I swear, I'm really not interested in your man! If I'm lying, may my face break out in pimples and become too ugly to leave the house!"
Just imagining that scene almost made Emilia cry.
Catherine chuckled softly. She could tell Emilia was serious, and from her attitude toward Alexander, she showed no real interest in him.
"I believe you."
"Thank you, Catherine! You guys wait over there for a bit. I'll go handle some things up front!"
Emilia lifted her skirt and hurried toward the front of the venue.
Alexander hooked his arm around Catherine's waist, pulling her closer into his embrace. His forehead touched hers, and his voice sounded a bit sullen.
"Does Catherine really not care about me at all?"
Alexander didn't want Catherine to be influenced by random women, but seeing her discuss him with Emilia so calmly and rationally still made him feel hurt.
Catherine looked at Alexander, meeting his deep eyes.
"But she's not interested in you."
"That's not the point."
Catherine didn't understand. If that wasn't the point, what was?
Alexander looked at Catherine and sighed softly. He held Catherine and said in a low voice: "Never mind, I'm overthinking. It's normal that you don't care about me. After all, this has always been one-sided."
Catherine's eyelashes cast a shadow. She instinctively wanted to explain: "That's not what I meant."
The table beside them suddenly moved.
The tablecloth was lifted, and Sophia—with a piece of cake in her mouth—and Oscar beside her looked at Catherine and Alexander expectantly.
"What a coincidence! Don't mind us, carry on."