Chapter 145 Samuel, as Conspicuous as Ever
It was Samuel.
He was as eye-catching as always.
Anna saw Samuel, too, and hurried over to greet him.
"What brings you here? You should have told us you were coming. Come on in." Anna's tone was familiar.
Frank and Samuel are friends across generations.
The two had known each other for many years.
That's why when Frank had his wife and child come to Goldenvale first, he asked Samuel to look after them.
Samuel said, "I'm here to wish Adrian a happy birthday. Adrian, you're another year older. You'll be a man soon."
Adrian wrinkled his nose and said proudly, "I am a man. I'm going to protect my mom!"
His childish voice made Samuel laugh.
One of Maeve's friends spoke up in a flattering whisper, "Maeve, you and Mr. Crawford really look good together. Your families have a project together—why don't you take this chance to get closer to him?"
Maeve's face suddenly flushed red.
A man like Samuel—young, handsome, wealthy, the dream of countless girls—what girl wouldn't be attracted?
But she tried to stay calm. Just as she was about to speak, another friend said, "Don't play matchmaker. Maeve already has a boyfriend."
Maeve's expression froze, the warmth draining from her face.
Then she heard someone else chime in, "Oh, right, Maeve's boyfriend is really handsome too. How come we haven't seen him lately?"
Maeve answered dismissively, "He hurt his hand."
"That's too bad. Otherwise, you could have brought him today."
Maeve forced a smile and said nothing.
Usually, when people mentioned Isaac, her heart would feel sweet, because Isaac really was very handsome.
It was Isaac's face that made her fall for him at first sight.
But lately Isaac had been acting strange, constantly making excuses not to see her.
Due to the distance between them, their relationship had gradually cooled.
Plus, with someone as nearly perfect as Samuel for comparison, she oddly didn't want to hear them mention Isaac.
Just then, a girl gasped quietly, "Samuel is walking toward us."
Maeve instinctively looked up and indeed saw Samuel heading in her direction.
The girl who had spoken first excitedly tugged at Maeve's sleeve.
"Maeve, look, he's coming for you. He's interested in you."
Maeve's heart pounded like a drum.
Was Samuel really interested in her?
Logic told her it was impossible.
This wasn't Samuel's first time seeing her, and he'd never shown any interest before.
But hearing her friends' confident tone, her heart couldn't help but race.
She's always been a sucker for a pretty face, which is why she threw herself into Isaac's arms.
But Samuel's appearance was like cold water waking her up.
She and Isaac weren't right for each other.
Although she'd promised Isaac she would soon tell her parents about their marriage plans, she knew deep down it was impossible—her parents and grandfather would never agree.
She'd just been suppressing that thought.
Now, seeing Samuel walking toward her, she couldn't help thinking about all this mess.
She even started imagining that if she and Samuel got together, her parents and grandfather wouldn't object—they'd actually be happy.
Her mind was in chaos when Samuel was already only 3 feet away.
Her heart raced wildly. Not knowing how to greet him, she heard Samuel's cold voice, "Excuse me, you're blocking my way."
Maeve's expression froze. She instinctively looked around.
The villa's living room wasn't that big, and the few of them standing by the coffee table were indeed blocking the path.
She suddenly realized, like a splash of cold water, that Samuel wasn't coming for her at all.
And he'd never had any interest in her.
It was her vanity that had clouded her judgment.
No, wait—it was those gossipy "friends" of hers who had confused her.
At that thought, Maeve glared at the girl who had first flattered her, then moved aside with a dark expression.
Samuel walked past them, and everyone caught the pleasant, crisp pine scent on him.
Maeve unconsciously clenched her fists.
The girl was terrified and could only apologize repeatedly.
"I'm sorry, Maeve, I was wrong..."
Maeve said coldly, "If you gossip like this again, I'll have someone cut your tongue out so you can't talk nonsense!"
The girl shrank back, her face pale.
She hadn't expected Samuel to be just passing by.
Maeve shot the girl another fierce look, then her eyes unconsciously followed Samuel.
She saw Samuel walk straight toward a certain corner.
And in that corner, there were only two people.
Amelia and Natalie.
Was Samuel actually going to see them?
During this time, she had also heard rumors that Samuel and Amelia had an arranged childhood engagement.
She scoffed at the news back then.
The Richardson family had fallen from grace—they were nothing now, and Samuel would never be interested in Amelia.
Never mind, just a childhood betrothal; even if they were already engaged, the arrangement would have to be called off.
But reality had slapped her hard in the face.
Samuel seemed to actually acknowledge Amelia as his fiancée!
Her eyes widened, filled with rage, wishing she could kill Amelia with her gaze.
In that moment, she completely forgot she already had Isaac as her boyfriend.
She even felt that Amelia had stolen Samuel from her.
That's how people are—whether men or women, once they feel possessive of someone, anyone else who gets close drives them crazy.
Even if that person never belonged to them in the first place.
But no matter how cold and venomous her gaze was, Amelia didn't feel it at all.
Because she hadn't noticed what was happening on Maeve's side at all.
Or rather, from the moment she arrived at the Hagen family's place, she hadn't paid attention to Maeve.
Only people who feel inferior to others constantly watch them, trying to compete at every turn.
Amelia had never seen Maeve as a rival, so she simply didn't pay attention to her.
She was just very seriously scooping chocolate pudding from her bowl.
The Hagen family's servants made the chocolate pudding.
They hadn't expected so many guests, so there wasn't time to order desserts. Fortunately, the servants were skilled and made lots of chocolate pudding for the guests.
Amelia had tried a bite, found it delicious, and started eating seriously.
She was also using this to pass the time, waiting for the party to end.
But just then, a shadow suddenly fell over her.
She instinctively looked up and saw a pair of familiar deep black eyes.
It was Samuel.
Amelia's gaze went blank for a moment, thinking she was hallucinating.
Until Samuel spoke, greeting her mother, "Mrs. Richardson."
Natalie's eyes lit up with delight.
"I didn't expect you to be here too."
The two started chatting, mostly about Natalie's health.
His words showed obvious concern, which made Natalie very happy.
Natalie wasn't a vain person, but having been neglected for so long, suddenly having someone willing to talk to her and show such concern made her more easily moved than usual.
Amelia had already snapped back to reality.
She looked at the smile on Samuel's face, her expression gradually cooling, her eyes full of warning.
She had clearly told him not to approach her family anymore.
Yet Samuel, usually so perceptive, seemed completely oblivious to the warning in her gaze and continued chatting with Natalie, even sharing a funny story from his drive over.
"I found a puppy. It looked so pitiful, so I picked it up and put it in my car."
"I've never had a dog before, so I didn't know I was allergic to dog hair. I sneezed more than ten times on the way over... I had to have someone take it back first, which is why I'm late."
Natalie laughed.
"There's nothing you can do about dog allergies. Amelia's father is allergic to them, but the rest of us love dogs, so we built a dog house at the Richardson manor and only let them stay there, not in the villa. It's just a shame that the two dogs we had got into a fight, and by the time we got them to the vet, it was too late..."
As she spoke, Natalie's eyes filled with regret.
Samuel said, "Then how about I send over the puppy I found? I can't keep it with my condition, so maybe you could help me take care of it for a while? When I find a suitable adopter, I'll pick it up."
Amelia was about to refuse when Natalie readily agreed, "Sure! The dog house is empty anyway. The Richardson family may have fallen on hard times, but we can still afford to keep one dog."
"Then I'll have someone send it over later."
The two of them went back and forth and settled the matter.
Amelia didn't even get a chance to interrupt.
They chatted a bit more, then someone came over to talk to Samuel.
Natalie said, "Go ahead."
Samuel said "okay" and left.
The whole time, his eyes never landed on Amelia, as if she didn't exist.
Amelia felt strange about it.
As soon as Samuel left, Natalie immediately looked at Amelia. "Did you two have a fight?"
Amelia choked and instinctively denied it. "No."
"If you didn't, why wouldn't he talk to you, and instead chat with this old lady for so long?"
"You're not an old lady. You're a fairy, and fairies don't age."
"Don't try to change the subject with sweet talk. What's really going on between you two?"
Natalie was usually easygoing, but for some reason, she was unusually persistent about Samuel. Amelia's attempt to change the subject failed.
Amelia said helplessly, "Mom, don't overthink it. Samuel and I aren't close to begin with. It's normal for him not to talk to me."
"Not close? I doubt that."
"Anyway, we really didn't have a fight."
Last night's dinner didn't count as a fight either.
She had just laid things out clearly with him.
Natalie opened her mouth but ultimately didn't press further.
She just held Amelia's hand and said, "I just want to tell you that Samuel is a good man, and my taste has always been good. Maybe you could consider him?"
Amelia squeezed Natalie's hand back.
"People aren't always what they seem. Just like Yasmin—didn't you all fail to notice she was ungrateful before?"
She couldn't be sure whether Samuel's approach to her and the other Richardson family members was related to the conflict between the Hays family and the Porter family, or if he had some other motive.
Until she figured that out, she wouldn't let her guard down around him.
Of course, she wouldn't become his enemy either.
It wouldn't be wise to make an enemy of someone powerful actively.
Their current relationship was the best it could be.
Natalie was at a loss for words.
After a moment, she said, "Fine, I can't argue with you. I'll get a bottle of water for Holden so he can bring in the gift you prepared when things wrap up."
"Okay."
Watching Natalie leave, Amelia also stood up, planning to walk around.
She'd been sitting so long her feet had gone numb.
But just then, a finely dressed woman reeking of perfume approached her.