And the next thing Ella knew was that she was surrounded by a lush greenery.
She looked at the man, realizing that he already had everything laid out for her.
At times, she wondered if he could read her mind, see through her concerns for him to be able to understand her so well.
"Is this the Imperial Garden that Grandma spoke of?"
"Yes." Adrian paused, "Do you like it?"
Ella gazed at the luxurious gardens that were too perfect for one to look away.
But such beauty held her attention barely for a moment before she glanced at Adrian’s face.
Ella then wrapped her arms around his neck, "No, I prefer the garden in our home."
Adrian’s steps slowed for a moment. And then he hoisted her up, closer to himself as he continued walking.
Back inside the palace, Ruby and Ronan stood in the same spot, alone in each other’s presence after Ella was stolen away by Adrian.
After the truth-and-dare night in the Eve Mansion, this was probably the first time Ruby and Ronan were in such proximity with each other.
Ronan leaned back on the pillar, arms crossed in front of his chest.
His gaze traced Ruby, her crimson locks, her cold eyes, the hint of hesitation in her gaze... And then his eyes landed on her bare shoulders, which were exposed after she draped her fur shawl around Ella.
Ruby was still looking into the direction in which Ella and Adrian had left when suddenly she felt a warmth around her shoulders.
When she looked behind, Ronan took a step back. But his suit jacket was draped around her shoulders.
And then wordlessly, Ronan turned to leave.
Ronan had just taken a few steps when he heard the clear voice calling out to him.
He halted in his tracks and turned to look at Ruby, "Is there something I can help you with?"
There was a distant edge to his voice and it made Ruby pause for a moment.
As the silence lingered, Ronan spoke up, "I am surprised that you didn’t bring your fiance here..."
"He will soon not be my fiance anymore," Ruby said calmly.
For a moment, Ronan was stunned. He couldn’t muster a single word out of his mouth.
A sense of happiness, relief, giddiness, possessiveness and other complicated emotions curled inside him, all at once.
But then he saw Ruby’s gaze wander.
When Ronan followed her gaze, he spotted Kade in the main hall, talking to a young girl in a corner.
And suddenly, Ronan’s heart turned cold. His fingers curled into fists. So, was it all for him?
"Actually, I..." When Ruby finally mustered her courage and looked away from the guests to speak to Ronan, she realized that she was standing all alone in the place.
And Ronan was already at a distance. The man descended the stairs and a beautiful woman approached him.
Ronan seemed to know the person well given how his eyes lit up the moment he saw. He held her hand and led her to the dance floor.
Ruby’s fingers curled around the gold railings, her eyes narrowing as she watched both the people on the dance floor.
The woman looked elegant and both of their dance moves were well-matched. And the way Ronan looked at her, whispered something in her ear... it was no doubt that he cherished her.
Ruby averted her gaze.
Downstairs, it just happened to be the moment when Ronan looked up in Ruby’s direction.
But, the light in his eyes dimmed when he realized that she was still gazing at Kade.
"I have been here for a long time now but you people are always busy with this and so we haven’t been able to catch up," Lilith said softly.
Ronan remained in a daze for a moment.
Ronan blinked and turned to her, "Sorry, the music was too loud. What did you say?"
Lilith sighed. After a moment, she opened her mouth, "What does that woman really mean to Ace?"
"Ella?" Ronan’s mind wandered a bit, his thoughts unstable and his gaze kept shifting to Ruby who still stood in the dim corner, "They are probably in love, if you cannot tell already... Ow!"
Lilith missed a step and her heels dug into Ronan’s shoes.
Ronan released her, realizing what he had just said. They had been friends for so long so everyone was quite aware of Lilith’s feelings for Adrian.
And if Ella was not in the picture, all of them had already pictured Lilith as his future wife.
Lilith had just stepped away from the dance floor when a man blocked her path.
"Cousin seems to be in a terrible mood," Luca clicked his tongue.
Lilith looked up at the man, a small smile immediately blooming on her face, "Cousin..." She hugged the man lightly.
Had Ella been here, she would have been shell-shocked to realize that the two families she deemed as rivals were actually related to each other.
Ronan massaged his brows as he walked towards them. As much as he wanted to console Lilith, what he said was the truth.
It would probably do her good if she accepted it early on.
"You didn’t come to find me earlier..." Lilith mumbled.
"Isn’t it because you seemed busy with your new secretary?" Luca arched a brow as they parted, "That guy seems quite mysterious though."
"Eli?" Lilith blinked, "He has been working for me for about a year now, he is not new. It’s just that you haven’t met him before. And I think he is just fine."
Luca sighed helplessly, "Alright alright, now you are defending him so fiercely."
Lilith shrugged her shoulders, "You are the second person who is so focused on him."
"Who was the first then?" Luca asked teasingly.
Ronan was conflicted about how to deal with the situation. But seeing the cousins interacting and catching up with each other, he was relieved.
Relaxing immediately, he turned to look in the direction where Ruby stood earlier.
But the moment he turned around, he spotted Ruby leaving through the main entrance.
He immediately stepped in that direction only to halt after a few steps.