His Grandfather Chose Me But I Chose His Dying Cousin Chapter 04 (Continue)
My cheek burned with sharp, stinging pain.
Instinctively, I wanted to hit him back.
But out of the corner of my eye, I saw all the guests around us.
Worried that I would ruin the Crawford family’s Thanksgiving dinner, I forced down my anger and glared at them instead.
A flicker of amusement appeared in Lily’s eyes.
Realizing he had gone a little too far, Evan tried to reach for me.
But Lily looped her arm through his, holding him in place.
“Evan, I think I got something in my eye. Can you take a look?”
Guests passing by turned to stare, whispering and pointing at me.
“Isn’t that Clara Bennett, the Bennett family’s eldest daughter? She’s so desperate to throw herself at a man that she’d even bully her own sister. She’s completely humiliated her family.”
Evan looked disgusted.
“Clara, apologize to Lily right now. How did I ever get tangled up with a woman like you? What rotten luck.”
The Crawford cousins behind him covered their mouths and snickered.
“Miss Bennett, this won’t do. You can’t even tolerate your own sister. Evan is going to have plenty of women on the side in the future. Are you planning to die of jealousy?”
“Hahaha. Maybe Miss Bennett can just beat up every woman in the city and chase away anyone who gets near Evan.”
Back then, because of Evan, I had specifically taken kickboxing lessons. I even declared that I would beat up any woman who tried to steal him from me.
Thinking about it now, it was truly humiliating.
Amid the laughter, Evan walked closer and spoke to me in a contemptuous tone.
“Granddad is going to announce our engagement today. If you still want to marry me, don’t forget what I told you.”
“After the wedding, we’ll both be free to see other people. You’re not allowed to interfere in my private life.”
“If you can do that, I’ll forgive you for being so vicious and arrogant.”
I stared at him in disbelief.
I could not understand how someone with an elite education could say something so ridiculous.
When I stayed silent, he took it as agreement.
That only made him more smug.
“As long as you behave, I won’t embarrass you too badly in public.”
He had already decided that in this life, I could only marry him.
Everyone watching was waiting for the show to continue.
Just then, footsteps came from inside the house. Mr. Walsh, Mr. Crawford Sr.’s longtime aide, stepped out and said, “What are you all arguing about out here? It’s Thanksgiving. Are you trying to upset Mr. Crawford Sr.?”
Behind him was another person.
It was Harrison Crawford, the sixth Crawford grandson.
Today, no one was pushing his wheelchair. He was wearing a tailored formal suit, and he looked much healthier than before.
When he saw me covering my face, he walked past the crowd and came straight to me.
In a low voice, he asked, “Are you okay?”
Seeing him, I suddenly remembered my previous life, when I had nowhere left to go and wandered the streets like a ghost.
A car had slowly pulled to a stop beside me.
The window rolled down, and it was this same face inside.
“Clara, what are you doing here?”
He had never called me his sister-in-law, and I used to think it was because he did not accept me.
Only near the end of my life did I learn that was not the reason.
“Does it hurt?” Harrison asked again when he saw me staring blankly.
I lifted my head and met his deep eyes.
My eyes suddenly burned.
Then I smiled and said, “No.”
Evan snorted.
“What does it matter to you whether it hurts or not, Harrison? She’s going to be your future sister-in-law.”
Mr. Walsh looked surprised when he heard that.
In the end, he only said, “Go inside. Mr. Crawford Sr. is waiting.”