Chapter 23 Alaric's Charm

Cecilia watched Dominic's speech.
It was obvious that he was a bit nervous. Normally, in such situations, he wouldn't be nervous.
'Is it because of the pressure he felt from Alaric's speech earlier?’ thought Cecilia in her heart.
It had to be said that despite the impressions they had given to the public before, Dominic had no advantage in front of Alaric, but rather seemed inferior.
In fact, ever since Alaric rose to power, Cecilia knew that Dominic lacked Alaric's abilities. After all, back then, she had secretly helped him a lot, perhaps not just her, but others had also been assisting Dominic. Despite the support of so many people, he still couldn't suppress Alaric, which clearly indicated that he was no match for Alaric.
"Why do I suddenly feel that Dominic is not so good?" Seraphina looked at the TV screen and commented.
The shop assistant who had just been chatting enthusiastically with Seraphina dared not interrupt now.
Everyone knew that Dominic was Cecilia's fiancé, and they were about to get married soon. Who would dare to speak ill of Dominic in front of Cecilia? Only Seraphina could be so brave.
What surprised the shop assistant was that when Seraphina criticized Dominic, Cecilia didn't react at all.
At that moment, it seemed like she agreed with Seraphina's words.
The shop assistant thought, ‘Isn't it rumored that Cecilia loved Dominic very much? But from her reaction, it seems like they are not so intimate.’
In the VIP reception room, Cecilia and Seraphina were clearly there to get the Crown, but at that moment, everyone was focused on the Forbes Celebrity Awards.
There were five participants in the competition who had given speeches on stage.
Overall, Alaric's speech was indeed much better than the others, and he was the first to appear, stunning everyone and overshadowing the rest of the contestants in front of the judges.
The speeches concluded. The live voting took place, with the senior judges on-site making the final decision.
In Cecilia's previous life, Dominic had received this honor.
However, this time, Cecilia was a bit nervous as she watched the host holding the card in his hand, saying, "The live voting results are in. Based on the contributions of the five candidates to society and their performance during the speeches, the winner is..."
The tension in the room was palpable.
The shop assistant, staring at the screen, clenched her hands tightly, clearly nervous.
Not just her, Cecilia was also a bit nervous at that moment. She didn't know if everything that had happened in her previous life was about to change from that moment on.
She maintained her composure.
The host intentionally kept everyone on edge, not announcing the final results for what seemed like an eternity.
At least more than ten seconds passed, and finally, the host announced into the microphone, "Dominic!"
The whole place erupted in enthusiastic applause and the camera immediately shifted to Dominic.
The momentary nervousness that crossed Dominic's face was clearly visible to Cecilia. However, in the next second, he displayed his usual calm and composed demeanor.
He bowed deeply to the judges and the audience, appearing humble and very well-mannered and easily leaving a favorable impression on people.
Seraphina seemed somewhat disappointed. "There's really no surprise."
"Clearly, Mr. Whitaker is better," the shop assistant whispered with a tinge of regret in her tone but didn't dare say too much, afraid of upsetting Cecilia.
Cecilia actually felt a bit disappointed at that moment. She had thought she could change something. She adjusted her emotions, preparing to leave.
At that moment, the host suddenly excitedly announced, "And, Alaric! Congratulations, Mr. Whitaker!"
It was an unexpected announcement.
Dominic's smile instantly froze. His emotional shift was truly hard to conceal.
However, the camera had already moved to Alaric's face. He seemed to accept the result with great composure.
Even when his name was announced, he remained calm and collected, unperturbed by honor or disgrace.
"This bastard has such good manners," Seraphina couldn't help but say.
Although it sounded like praise coming from her, it seemed more like criticism.
However, Alaric today indeed had many unexpected shining points that were hard to ignore and accept. So it was normal for Seraphina to say such words.
"I always thought Mr. Whitaker was better." The shop assistant couldn't contain her excitement. She was afraid of offending Cecilia and quickly added, "Just like Mr. Kingsley."
Cecilia chuckled slightly. Alaric did surprise her.
She said to Seraphina, "Let's go."
"Aren't we going to see the award ceremony?" Seraphina seemed reluctant to leave.
Cecilia ignored Seraphina's question and told the staff, "Please send this Crown to the Lockhart family mansion."
"Of course, Ms. Lockhart," the shop assistant replied promptly.
Cecilia left the reception room. As Seraphina followed out, she glanced back a few times, seeing Alaric and Dominic on the screen together at that moment. ‘Shit, Cecilia is indeed wise. No matter what, Alaric is much more handsome than Dominic.’
She quickly caught up and got into Cecilia's car.
In the car, she kept talking about Alaric non-stop, even though Cecilia didn't respond, she seemed unusually excited.
"I've made a lunch appointment with Dashiell," Cecilia suddenly said.
Seraphina was stunned for a moment. She stared at Cecilia. "What did you just say?"
"I said I made a lunch appointment with Dashiell at the Crimson Spice Tavern restaurant, to have your favorite local dishes," Cecilia repeated.
"Are you out of your mind?" Seraphina suddenly became excited and her hair was almost standing on end.
Cecilia smiled. "Why are you so worked up? Dashiell has returned home; shouldn't we treat him as a friend?"
"He's been back for half a month, and now you want to treat him? Besides, when did you two become friends?" asked Seraphina.
Cecilia said, "We grew up together. If that's not friendship, then what is?"
"You know I really dislike him." Seraphina looked a bit aggrieved.
Cecilia refuted, "I remember you used to say you liked him."
Seraphina blushed instantly. "That was because I was young and ignorant about love. Besides, back then, at 15 or 16, I didn't know what liking someone meant. It was just during puberty, that thinking a faster heartbeat meant liking someone. When in fact, it was just occasional irregularities in the heart rate, my own misinterpretation. It wasn't until I met Sebastian that I understood what real liking is."
Cecilia asked, "Is that so?"
"Yes. Sebastian and I are very much in love, and our relationship is better than yours with Dominic... I mean, my relationship with Sebastian is not like yours with Dominic; we will be together forever." Seraphina asserted firmly.
Deserted Wife Strikes Back
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