Chapter 261 Alaric's Kindness to Cecilia
Cecilia's mind raced as she considered the implications.
A bitter smile danced on her lips.
She thought, 'Is this the legendary case of the thief crying thief? It seems as though the situation is escalating to the point where their faces would be bruised from the shame.'
She turned to Alaric. "Have you gathered all the evidence?"
Alaric didn't respond.
"Are the records of Vincent and Charles' crimes properly documented?" Cecilia pressed.
There was still no answer from Alaric.
"Alaric?" Cecilia's tone took on a sharper edge.
Alaric continued to ignore her.
"Hello?" Cecilia called out, a touch exasperated.
Alaric seemed to act as if he hadn't heard her.
"Did you suddenly space out or something?" Cecilia asked, her frustration evident.
Alaric glanced at her but remained silent.
Cecilia stared back at him, finally understanding what was bothering him.
It was clear he was still sulking over her mention of Dominic.
She thought, 'Could he please not be so petty?
'I haven't even brought up his countless affairs.'
"I have no expectations of Dominic," Cecilia said, trying to placate him.
With Alaric, she could never win a battle of wills.
Even when she tried to resist, she found herself caught in his vortex.
This man was truly dangerous.
"I've already gathered the evidence," Alaric finally spoke up.
Her concession seemed to have prompted his response.
Cecilia asked, "Is the evidence with you?"
"No, it's with Cassius. He'll have it ready for me before the court date."
"Don't you want to review it beforehand and maybe brush up on your arguments?" Cecilia couldn't help but ask.
"Do you doubt me, Ms. Lockhart?" Alaric's tone turned serious.
Cecilia quickly reassured him, "No, I trust you."
She couldn't afford to say otherwise.
Alaric might just find new ways to make her life miserable.
"Good girl." Alaric's smile was disarming.
He was already strikingly handsome, and his smile only made him more irresistible—a weapon in itself.
Cecilia hastily avoided his touch, stepping away.
Alaric's fingers froze momentarily before he let them drop, unaffected.
"I'm feeling a bit tired. I'm going to take a shower and then have dinner," he announced.
"Do you need any company?"
Cecilia muttered under her breath, "Pervert!"
Cecilia dashed up the stairs, locking the door behind her as soon as she was back in her room.
She thought, 'Who knows if Alaric might just burst in suddenly?'
Cecilia took a shower, changed into some comfy loungewear, and as she towel-dried her damp hair, she checked her phone.
Another news alert popped up: [Ophelia Refutes Cecilia's Claims, Sticks to Allegations Against Theodore's Disobedience.]
Cecilia tapped on the headline.
In the video, Ophelia hit back hard, claiming that the monthly living expenses were mandated by her grandfather's will, so the payments were necessary to cover Ophelia's living costs, not something Theodore willingly provided. She argued that her extreme methods weren't meant to force Theodore to step down but were about proving Theodore was unfit to hold the chairman position at Lockhart Group. Ophelia insisted that the will had been tampered with illegally by Theodore and promised legal action to reopen the investigation.
Cecilia skimmed through it, but she wasn't angry anymore.
In fact, she found it oddly satisfying that Ophelia's efforts to stir up trouble would only make the eventual humiliation more pronounced.
She was looking forward to seeing Ophelia and Vincent make fools of themselves in two days!
"Ms. Lockhart, are you drowning in the bathtub?" Alaric's voice suddenly came from outside the door.
Cecilia sighed, thinking, 'Does he ever have anything pleasant to say?'
"If you don't open the door soon, I'm going to break it down," Alaric said, not sounding like he was kidding.
She wouldn't put it past him.
Cecilia quickly opened the door.
Alaric's face showed a brief flicker of panic before he masked it with his usual calm demeanor.
He was clearly irked. "You finished your shower but still locked the door?"
Cecilia thought, 'Does he really need to be here? I don't want to see him.'
"And why haven't you dried your hair yet?" Alaric frowned.
Cecilia touched her wet hair. "I'll do it later."
"What if you catch a cold later?"
"It's not cold. I don't catch colds easily."
"Come here." Alaric took Cecilia's hand, guiding her toward the bathroom.
Before she could protest, Alaric led her to the vanity, made her sit down, and then grabbed a hairdryer. Without a word, he began drying her hair for her.
At that moment, Cecilia swallowed the words she was about to say.
Alaric's kindness was something she couldn't refuse.
She found herself wondering, 'Why did I ever think Dominic was so good to me?
'Dominic has never done anything special for me. How have I been so easily deceived back then?
'It's simply my naive belief that because we have grown up together as childhood friends, my kindness would be reciprocated.
'How pathetically naive I was back then!'
Cecilia watched Alaric, who was focused on drying her hair in the mirror.
In her memories, Alaric was a classic playboy.
He had been with countless women.
But suddenly, she recalled a few encounters with Alaric in her past life.
Rumors had it that Alaric was never picky with women; anyone he desired was quickly his conquest. But Cecilia remembered one incident very clearly.
She had rarely attended events with Dominic, but once, she went to a private concert.
She couldn't recall who hosted it, but she went with Dominic.
That was where she ran into Alaric.
Cecilia remembered colliding with him while heading to the restroom. Instinctively, she tried to grab onto Alaric to steady herself.
But as soon as her hand touched his clothes, he had roughly pushed her away.
She didn't fall from the collision, but his shove sent her sprawling to the ground.
Cecilia vaguely remembered Alaric's brief look of panic, as if he wanted to help her up, only to turn and walk away coldly.
At that moment, she had thought Alaric was the worst man in the world, bar none.
Her negative impression of him started there, and it never improved—until she was reborn.
Now, Cecilia was puzzled.
She thought, 'Alaric's push seemed instinctive. Was it his reflex to avoid any physical contact?
'A playboy who dislikes being touched?'
She couldn't help but scrutinize Alaric.
Staring at his serious and handsome face in the mirror, she wondered about the women in his life. They said he had many, but she couldn't recall any names.
Alaric suddenly met her gaze in the mirror. "Ms. Lockhart, if you keep staring at me like that, I might get the wrong idea… That you want to… sleep with me."
Cecilia felt that Alaric had a knack for ruining the mood.
Just as she was lost in her contemplations about the kind of man Alaric truly was, he threw a bucket of cold water on her thoughts, making her unwilling to think about anything further.
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