Chapter 137 Real Mrs. Fitzgerald vs. Fake Mrs. Fitzgerald
Ophelia, not one to be outdone, hoisted her dress and hurried to catch up, offering Cecily a cold sneer as she approached, "What a coincidence, Miss Cecily attending the reception as well."
Elysia, standing aside, rolled her eyes and sneered sarcastically, "Cecily, since when do you have the right to attend receptions?"
"Is it any of your business?" replied Cecily, her voice dripping with exasperation.
Why did these two always feel the need to bicker with her upon sight?
Was it amusing?
Cecily had no desire to engage in a dispute with them this evening and so quickened her pace.
"What are you implying, Cecily?" Elysia was about to charge forward to confront Cecily when Ophelia shot her a warning glance, stopping her in her tracks.
"Are you planning to get beat up by Cecily again? Haven't you had enough?" Elysia's previous bravado instantly evaporated.
Yeah, Cecily was tough as nails, they couldn't best her.
They could only watch helplessly as Cecily walked away.
"Keep your temper in check; this isn't your house. Don't embarrass me," Ophelia said disdainfully to Elysia.
Elysia gritted her teeth and nodded in agreement.
Ophelia straightened her back and elegantly lifted her dress to walk inside.
As Cecily approached the entrance of the banquet hall, a hotel staff member said, "Ma'am, please present your invitation."
Cecily nodded, opened her clutch and rummaged through it, frowning.
The invitation was still with Aurelie.
"Just a moment," Cecily said, about to step aside to make a call when she heard Ophelia's voice from behind.
"Why aren't you going in, Miss Cecily?"
Ophelia glanced at the staff member, who said, "This lady may have forgotten her invitation."
Ophelia just smiled faintly.
Her gaze fixed on Cecily, "Did you not bring it?"
She spoke loudly enough for Elysia to overhear and immediately make a sarcastic comment, "Or is it that you never had one?"
Cecily couldn't care less about the two of them as Aurelie quickly picked up, "Sorry, sorry Cecily, I'm stuck in traffic. It might take another thirty minutes."
Cecily glanced at the time, "No worries, take your time and be safe."
"Alright, I'll hurry."
Elysia crossed her arms and watched Cecily with glee, seizing the opportunity to mock her, "Stop pretending if you don't have an invitation."
"Whether I have an invitation or not is none of your business, is it?" Cecily responded coolly.
Elysia snorted, "I just think you're making a fool of yourself. You obviously have no invitation, yet you loiter here. What are you all waiting for? She just wants to crash the party. Shouldn't someone like her be thrown out?"
The hotel staff member looked troubled.
"Alright, Elysia. Maybe Miss Cecily really did forget her invitation. Let's just go inside," Ophelia said with a faint smile, though her expression was bordering on mockery.
Their voices weren't quiet, and at the entrance of the banquet hall where people were coming and going, their exchange was in plain sight.
"Miss Ophelia, what's going on over here?" someone stopped to ask.
Ophelia offered a shallow smile, "Nothing much, Miss Cecily just didn't bring her invitation, and now she can't get in. I happened to know her, so I stopped to ask what happened."
Elysia snorted with laughter, "She just didn't have one, trying to sneak into the party. All this about forgetting it, it's just an excuse."
Hearing this, several ladies looked at Cecily, and their expressions changed. They always looked down on those who tried to crash parties.
"Miss Ophelia, let's not bother with such people, we should head in."
"Exactly, such shameless people aren't worth our attention."
Ophelia's face remained composed, but her eyes showed disdain as she raised her eyebrows provocatively at Cecily before strutting into the banquet hall.
Cecily didn't give her the time of day, glanced at her watch – Aurelie would be around in twenty or so minutes – found a spot to sit down, pulled out her phone, and started sorting through her unread emails.
...
Upon entering the banquet hall, Elysia's eyes nearly popped out of her head at the sight of the glittering, bustling party.
Her mom had been right; the high-society events she accessed through Ophelia were something the Watson family couldn't provide.
Ophelia watched Elysia's awestruck expression and sneered inwardly.
As Ophelia moved further inside with confident grace, the contrast with Elysia made the latter seem utterly dim.
Ophelia was naturally beautiful and had dressed with special care that evening. As the eldest daughter of the Flores family, she drew many admiring glances.
Basking in the glow of these appreciative eyes, Ophelia swelled with pride, her smile growing even more radiant.
Lifting the hem of her gown, she made her way to the center of the hall, sweeping her gaze around the room. She quickly spotted Darian, dressed in a sharp black suit and looking solemn.
Ophelia intercepted a waiter to grab a glass of red wine and started toward Darian's direction.
Darian was surrounded by a crowd of peers, including Hayden and Declan, as well as many other socialites. However, they all noticed that Darian seemed to be in a foul mood today and treaded carefully around him.
"Darian," Ophelia called out to him with a gentle voice.
Aside from Darian, the other men looked at her, each one visibly impressed by her allure.
Ophelia reveled in the attention she received.
Knowing that Ophelia was Darian's fiancée, one of the socialites tried to ingratiate himself by saying, "Miss Ophelia... Oh, I mean I should call you Mrs. Fitzgerald now."
A flash of coldness crossed Darian's face, and an icy sternness filled his dark eyes.
The men didn't seem to notice Darian's displeasure and continued to fawn over Ophelia.
"That's right, Miss Ophelia and Darian are about to get engaged. We should start calling her Mrs. Fitzgerald," one of them agreed.
Ophelia's mood brightened even further as she smiled happily and graciously accepted the compliments.
Hayden looked at the socialites suggesting they call Ophelia Mrs. Fitzgerald as if they were crazy.
'Do they even have a clue? The real Mrs. Fitzgerald hasn't even arrived yet.'
After flattering Ophelia, the socialite caught Darian's freezing glare and felt a shiver down his spine, causing him to shrink back.
Ophelia glanced around, lifted her dress slightly, and approached Darian, slipping her arm through his, "Darian, guess who I just saw at the entrance."
Darian didn't respond.
Knowing Darian's temperament, Ophelia wasn't embarrassed and continued, "It was Miss Cecily."
Darian's icy gaze flickered.
"Miss Cecily looked stunning today, it's just a shame she couldn't get in without an invite," Ophelia told Darian – not with the intention of helping Cecily, but of mocking.
Dressed up but unable to enter, how pitiful, how embarrassed, how ridiculous it sounded.
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