After a long moment, Myra replied faintly, “We can have only one best man. Who should we pick?” There would be a quandary if they really intended to match Heather with the best man.
Then, the choice for best man would become complicated, as there were currently two candidates from which Myra and Tony had to choose the one most suited to Heather.
“Well, from your point of view, who would suit Heather more—Philip or Lucas?” It wasn’t up to Tony to decide, since Myra knew Heather better, anyway.
“It’s hard to say. They both have their merits,” Myra replied hesitantly, wondering if she should have them meet up once more before the wedding.
It felt too improper for them only to have met under the flickering lights of Zion Club and the influence of alcohol. There was a possibility that in broad daylight, Heather could feel a different spark altogether with the two candidates.
“We still need to see what Heather thinks,” Tony suggested meaningfully.
“Let’s find a time to meet up tomorrow,” she proposed.
At this point, he gave her a conflicted look. There were quite a few things that needed to be done tomorrow, and it would not be easy for them to gather the group together.
Not to mention that, even if they could summon the others, they might not be able to summon Heather unless they found a suitable excuse, as she would be busy with Langston Group.
Regardless, the discussion continued, causing Heather to sneeze multiple times as she walked home alone in the frigid evening. The chill of fall was already descending, and she bundled up tightly as she made her way home alone after having declined others’ good-natured invitations to send her home.
All along, she would refuse such invitations. She had a very independent personality, which prevented her from allowing people she barely knew to send her home. Matthias was the only exception, but at the thought of Matthias, she shuddered internally; she didn’t like his sudden appearance.
Long ago, she decided to give up on him and no longer allow herself to grow close to him. It was a good thing that, during this period, he never held the contract over her.
Tonight, she had witnessed Myra’s unbridled joy, something which genuinely thrilled her. She was gratified to see that Myra had such a group of good friends, for it meant Myra hadn’t done too badly for herself in the past few years.
Likely, the worst thing Myra ever did was marry Sean, but it didn’t matter anymore because she was going to marry the man she loved now. Tony Hart—the man who was to make her happy for the rest of her life—wore his heart on his sleeve and looked at her with love in his eyes.
Perhaps because it was such a happy occasion, Heather drank quite a lot. Now, she started feeling the effects of the alcohol. With her body swaying and swinging, she staggered her way back to her room, thinking of Estelle once more.
While Heather was overseas, she read articles mentioning Estelle’s on-and-off relationships. Who knew even Estelle would find true love?
To say Heather wasn’t envious would be a lie. She was currently the only single woman in the group—she could tell that even Elliot and Tilly were a couple. The thought of the three couples struck her in the chest.
However, the two remaining bachelors seemed interested in her.
A lot of the time, she couldn’t tell whether such initial interest was due to her beauty or some other reason.
Gently opening the door to her place, she rushed into the bathroom and washed her face before looking at herself in the mirror. She was attractive—the Langston Family genes gave her a face beautiful and a uniquely stunning body enough to devastate nations.
While she wasn’t the most attractive member of the family, the way she carried herself helped her stand out. It was rare for someone so beautiful to have such a remarkable disposition, and it was no wonder she drew attention wherever she went.
After removing her makeup, she peered at her soft, pink face in the mirror. Ever since senior high, she hadn’t been what could be considered cute. Back then, she was still a little cutie pie, but that was a long time ago, and she missed those days all of a sudden.
The next day, the group chat was as busy as ever. Whenever she had time, she would go and take a peek at it. She didn’t mind getting to know Myra’s friends as she was still very unfamiliar with Bradford City and didn’t know many people she could get along with.
Since Myra was kind enough to bring Heather into her own circle of friends, Heather wasn’t going to refuse the invitation for friendship. This time, Estelle wasn’t going out of her way to hide from Heather either.
Previously, Myra kept telling Estelle that Heather had changed, but Estelle was disinclined to believe that the arrogant and domineering Heather could be much different from the person she used to be. It was only when seeing her the previous night that Estelle’s jaw nearly fell open in shock.
‘Have lunch with me today.’ Myra was telling Heather in the group chat.
When Heather saw the message, she didn’t immediately reply. Realizing that Heather wasn’t replying, Myra quipped that the lack of response meant acquiescence. In response, Heather laughed. Of course she was happy to have lunch with Myra, so she answered with a ‘….’
Satisfied with Heather’s answer, Myra began to address the other members of the group, saying, ‘If you’re nearby, come and eat with us at my house.’
At this point, Tony jumped in with, ‘Myra’s making you all home-cooked food today, so if you have time, do come over.’
Upon seeing the message, Myra rolled her eyes at him. Currently, they were huddled up on the couch in the living room, and she told him, “I’m only making two or three dishes. If you say that, they’re going to think that I’m the one who prepared all the food.”
Pulling her into his lap with one arm, he said, “Two or three is enough.” His words were followed by a kiss on her cheeks.
“Are you skipping work again today? You’re becoming lazier and lazier,” she chastised him with dissatisfaction.
Because he was busy with preparations for the wedding, he rarely went to work now. However, as he felt it was best for him to be personally involved with the wedding, he couldn’t find it in him to care about official business right now. While there were certain matters he could compromise on, he was set on participating in the preparations, no matter how much Myra criticized him.
“I’m going to start making lunch,” she told him, making her escape before he could kiss her again.
Yearning for more, he watched her run away. Finally, he knew what it meant to be madly in love. Whenever she was around him, he didn’t feel like doing anything else.
Oh, how he wished he could hold her forever! He felt like he was bewitched or as if she had drugged him. As he watched her retreat, his elated mind manifested the image of him hugging her from behind.
Coincidentally, today happened to be the day Serena returned from abroad with Henry. They had gone on holiday overseas only to return the day before Henry started school.
Thus, Myra wanted to take the opportunity to invite them over for lunch to liven up the place. The house hadn’t been busy in a while—Heather’s visit was the last time it had seen visitors. After that, everyone was busy with their own things as if they had planned it.
While Myra cooked, Tony attended to his own business—that was, he went to the airport to pick up his sister and his nephew. Before lunch, right after Myra finished laying the dishes, the three of them arrived home. The moment Henry saw Myra, he rushed up to her.
“Be careful!” Tony shouted behind him, afraid that Henry would be too reckless to the detriment of Myra’s pregnancy.
However, Henry hugged Myra so closely that it nearly made Tony jealous. At the same time, because she hadn’t seen Henry in a long time, she hugged back just as tightly.
As Serena watched her son’s behavior, she couldn’t help pouting and commenting with feigned jealousy, “So, you complained all the way here that you wanted Aunt Myra, and now you can’t let go of her. You don’t want your mother anymore, do you?”
Immediately, Henry rushed back to his mother and put on his most adoring face. “That’s not true, Mom!”
Happy and harmonious, the family chattered and made merry. At this point, Tony even emphasized, “Myra cooked today. She’s showing off her cooking skills!”
In response, Myra rolled her eyes at him. Good Lord! You’re embarrassing me! After all, the chefs had prepared most of the food, and she had added only a few home-cooked dishes, but he was acting as if everything on the table were the fruits of her labor.
Ignoring her eye-roll, he continued telling Serena, “We’ve also invited a few friends over. The house has been so quiet since you and Henry left, and we haven’t had a good party in a while.”
In response, Serena smiled. She didn’t mind, for she had met the friends Tony was talking about.
“Where are Grandpa and Grandma?” she asked.
After exchanging a smile with Myra, he replied, “They’ve gone out. I tell you, they’re even more unrestrained than us young folk!”
During this period, Lisa and Sebastian were absent from home nearly every day. They would frequently go out on walks, eating at the various restaurants they encountered and doing god-knew-what-else. It was likely they were looking back at the romantic dates they used to have; at any rate, it was a good thing for them to be out and about while they were still in good health.
Meanwhile, this was Heather’s second visit to the Hart Residence. After parking her car outside, she rang the doorbell. Noting that Heather arrived rather quickly this time, Myra opened the door for her.
When Heather saw Myra, she let out a happy smile. As she was led into the living room, she noticed a mother-and-son pair sitting on the couch.
Hesitantly, she turned to Myra only to have Myra whisper into her ear, “This is Tony’s elder sister. The one sitting next to her is her son.”
Giving the mother-and-son pair on the couch a polite smile, she introduced herself formally. “Nice to meet you. I’m Myra’s friend.”
As this was Serena’s first time meeting Heather, she only nodded at Heather. It was curious—Myra was clearly the plainer of the two.
On the other hand, Myra’s friends always seemed prettier and more coquettish. That wasn’t the case only with Estelle but with Heather as well. When Heather and Myra stood next to each other, it was hard to tell that they were good friends, for Heather carried herself in a completely different way to Myra.
Following their introduction, Tony explained Heather’s identity to Serena. Serena realized that she rarely saw such beautiful women who carried themselves so well. Even if Heather didn’t necessarily look approachable to other women, her temperament made her difficult to hate.
Upon learning her name, Henry told Heather with bright eyes, “Miss Langston, you’re so pretty.”
Children spoke in such a straightforward manner, and it made Heather smile, which in turn prompted Henry to say, “Miss Langston, you look even prettier when you smile.” He had learned to sweet-talk girls at such a young age!
On the other hand, Serena gave him an exasperated look. Feeling like he was impolite in front of strangers, she chided him a little sternly, “It’s not polite to speak so glibly to strangers.”
Instantly, he fell silent. Nonetheless, Heather found it endearing. After all, the children in her own household were much too wild, and Henry was practically an angel in comparison.
“He’s very cute,” she praised with a big smile.
