Bought For A Baby, Kept For A Lifetime-Chapter 165: Rivalry

Anne steadily walked into the room, looking from one woman to the next. They both had their eyes on her expectantly as if whichever one of them Anne chose to sit next to would be the winner in their silent competition.

Anne didn’t want to be the cause of any strife, hence the moment she reached them, instead of choosing to sit next to either of them, she chose to sit in the empty sofa at the side.

"I think I’d feel more comfortable sitting here."

Both women glanced at each other for a moment before one of them, the one in red burst into a smile.

"That’s good, you should sit where you feel most comfortable. By the way I’m Fiona Vaughn, from the second branch Sterling family. I’m married to your husband’s second uncle from his mother’s side. You can call me aunt Fiona."

Anne nodded as the woman made her introductions.

"And I’m Elara, also married to your husband’s uncle and since my husband is older, my status in the family is a little bit higher than hers."

Fiona didn’t seem to like that, so she quickly countered.

"What status? Regardless of age our status in the family is exactly the same. Besides, all your age gives you are those wrinkles around your eyes."

"Who said I was older than you? I only said my husband was older, talking about wrinkles, those smile lines of yours are getting more and more prominent." Elara shot back in a feisty tone.

"I think...both of you have a very high status in the family, Aunt Fiona, Aunt Elara, anyone who sees you both can already tell you are both very distinguished."

Sensing that the argument wouldn’t end if someone didn’t find a way to put a stop to it, Anne quickly chimed in with sugared words to calm both women down.

That seemed to get the women satisfied. Both of them looked at Anne in a newer light, eyes shining with interest.

"But surely there’s something about me that stands out more than her right? It shouldn’t be that hard to tell that I’m way more fashionable than she is." Elara quickly picked up again as if she didn’t want to give up until she got the higher praise.

Fiona merely scoffed hearing that.

"If you fantasize about something, have some shame before saying it publicly. You can never surpass me, but you dream of it, it’s embarrassing for you to ask our little bride. She obviously can’t answer your hopeful delusional questions."

As both women heatedly glared at one another, only Anne’s voice as she spoke up broke the tension.

"Aunt Elara, I think your style is very common, it’s vintage." Anne said after studying the woman’s attire.

"Pfft..."

Hearing that, Fiona couldn’t hold in her laughter.

"...but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone put together a classic yet graceful looking vintage style like yours. I believe there’ll be many people wanting to emulate your style."

As Anne’s final words fell, the smile on Fiona’s face dissipated and a look of glee showed on Elara’s face.

"You sure do know style Annelise. You’re right, many people eagerly wait to see what I’ll wear on a daily basis. There are a few Inst***** pages dedicated to my specific daily style, they copy my looks for inspiration. You could search up Elara Vaughn and you’ll see what I’m talking about." The woman spoke boastfully, delightfully reveling in Anne’s compliment.

"Aunt Fiona, your jewelries are outstanding. Are those limited edition Curiel diamonds?"

Fiona quickly jumped on the attention when Anne’s focus seemed to shift to her.

She instantly began to show off her own jewelries.

"Do you know how I got this? These jewelry pieces cannot be sold, so I can guarantee you no one has the same set." She said while giving Elara a triumphant look.

"Curiel themselves contacted me and asked if I could wear their jewelry for an event, it was a promotion on their part because they were absolutely certain that once this jewelry is seen on me, their new collection will sell out immediately. Let me tell you, they absolutely sold out every piece released because I wore a Curiel to an event."

"Aunt, you both have impeccable tastes. Surely being around each other has made you both even more stylish, you must have rubbed off of each other right?"

As they heard Anne say this, both women looked thoughtful for a moment and as their gazes met, the hostility and tension between them began to lessen more and more.

It was true that they sometimes rubbed off of each other, after all because of their rivalry they ended up buying things of the same color just because the other person bought it.

"Hmph! I’m sure she learned a lot from me." Elara said softly while Fiona merely rolled her eyes no longer bothering to argue then turned to Anne.

"By the way, have you spoken to your new mother in law?" Fiona asked Anne in a gossiping tone.

Anne shook her head.

The woman Michael Sterling brought home now as his wife would be considered her mother in law, but Anne didn’t want to put herself into the family’s matters, especially after Andrew’s reminder earlier.

They weren’t a real couple, it was just a facade to everyone else.

"Don’t worry dear, I’m on your side. Michael hasn’t been in this family for a very long time, he has no right to suddenly come back and take what belongs to you. You’re the first mistress of the Sterling family, that woman was suddenly brought from nowhere, she shouldn’t take your place."

Elara also chimed in at this point.

"For the first time you say something that makes sense Fiona. Listen Annelise, you might be young but you’re very capable of being the female head of this family after old master passes, don’t let some strange woman snatch that spot from you. Elder Sterling favors you, use that to your advantage." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Anne only smiled softly.

"Actually, I don’t really want to be the family mistress."

Both women looked shocked. They stared at Anne as if she’d grown two heads.