Delayed Passion: Miss Lynch's Unrequited Love-Chapter 81: Thea Lynch Is Ian Preston’s White Moonlight
Sean Bell did not hold back his voice, and as soon as he spoke, everything fell silent. It was as if someone had pressed pause; even Thea Lynch was momentarily stunned, turning her head in surprise to look at him.
But he didn’t care, leaning against the sofa, his long legs crossed, resting one hand on the armrest and lazily supporting his head with the other, his tone teasing: "Didn’t you say you’re sorry? Why don’t you take it off?"
Everyone: "..."
Just from Sean Bell’s tone, even Little Wan dared not speak for Nina Sinclair.
He didn’t dare, let alone anyone else.
For a moment, Nina Sinclair stood there alone, as if she had already been stripped bare for everyone to see, and whispers continued around her, accompanied by a few gasps.
Nina Sinclair had never been this embarrassed.
She was pinning her hopes on Little Wan, but he averted his eyes quickly upon meeting hers, showing no intention of helping.
Clearly, he was the one who insisted on bringing her over...
"Young Master Sean, please stop joking. I’ll go change my dress in the restroom later."
"Ha." Sean Bell squinted his eyes. "Do I look like I’m joking?"
"Even if it were before, when you still had a connection with Ian, you weren’t qualified enough for me to joke with you."
"Do you need someone else to remind you of your own worth?"
Sean Bell was determined to put Nina Sinclair in a difficult spot, while Thea Lynch pretended not to hear, quietly drinking.
The red wine prepared for the banquet tonight was quite good, well-aged, probably private stock.
A phone buzzed in her bag.
Thea Lynch took it out to check the message.
Silas Cheney: "What’s going on? You went with Sean Bell to the auction?"
Thea Lynch pursed her lips and typed with one hand: "Your news is a bit slow, fourth brother."
After a pause, she asked, "Why didn’t I see you today?"
It was quite surprising that Silas Cheney didn’t attend such an event.
Silas Cheney: "On my way. What’s happening there, what’s Sean Bell doing?"
Silas Cheney must have heard something, hesitated, and Thea Lynch explained the current situation to him.
After two seconds, Silas Cheney replied with a series of ellipses, clearly speechless.
"Keep your distance from him," Silas Cheney advised, "Let him cause a scene if he wants, but don’t get dragged into it. Hurry up and leave."
"Got it." This place wasn’t suitable for a long stay. Even if Silas Cheney hadn’t said so, she wasn’t planning to linger.
Putting down her wine glass, she stood up.
Seeing this, Sean Bell’s gaze shifted to her, "Where are you going?"
She glared at him disdainfully, "Bathroom. Want to follow?"
Sean Bell shrugged his shoulders and didn’t follow.
Nina Sinclair shot her a deep glance and suddenly called out to her as she stepped forward, "Miss Lynch."
"..."
Many around turned their heads, all eager to watch the drama unfold.
They wanted to join the commotion but were afraid of being too obvious, so they stopped their conversations, trying to listen closely.
Thea Lynch turned slightly and met her gaze, "Anything you need from me?"
"I owe you an apology; I didn’t expect we’d wear the same dress. Miss Lynch, please don’t be upset. I’ll go change it now. Is that alright with you?"
The focus shifted to Thea Lynch.
As if she were the mastermind behind it all.
Upon hearing, Thea Lynch gave a slight smile, "What does what you wear have to do with me?"
"If you want to change, then change, if you want to take it off, take it off. Asking me is unnecessary. Or is Miss Sinclair trying to imply something? Want me to change my dress?"
"If that’s the case, speak openly. No need to beat around the bush. Miss Sinclair always carries weight with her words, so if you say something, I’ll definitely oblige."
Growing up, under her brother’s strict guidance, Thea Lynch usually didn’t care to bicker with others. But if she wished to be sarcastic, she was a match for Sean Bell.
She wasn’t a delicate flower.
Never was.
No one could ever bully her since she was a child. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦
"That’s not what I meant." Nina Sinclair hadn’t expected her response, awkwardly stepping forward to speak openly. "I..."
As she took a step but hadn’t reached Thea Lynch, the opposite table was suddenly kicked forcefully, causing the wine glasses on it to tremble and then crash to the floor near her feet.
Nina Sinclair shrank her shoulders, trembling as she looked towards the culprit.
"Try taking one more step forward." Sean Bell still wore a smile, but it wasn’t as friendly as before.
"What’s going on here?" Silas Cheney arrived upon hearing the commotion.
Thea Lynch was feeling annoyed and took the chance to leave.
——
In the bathroom stall, Thea Lynch unlocked her phone, cursorily scanning the messages sent by Silas Cheney earlier.
She didn’t reply. Just as she was about to exit, conversations drifted in from outside.
"Earlier, did Nina Sinclair offend the eldest daughter of the Lynch Family? Tsk, just over wearing the same dress, and she got publicly humiliated."
"Shh! You shouldn’t say stuff like that carelessly."
"Why not?"
"Do you think Nina Sinclair is a good person? Maybe she wore the same dress intentionally today to provoke the Lynch Family lady. Didn’t you notice how similar their outfits are today?"
"That’s true. Nina Sinclair initially had her hair up and then let it down later, making them look identical from behind."
"Back years ago, do you know why Nina Sinclair caught the attention of Mr. Ian Preston from the Preston Family?"
"Isn’t it said that they were schoolmates abroad and knew each other for quite some time?"
"Pfft. Loads of people were schoolmates with Mr. Preston. Take Nina Sinclair, in her hometown she might come from a good family, but in Coronet, her background is trivial. Compared to the Lynch Family, they are worlds apart. Logically, someone like her shouldn’t be able to approach Mr. Preston."
"Then why?"
"I heard it was because she resembled the Lynch Family lady somewhat."
This was followed by a burst of exclamations from outside.
Thea Lynch frowned lightly.
What nonsensical stuff was flying around this circle? How did it have anything to do with her?
Who was so idle to spread this version around?
She reached out to open the door, not wanting to eavesdrop further.
These gossips were utterly baseless.
Listening to them was an auditory irritant.
"Keep your voice down! Everyone knows Mr. Preston has an unrequited ’white moonlight’ love interest."
"So... it’s the Lynch Family lady?"
"Of course!"
"..." Thea Lynch’s hand paused at the door.
The two outside spoke more enthusiastically, voices growing louder.
"Is that for real? This can’t be spread around carelessly, right?"
"If it were false, would Mr. Preston let this rumor persist till now? It’s clearly his stance. Now that the Lynch Family lady has returned home, what role does Nina Sinclair play?"
"So the Lynch Family lady doesn’t like Mr. Preston?"
"Who knows? Anyway..."
"Anyway what? Don’t leave us hanging!"
"Like or not, it’s certain there’s no future between Mr. Preston and the Lynch Family lady."
"Why? No matter how you see it, they seem quite compatible, right?"
"Because years ago, Mr. Preston’s mother and the Lynch Family lady’s father were childhood friends, almost engaged. But later, the Lynch Family lady’s mother intervened."
