Suddenly, the group of young men found themselves staring into the face of someone striking and refined, his eyes dark and cold. The chill that ran up their spines came out of nowhere. They stopped walking without even realizing it.
Their attention went straight to Anthony’s hand, the one feeding Charlotte a lychee. The way he did it was so natural, so close, like this wasn’t the first time, not by a long shot.
Who was this guy? He looked familiar, but none of them could place him. Was he related to the Gates family? Maybe the son of some other big shot? He definitely seemed pretty close with Charlotte.
The heavy, intimidating air around Anthony made the boys quietly look at each other. After a few seconds, the youngest one—probably eighteen and not the sharpest—pushed down his nerves and tried to keep his cool. “We just wanted to talk to Lottie,” he said.
Anthony dragged out his reply, eyes narrowing just a little as he fed Charlotte another lychee. He gently wiped the corner of her mouth, then turned to the boy with a lazy smile. “What did you call her? Say that again, I didn’t catch it.”
The way Anthony spoke, paired with how comfortable he was with Charlotte, made it obvious to anyone that something was up. Even the slowest guy in the room could see it.
Feeling the tension, the boy didn’t say another word. He just stepped back, looking a little embarrassed.
Charlotte was only a freshman. Did she already have a boyfriend?
“Lottie, here’s your juice,” Donald said, setting a glass down next to her.
“Lottie, cake for you,” Roger added, bringing over a plate of pastries.
Donald, Roger, and Kenneth exchanged looks. Wasn’t she just going to the bathroom? It’s not like she was going to disappear.
“I’ll go too,” Kenneth said, hands stuffed in his pockets as he strolled after Anthony.
The two of them, one following the other, looked pretty close. Samantha, who had just finished greeting some guests, turned around at just the right moment to see Anthony and Kenneth heading toward the restroom. Both of them, at once? Seriously?
She tried to push away the uneasy feeling in her chest, but curiosity got the better of her and she followed after them.
Her mind was racing with all sorts of wild thoughts. What if the two of them were really together? What would she do then? She wasn’t the strict, old-fashioned type. She could accept something like that if she had to. Besides, Anthony really was a pretty great guy.

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