Chapter 213

The hall was packed with people. Sarah recognized some faces in the crowd, though most were strangers. Not that it mattered; she had no interest in making small talk with the ones she did know.

Kylie stood out like a doll in her dress, her sweet features drawing curious glances from around the room. Owen was deep in conversation with someone across the room, too busy to notice Sarah had arrived.

Sarah marched straight over with Kylie in tow. "Owen," she said, cutting into his conversation. "I’d like you to meet my granddaughter, Kylie."

Kylie grabbed the sides of her dress and dipped into a perfect curtsy. "Mr. York," she said softly. "It’s a pleasure to meet you."

Owen studied the girl standing before him. She was pretty enough, he supposed, with delicate features that caught the light. But when it came to real elegance and that indefinable allure that turned heads, Shermaine still outshone her completely.

He noticed she’d greeted him in the Wallingtonian style. Her pronunciation wasn’t perfect, but it was decent enough to show she’d made an effort.

“Hello, Kylie,” Owen replied simply.

At least she hadn’t called him "Uncle" or some other ridiculous family title. If she’d dared to address him that way, he would’ve shut her down immediately with a look that could freeze hell over.

The Bynes family meant nothing to Owen, but as long as she kept things formal, treating him like any other guest, he could play nice for appearances’ sake.

Sarah glanced around the room before turning to Owen. “Hey, where’s Joshua? I don’t see him anywhere.”

Owen kept his expression neutral. “He’s on his way.”

“Oh, okay.” Sarah nodded, then pressed on with another question. “So when are Joshua and Shermaine planning to tie the knot?”

Owen thought, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. Joshua’s already a married man. They already got their marriage license.’

But Owen wasn’t about to spill the beans on her. For one thing, she didn’t need to know – it wasn’t any of her business anyway.

And besides, Shermaine and Joshua had decided to keep their marriage under wraps for now. They weren’t planning on having a wedding ceremony anytime soon.

“Why do you ask?” Owen responded coolly.

Sarah put on her most righteous tone. “Well, I just think marriage is such a huge life decision. People shouldn’t rush into it without really knowing each other first. They need to truly understand one another before starting a family together.”

What she was implying was that the York family should think twice before letting Shermaine marry in. They shouldn’t just let anyone waltz through their doors without proper vetting.

Sarah was dying to mention that she’d seen Shermaine at the mall the other day, shopping for rings at a jewelry store with some random guy. But she bit her tongue. She didn’t want Owen thinking she’d come here to stir up trouble.

After all, today was supposed to be Shermaine’s graduation party.

Sarah had to admit Shermaine had done pretty well for herself. She’d scored top achiever in natural science at Basterel. That was no small feat.

But clearly, Shermaine was the type who couldn’t be satisfied with what she had. Having Joshua wasn’t enough – she had to go and get involved with other guys too.

Sure, Sarah had cheated on her first husband, but she never wanted to marry him in the first place. Her second husband was her actual soulmate.

Owen frowned. “So what you’re saying is that Joshua and I don’t know how to judge people’s character?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Sarah replied.

“Then stop meddling in the York family’s business. I’m perfectly happy with Shermaine, and Joshua even more so.”

Seeing Owen’s expression darkening, Sarah wisely held her tongue and didn’t say another word against Shermaine.

Sarah and Kylie followed Owen to his table and sat down.

Kylie understood Wallingtonian perfectly well. She could tell Owen was fiercely protective of Shermaine. Sarah just loved sticking her nose where it didn't belong, and saying things like that would rub people the wrong way.

If Shermaine wasn’t good enough for Joshua, she should just break them up instead of beating around the bush like this.

Just as Kylie was getting bored out of her mind waiting, Shermaine and Joshua walked in from outside, hand in hand, looking like the perfect couple.

Joshua wore a white dress shirt with the collar buttoned up, but his sleeves were rolled up to reveal his forearms.

Maybe it was because he’d finally gotten some action last night, but now he gave off this lazy, sensual vibe. That underlying sense of restraint he carried in his bones was even stronger than before.

His hand rested on Shermaine’s waist, and you could see it plain as day – he was intensely possessive of the girl.