The ladies were giving the girl in the wheelchair weird looks. Looks of disdain. Of scorn. To them, this woman was nothing but a gold digger wishing to marry into a rich family. Such women would gain nothing but contempt from them, not to mention the woman was someone who couldn't even stand up on her own two feet. In most cases, they wouldn't look down on those with disabilities.
However, their circle could be ableist when it came to marriage. They didn't think this cripple was a worthy match for Toby. She was even worse than Sonia, for goodness' sake. At least Sonia has fully functional limbs. But this woman has nothing, and she's a cripple. She has no right to approach President Fuller. They'd rather see Toby marry Sonia than have this woman talk to him.
One of the ladies suddenly asked, "Does anyone have Sonia's number? Call her right now. Tell her some wench is hitting on President Fuller."
"We don't have her number. Not like we're friends with her."
"Yeah. We should get a waiter to do this for us instead."
"Alright. Get a waiter, then."
A server came to them a while later. The ladies embellished the story and told him to tell Sonia about it. The server nodded and looked at Toby for a moment before he went to do his job.
Sonia had no idea that the ladies who were jealous of her dating Toby just became ardent supporters of her relationship with Toby just because of another woman hitting on him. They even went as far as to help her out, too. Yet, she had not the slightest idea of it as she was currently chatting with the host.
Even Toby had no idea a woman was trying to hit on him. He closed his eyes and sipped on his wine, enjoying the moment of peace. However, the moment he heard the sound of a wheelchair, he stopped twirling his glass altogether. Apparently, the wheelchair's appearance had soured his mood.
Still, he didn't open his eyes. He thought someone was just passing through. This wasn't his turf, after all. Everyone made it look like it was, but that didn't mean nobody could pass through his vicinity.
As long as they didn't disturb him, he wouldn't care even if they passed through his vicinity. Since he thought the person was just passing by, he didn't think he had to open his eyes to check who it was.
However, he soon realized his guess was wrong. The person wasn't passing by. They were coming toward him. The sound of the wheelchair was getting louder, and he could smell the scent coming off that person. It's a woman.
Toby's face fell. This woman's appearance soured his mood once more. Probably another lady trying to hit on me. Ignored what I said and came to me, eh?
He didn't think all women would fall for him, but as long as he was the most powerful man in the city, he knew most women would want to date him. And he knew it was not for love, but for power, money, and status instead.
The Acree Family was a perfect example. They were trying to hook their daughter up with him. If their plan were to work, they would become one of the top families in the city. That was why a lot of aristocrats ignored his warning to try their luck. If it worked, they could get a lot of things. So, is this the Acree girl? But nobody told me she is wheelchair-bound. He opened his eyes to see who it was, only to be greeted by a familiar face.
The girl didn't expect Toby to open his eyes. It made her freeze for a moment, but then she quickly put on a gentle smile. "Fancy seeing you here, President Fuller."
The woman had undergone cosmetic surgery. It looked natural, but it didn't change the fact she had gone through that surgery. She might have a great smile, but he still thought it looked fake. So, when she flashed him a smile, not only did he not find it attractive, but he also felt her smile was rather stiff, like a puppet. A hint of disgust filled his eyes as he growled, "It's you!"
"Yes, it's me." She pushed her hair back, her smile broadening. The woman was none other than Anya.
He narrowed his eyes. "This is no mere coincidence. Everyone knows I'd attend the banquet, but nobody from Westsanshire was invited. You didn't come here coincidentally. You came on purpose. Let me guess… Connor's orders?"
Connor's base was in Westsanshire, but he was powerful enough that the host wouldn't dare to offend him. Even though they had only invited Seafield's aristocrats, any other city's aristocrats could just tell them they wanted to come, and they would be permitted to enter. Must be the case for this one as well, Toby thought in silence.
Anya nodded in response to his previous question. "Yes, it is. He said it's time for me to get to know people in the circle now that I'm back in the fold. I'm a part of the family, so I must go around and get to know people. So, here I am. Initially, he had wanted to come with me, but he's still in the hospital as his injuries still need to be tended to. Thus, I came alone." She heaved a sigh.
Toby shot her an icy look. "Wrong. The Salzburgs are based in Westsanshire. The people you should get to know are also in Westsanshire, not Seafield. There's no point in you coming to this banquet, and this is not where you should announce yourself as the young miss of the Salzburgs. Besides, you're not the real young miss of the family, either."
Her smile went stiff upon hearing that. A great fear overwhelmed her, sending a chill running down her spine, and the air itself seemed to freeze as well.
The ladies in the distance had been watching the conversation closely, and the moment Toby started talking to Anya, their faces were contorted by envy. All of them started biting into their handkerchiefs.
"I can't believe that woman is friends with President Fuller."
That was the biggest shock of the night. They wouldn't think much about it if the woman knew Toby since he was famous, after all. Everyone knew him. However, they were surprised that he knew that woman. They had no idea he knew other women outside of Sonia and Tina. Who is she? How did she become friends with President Fuller? And how did she manage to make him talk to her?
"Where the hell is the waiter? Did he talk to Sonia yet?"
"Yeah. President Fuller's already talking to that woman. Where is Sonia? Why isn't she showing up yet?"
"If it were me, I'd stay with him all the time. I'd have worried about all the other women hitting on him if I had left, but she just went around and left him behind. I can't believe we're worrying about them, dammit."
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Same story i read about Jarred and Amber Reed...