As Scarlett and her bodyguard, Stellan, disappeared from view, the tight lines around Yardley's eyes finally eased.
It hadn't been easy. For the first time in what felt like forever, he had managed to seize the upper hand in a confrontation with his ex-wife.
Seeing Scarlett forced to retreat, Veronica and Sylvia were equally thrilled.
Veronica looped her arm affectionately through Yardley's, her eyes practically sparkling. "You were incredible! You're definitely going to be the most captivating man in the room tonight!"
Not to be outdone, Sylvia immediately grabbed his other arm, her tone proud and intimate. "Of course he is. People have been saying for years that he's the most handsome guy in the entire city's elite circle. No one even comes close!"
Veronica shot her a sharp look, a flash of irritation crossing her eyes before she forced a composed smile. "Sylvia, he's your cousin. Clinging to him like that isn't really appropriate, is it?"
Sylvia just laughed it off, entirely unbothered. "Don't mind me, Veronica. I've been his little shadow since we were kids. I've always stuck to him like this. Even when Scarlett was married to him, she never cared about these little details."
The underlying message was clear: *You're being petty.*
Veronica was left momentarily speechless, fuming in silence.
"Alright, enough, you two. I have a lot of things to take care of," Yardley said, his brow furrowing slightly as he subtly extracted his arms from both women and strode toward the main hall.
Even though he had just "kicked" Scarlett out, for some inexplicable reason, his right eye wouldn't stop twitching—a nagging sense of unease. To be safe, he went over the entire event schedule with the planning team one more time. Only after confirming everything was flawless did his racing heart settle slightly.
"Oh, by the way, that table card you just set up? You should probably swap it for a red one. Out of all the colors, he absolutely hates yellow the most."
Veronica's face darkened instantly.
The more she interacted with Sylvia, the more she realized that the "harmless, sweet cousin" act was a complete sham. Sylvia was blatantly targeting her at every turn.
Veronica looked down at her own bright yellow evening gown, then over at the yellow sunflowers on the table. It was obvious Sylvia was full of lies and totally untrustworthy.
Still, a few deceptive words weren't going to stop her pursuit of Yardley. Tonight was her chance to shine, to prove to the entire Flynn family that she was the only woman fit to be the future Mrs. Flynn.

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: He Lost Me to His Best Friend
Yardley got what he deserved, now the rest of them need to go down with him!...
Why can't these people leave Scarlett alone, damn!...
Really enjoying this novel. 😀...