"I can’t worry about all that right now. I’ve been going crazy missing you, and I feel miserable if I don’t see you for even a few days! Damien, darling, let’s go upstairs. I have so much I’ve been dying to tell you..."
Having made a habit of acting shamelessly in front of Damien Vaughn and Cecelia Archer, Zeke Walton had absolutely no regard for his image. As he spoke, he clambered into Damien’s arms, wrapped his own around his neck, and demanded to be carried upstairs.
Damien Vaughn looked as if he’d just been smeared with dog crap, shoving Zeke away in disgust.
Just as they were struggling, the voices of Ms. Lewis and Simone Vaughn drifted over.
"Zeke, what on earth are you doing?"
’She hadn’t seen him in days. Whenever she called and invited him to dinner, he either wouldn’t text back or just wouldn’t pick up. To think she’d run into him here at Damien’s place today.’
’A grown man, putting on that mincing, high-pitched voice like some court eunuch, writhing around in Damien’s arms... What was that supposed to be?’
Ms. Lewis was already unhappy with him, and seeing him act this way, her expression grew even more stern.
"Zeke, I don’t mean to lecture you, but you’re a grown man now. A real man. What is this behavior? Look at Damien—his child is already several years old. Isn’t it time you matured a little?"
"I’ve adored you since you were a boy. I have only one precious daughter, and she was promised to you in childhood..."
Zeke knew what was coming next before she even finished her sentence.
’What century is this? She’s still using words like "promised." Who is she trying to scare?’
"Ms. Lewis, you’re so young and beautiful, why are your ideas so old-fashioned? What era are we in? How can you use the standards from your generation to judge young people today?"
"How old am I? I graduated from college less than two years ago. I barely have any real-world experience, and I can hardly support myself. Why the rush to get married and have kids? That would just be ruining someone’s life, wouldn’t it?"
"Besides, these childhood betrothals are just feudal relics. They can’t be taken seriously. Veridia is full of talented young men, plenty of them way better than me. If you’re really in such a hurry, you should let Simone get out there and meet people. Otherwise, it’s not fair to her."
Ms. Lewis: "..."
’So, this punk was publicly rejecting her Simone?’
Who was Simone Vaughn? She was the only girl in the Vaughn Family! A genuine, bona fide heiress!
’She had the family background, the looks, and the figure. In what way was she not good enough for him?’
’The childhood engagement between their families was set so many years ago, and both sets of parents acknowledged it. But now *he* was refusing to?’
"What are you trying to say? Have you found someone else? Are you trying to back out of this? Telling Simone to find someone else? Do your parents feel this way too? Zeke Walton, get this straight! It’s not that our Simone can’t live without you. It’s that we, the Vaughn Family, are people of honor and integrity. Since our elders made an agreement, we have always abided by it. Even if you are immature, you should know there are some things you just don’t say!"
Zeke had wanted to clear the air about him and Simone for a long time. Now that the topic was broached, he couldn’t be bothered to think about the consequences.
"This has nothing to do with my parents. These are my own words. I think Simone and I are too young to be making such a final decision. I want to give her the chance to find greater happiness."
Ms. Lewis was practically apoplectic.
’For years, she and Zeke’s mother had joked about it. Everyone knew Simone had been promised to Zeke since they were children.’
’And now he was rejecting her in public?!’
’If he never intended to marry Simone, why didn’t he say something sooner?’
’And Zeke’s parents, what was their act all about? Were they just playing the Vaughns for fools?’
"You... Fine! Since you’ve put it that way, call your parents right now! Tell them to stop claiming Simone is their future daughter-in-law! The Vaughn Family and the Walton Family are through! We’ll cut all ties! Now get the hell out of our house! And I had better never see you again!"

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