Standing Before Love (Myra and Sean) novel Chapter 347

Shelly did not like Kris at all and she might even go so far as to say she detested her. She could tell that the woman was only dating Gideon to gain something from the rest of the Walton Family. The only reason why she had yet to confront Kris was because Gideon had told her not to, but that didn’t stop Shelly from throwing pointed looks at the woman every now and then.

Presently, upon seeing that Kris was about to muck things up, Shelly shot her a stern look, as though silently telling her to pull it together. Catching the older woman’s frosty gaze, Kris managed a nonchalant façade, though her fists clenched tightly at her sides. She gritted her teeth as she thought grimly, Once I get everything I want, I’m going to cut off all ties with the Walton Family and I won’t have to take any crap from this old woman ever again!

The next moment, she was holding onto Gideon’s arm as they made their rounds in the banquet hall to greet the guests. She looked pale despite the smile that was firmly plastered on her face, and she grew reluctant to clink glasses with the guests. Gideon was no gentleman, which meant she was forced to down all the drinks after the guests toasted to her and while she had only taken sips at each turn, she had ended up downing what felt like glasses of wine after going around the hall.

Her stomach was beginning to cramp and the color was draining from her face. If it weren’t for the fact that she had no desire to keep this child in the first place, she wouldn’t have downed all those drinks.

Upon noticing that something was off with her, Gideon gave her a subtle squeeze on her arm. A displeased look flashed across his perfect features as he asked under his breath, “What’s wrong?”

Kris didn’t want to downplay her condition so she answered in a low voice, “My stomach isn’t feeling too well today.”

He frowned when he heard this and while he wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth about her discomfort, he was still put off by it. After all, the banquet this evening was a very important occasion for the Walton Family—it played a pivotal role in deciding whether they could be integrated into Bradfort City’s elite business circle.

“I’m fine, though. Let’s just carry on. I know how important this banquet is to you and I don’t want to be a burden,” she murmured after seeing how his face had grown sullen at her complaint. At the thought of how she still needed the Walton Family’s help for the Green Palms Project, she straightened and forced a perfunctory smile.

It was only after this that Gideon perked up slightly and the both of them went around exchanging pleasantries with the guests once more. Finally, they ended up making their way over to where Tony stood with his friends.

Meanwhile, Tony and Myra had been standing with Shawn and Estelle before this but they were now joined by the likes of Philip, Lucas, Elliot and even Tilly. All in all, their group had a formidable presence. There were a few who had greeted them in an attempt to strengthen business relations, but it didn’t take much time for them to move on to other guests.

Estelle was laughing at a dirty joke she had just told and Shawn looked grim as he eyed her balefully, as though already planning on the ways he could get back at her. Just as the rest of them were exchanging awkward looks, Gideon and Kris approached them.

“Sis,” Kris greeted flatly, then turned to address the man next to Myra, “Tony.”

The both of them looked at her impassively and neither of them returned her greeting.

Having expected this, Kris did not falter. Despite her pallor, she kept one hand on Gideon’s arm as she flashed a dazzling smile at the group before her.

Gideon, on the other hand, raised his glass at Tony as he said, “I know we’ve been through a rough patch previously, Tony, but I’d like to take this chance to formally apologize to you. Let bygones be bygones—here’s to a strong partnership and an even stronger friendship. Cheers!”

Tony returned the toast, humming indifferently in response.

Gideon shrugged off the man’s cold demeanor and raised his glass at the rest of the group as he said cordially, “Thank you for taking the time to attend the Walton Family’s banquet this evening. Kris and I would like to make this toast as a show of our appreciation.”

With that, he glanced at Kris meaningfully, then downed his glass of red wine.

While he did so, Kris looked down hesitantly at her own glass of wine. She didn’t think she could take another sip of it but she gritted her teeth and tipped her head back nonetheless as she gulped down her drink. She gagged slightly when the alcohol pooled at the back of her throat but she quickly regained her composure.

“We have a lot of guests today, so please excuse us for not being able to entertain all of you,” Gideon said ruefully and nodded at the group as he tried to lead Kris away.

However, they had only just turned around when Kris let out a groan of pain. She hunched slightly as her hand flew to her stomach, her face sickeningly pale.

“What’s wrong?” Gideon asked with a frown.