Stella lowered her gaze and followed Farris to a sofa in a corner.
Despite the physical distance between her and Matthew, she couldn’t shake the feeling that his eyes were relentlessly tracking her, sending chills down her spine.
After an uneasy stretch of silence, Stella considered fabricating a reason to leave early.
Just then, a woman took a seat beside her.
Before Stella could react, the woman offered a warm but somewhat forced smile and introduced herself.
“Hi, I’m Mina Hughes, a college friend of Farris.”
Adorned in a white dress with her hair flowing elegantly, Mina wore subtle makeup and a smile that appeared pleasant but didn’t quite reach her eyes.
Responding with decorum, Stella said, “Nice to meet you. I’m Stella Anderson.”
Mina then swiveled her head to lock eyes with Farris, her tone imbued with an extraordinary softness.
“Farris.”
Farris briefly met her gaze, offering a slight nod but withholding words.
His family had a longstanding connection with Mina’s family, and his mother had always been enthusiastic about arranging a match between him and Mina.
He was well aware of Mina’s affection for him. But he had made it explicitly clear in the past that he was uninterested and had no intention of hurting her.
Now, after meeting Stella, he was even more resolved to extinguish any lingering hopes Mina might harbor.
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At that moment, a voice piped up, “Since we’re all gathered for Cordell’s birthday, merely sitting around seems uninspiring. Why don’t we play a game?”
Another voice instantly chimed in, “Absolutely, let’s make it exciting!”
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Cordell asked casually, “What game are we playing?”
Mina promptly rose to her feet, declaring, “The King’s Game. We all know the rules.”
“Sounds good!” The consensus was unanimous.
While others engaged in the game, Matthew Lounged on a plush leather sofa, legs elegantly crossed. His sculpted features partially obscured by dim lighting.
Even with just a cursory glance at the group, he radiated an air of innate superiority.
Stella whispered softly, “I’m not familiar with the game. You go ahead, I’ll just watch.”
The game still had a few more hours to go, and she was eager to seize an opportunity to excuse herself.
Nonetheless, Cordell had already instructed a waiter to fetch a deck of cards.