Ignored When Chasing: Why Cry After I Got Engaged-Chapter 146: Welcoming the Light

Cecilia Nathan looked up, her fingers tightening slightly. "Damian Hawthorne, don’t you talk about him like that."

At the thought of Miles Sinclair’s relationship with Cecilia Nathan, Damian Hawthorne’s lips curled into a derisive sneer.

Miles Sinclair had supposedly "saved" Cecilia’s life, but Damian Hawthorne had never believed for a second that a dead man could come back to life.

"Haven’t you noticed anything odd about him while you’ve been spending time with this Miles Sinclair?"

Damian Hawthorne’s reminder made Cecilia Nathan’s heart skip a beat.

’Something odd? Of course, there was.’

"We haven’t seen each other in years. It’s only normal for people to change a little."

If he had previously thought Cecilia Nathan was just being unobservant, Damian Hawthorne was now certain she was just a hopeless romantic.

Then again, he thought, if she weren’t so ruled by her heart, she never would have pursued him so obsessively in the first place.

At this thought, a cold look flashed across Damian Hawthorne’s face.

"Let’s go."

The passion he’d just begun to feel was utterly doused by Cecilia Nathan.

Watching Damian Hawthorne walk away, Cecilia Nathan let out a quiet sigh.

’She knew how to ignite Damian Hawthorne’s passion, and she certainly knew how to put it out.’

Just as Cecilia Nathan and Damian Hawthorne stepped out of the office, they saw Serena Hughes and May Rhodes approaching them.

"Damian..." May Rhodes said affectionately, linking her arm with Damian Hawthorne’s. "There’s something I wanted to discuss with you."

Seeing her intimate and coquettish display, Serena Hughes’s face turned pale with fury.

’Who would’ve thought? This May Rhodes seems like an idiot, but she’s surprisingly good at playing the sweet, supportive girlfriend.’

Cecilia Nathan glanced at the spot where May Rhodes was holding Damian Hawthorne’s arm, then indifferently averted her gaze.

"What is it?" Damian Hawthorne’s lips curved with interest. He didn’t pull his arm from May Rhodes’s grasp, looking utterly indulgent.

Serena Hughes’s eyes reddened with rage as she watched.

’I paved the way for this, and now May Rhodes is just swooping in and reaping all the benefits.’

’She was about to go insane with rage.’

"I don’t have a bridesmaid yet, and I was hoping to ask Serena to be mine." After she spoke, May Rhodes seemed to recall something. She glanced at Cecilia Nathan and added meaningfully, "And if Miss Cecilia Nathan is willing, I’d like her to be my bridesmaid as well."

Cecilia Nathan was just about to refuse when Damian Hawthorne spoke up. "Hmm, whatever makes you happy."

Cecilia Nathan felt the words catch in her throat.

’If she didn’t know Damian Hawthorne was just putting on an act, Cecilia Nathan would have loved nothing more than to fire back with a sarcastic retort.’

But remembering that Damian Hawthorne knew May Rhodes’s true identity, she lowered her eyes, hiding the emotions within.

"Then it’s settled! Miss Cecilia, remember to be there as my bridesmaid!"

The corner of Cecilia Nathan’s mouth twitched into a faint smile. "Sorry, I won’t have time."

May Rhodes sighed. "You used to like Damian, after all. Even if you can’t be the one to walk down the aisle with him, wouldn’t being my bridesmaid be a lovely thing? Though you two can’t get married, at least you’ll have attended the same wedding."

Cecilia Nathan laughed in exasperation. "Oh, thank you so much. I really can’t be your bridesmaid, so you’d better ask someone else. I hope you have a blissful marriage, for a long, long... time."

May Rhodes’s brow twitched. Just as she was about to say something, Serena Hughes tapped her on the hand.

As if just remembering something, May Rhodes turned to Damian Hawthorne and said, "Damian, where did you put that violin you gave Serena? That’s the one I used to play. I’d like you to get it for me so I can practice at home."

"Ms. Rhodes wants her violin? As it happens, the violin is in Damian Hawthorne’s office right now. Since you’re so interested, Ms. Rhodes, why don’t you play a song for us all to hear?"

The color drained from May Rhodes’s face at Cecilia Nathan’s words.

’She had only been trying to help Serena Hughes get the violin back. She never thought she’d get trapped by Cecilia Nathan’s words.’

’Play a song? She didn’t know how to do anything except give injections and provide nursing care, let alone play music on a violin.’

Seeing that May Rhodes was about to blow her cover, Serena Hughes silently cursed her for being an idiot.

’This May Rhodes... Everything about her matched what was in the diary, except for her ability to play the violin.’

’If Damian Hawthorne found out May Rhodes couldn’t play the violin, wouldn’t the whole act be exposed?’

’What a brainless idiot, digging her own grave.’

Serena Hughes silently cursed May Rhodes, completely ignoring the fact that May had only said it for her benefit.

In the past, Damian Hawthorne would have agreed to anything she asked, but with Cecilia Nathan here, May Rhodes felt deeply uncertain.

Although Damian Hawthorne appeared to "dote" on her, she always felt that his affection was disingenuous.

Instead, it was his attitude toward Cecilia Nathan that she found unsettling.

"Forget about playing a song. The priority right now is to take care of what’s important." Damian Hawthorne glanced at his watch. "Finn Hawthorne’s funeral is today."

Cecilia Nathan froze.

’Finn Hawthorne’s funeral...’

Ever since she’d learned of Finn Hawthorne’s death, Cecilia Nathan hadn’t paid attention to any of the arrangements that followed.

Deep down, she was still unwilling to accept the fact that Finn Hawthorne was truly dead.

"Finn Hawthorne? Is that the man who worked at the nightclub?" Serena Hughes suddenly recalled a man who looked just like Damian Hawthorne and had been very popular in that particular scene.

Cecilia Nathan had been close to him back then, and Serena had mocked her about it for ages.

’How could someone like that just drop dead...?’

"We should show respect for the dead. Since we know about it, let’s go pay our respects."

After Serena Hughes spoke, a silence fell over the group.

Cecilia Nathan didn’t try to stop Serena Hughes.

Compared to her feelings for Sharon Quincy, her dislike of Serena Hughes was limited to the Sinclair Family’s actions against Chloe Sutton.

’Serena Hughes was right. The dead should be respected.’

’She knew why Damian Hawthorne wanted her to attend the funeral.’

’Killers often return to the scene of the crime, and Finn Hawthorne’s funeral might be the place to find a clue about his death.’

Cecilia Nathan and Damian Hawthorne went to Finn Hawthorne’s home, along with Serena Hughes and May Rhodes.

Finn Hawthorne’s adoptive father was a man named Henry Walsh. He had adopted Finn years ago when his family was wealthy. After his wife passed away, Henry Walsh developed a gambling addiction and lost their entire fortune.

Later, when Henry Walsh’s daughter got sick, Finn had no choice but to work in those kinds of places to pay for his adoptive sister’s leukemia treatments.

But despite where he worked, Finn had never compromised his principles.

Even so, the money he earned was still not enough for his sister’s treatment.

Finn Hawthorne’s death seemed to have drained all the life out of Henry Walsh.

He had essentially been living off of Finn for years. With Finn gone, his life would no longer be so comfortable.

At Finn Hawthorne’s memorial, a little girl was crying her eyes out.

Wreaths were placed all around, apparently sent by some of the wealthy, single women of Korsyth.

Even if they had been fond of Finn Hawthorne, they had only ever treated him like a plaything. For them, sending flowers was already a grand gesture of sentiment. Some were even so frightened by his death that they’d checked into temples, terrified Finn’s ghost might come looking for them in the night.

Seeing Finn Hawthorne’s photograph, Cecilia Nathan felt a dull ache in her chest.

Finn Hawthorne had held fast to his principles for so long, only to be destroyed by those men in the end.

Finn had once comforted her with a smile, saying he’d already been through the worst this life had to offer, so things were bound to get better.

But tragically, he never lived to see that brighter future...

Cecilia Nathan closed her eyes. A tear slid from the corner of her eye, hitting the ground and shattering.