True Fated Marriage (Grace and Heinz)
Chapter 1517

When Gary descended the stairs, he noticed Celeste. She was reading a book, with her slender and beautiful neck leaned to one side, seemingly gorgeous. He stood by the stairs, not in a hurry to leave, in fear of disturbing Celeste.

She looked calm and quiet, like a beautiful painting hung in a gallery. No one dared approach her in fear that the peacefulness of the moment would vanquish. She seemed to have sensed a pair of eyes on her, so she lifted her gaze to look in the direction of the stairs.

She immediately noticed Gary. He was wearing the jacket she had worn earlier. His brows were thick, with his prominent features shining through the distance.

His body stance was menacing. She could feel his dominance even from a distance.

Her mind drifted off to the hug they had shared upstairs just then.

Celeste gently pursed her lips and turned to look away, trying to avoid his gaze. As she was afraid that the atmosphere would turn too awkward, she asked, "What about Maria and Ernest?" "They're upstairs," Gary said as he walked over and sat on the sofa that was across from Celeste's seat.

"Why aren't they coming down?" As Celeste voiced out her question, she noticed that Gary hadn't muttered a word. He was staring at her with a deep gaze as if he was questioning her. Celeste came back to her senses and felt a little distraught.

Just at the right moment, Gary spoke, "There shouldn't be any reason to it. They don't want to come down. They probably want to leave us some space knowing that you and I are both downstairs." His words were loud and clear, each word pounding on Celeste's chest.

She was aware of the reason, but she didn't expect him to say it directly to her face.

Gary locked his gaze on her eyes, "If you feel uncomfortable, you can head upstairs." Celeste was indeed tense as she contemplated going upstairs.

As Gary studied her body language, he immediately added, "If you decide to head upstairs, they'll probably assume that you're unable to face me because you still have feelings for me; wanting to let go, but it's holding you back. With that, they'll continue to try and set us up. If that's what you wish for, you're more than welcome to head upstairs."

Celeste was stunned by his words and felt very annoyed.

The audacity for him to say that to her face! Even though his words made sense, she couldn't withstand them.

Gary's brows furrowed slightly. He leaned back in the seat, seemingly relaxed.

It seemed that not only did his words shocked Celeste, but they also surprised her. Celeste was in a dilemma.

Gary's facial expression showed subtle changes before he continued in a gentle tone, "Furthermore, I will be staying here for a month. We will run into each other sooner or later. You have to get used to it." Celeste froze, staring blankly at the man in front of her. His eyes were no longer as dejected as it was before, and he seemed to be confident.

Indeed, that was Gary Smith in his true form.

He was always arrogant.

Celeste was left speechless. Sensing his assertiveness, she sighed. She reminded herself that she should be rational and calm.

"Yes." She collected her thoughts in no time, no longer avoiding his gaze, "You're right. We shouldn't deliberately avoid each other. Besides, we will often cross paths at Jones Estate for your research. After I graduate, I will continue to serve the Jones Estate. It's bound to happen. I have no intention of avoiding you."

"Mhm." Gary nodded after hearing that, "That's good. It's best if you face it frankly. I'm pleased that you think so."

Celeste lowered her gaze, her long eyelashes trembling to cover her emotions.

Gary stared at her with a smile tugging at the corner of his eyes.

It seemed that he had provoked her.

Celeste remained silent before continuing to read her book.

She no longer cared about Gary, who was sitting in front of her. She quietly read her book with her posture gentle and refined.

Time passed by. She didn't say a word, scanning through each line as if no one else was around her.

Gary looked at the book she was reading. She hadn't turned the pages for a while.

He found it funny. That girl could really keep her composure. He had almost been tricked into thinking that she no longer cared about him. However, as he noticed that she was stuck on the same page for a while, he could not help but laugh to himself.

Celeste couldn't concentrate with Gary by her side. It was impossible for her to be completely unfazed.

She tried her best to focus on her book.

She reminded herself again and again to calm down.

In the end, she decided not to pay attention to Gary's thoughts. She needed to have a firm grip on the situation and to stay rational. She would not allow her own emotions to be affected by Gary.

Just as Celeste was about to refocus on reading, Gary spoke, "While we were upstairs, do you know what Maria was talking about?"

"I don't know." Celeste shook her head without looking at him, giving a perfunctory answer.

Gary smirked and said in a low voice, "She said that since we're not getting back together yet, it would be a great idea to drug and trick us into sleeping with each other."

Upon hearing that, Celeste's face blushed red and flushed. She glared at Gary with embarrassment and annoyance in her gaze.

One could imagine how embarrassed she was.

Gary smiled when he saw how pissed she was to the point of leaving her speechless, saying, "I know what you're thinking. Don't worry. It won't happen."

Celeste felt like he was doing it on purpose, trying to provoke her. He was still clinging onto her, or else why would he say that?

She didn't want to have a fight with him. Fighting was meaningless.

If a stern gaze could solve the problem, she would use just a stern gaze. She knew that it was meaningless to argue. It was better to say nothing and give him a disappointed look.

Gary was surprised. He wasn't sure what she was thinking. Seeing how she looked at him disapprovingly, Gary gave a self-deprecating chuckle and said, "Celeste, are you disappointed in me?"

"I'm not disappointed," Celeste said lightly, "I thought that we could still be friends even if we aren't lovers. I don't think there's any contradiction between us. We're just not suitable for each other." Gary fell silent. Aware of Celeste's feelings, he nodded his head slightly and replied, "But Celeste, you were still trembling when I held you earlier.

You still have feelings for me."

Celeste felt more annoyed by his words. Her face darkened as she said coldly, "Yes, I admit, I still have feelings for you. I broke up with you not because I don't love you, but because I love you too much. I love you too much to the point that it was tiring, so I broke up with you."

"You always tried to take control over my life, and you want to continue doing so now. But I'm here to tell you that it will never be possible anymore."

"Gary, let's get used to our new identity and lead a peaceful life together!"

"Let's continue to move on from the past and not talk about it over and over again."

"All of this is meaningless. Please be someone who doesn't dwell on the past."

After saying that, Celeste continued to bury her head in her book. That time, she could really focus on reading the book and was really absorbed in it.

Gary understood Celeste's determination and was aware of the fact that he was too impatient.

He stopped talking. Soon, Maria and Ernest came downstairs together.

After all, Ernest could get anything about Leah's boyfriend out of Maria.

He was still busy looking at his phone even when he had arrived downstairs.

But there was no message from the phone.

Maria glanced at Ernest and Gary several times and found it amusing. It was finally her turn to watch the show.

That really put her in an amazing mood.

Looking at Celeste and Gary, they were both deep in thoughts.

She then looked at Ernest, who had his face filled with worry. Pleased, she took out her mobile phone and secretly took photos of Ernest repeatedly glancing at the screen of his phone before sending them to Leah.

When Leah saw the photo, she hopped around excitedly in her room.

After waiting for a long time, there was no reply. Ernest decided to send Lead a message, "How's the turtle?"

When Leah saw the message, she sent a screenshot to Maria, "Maria, Ernest is trying to start a conversation."

"Leave him hanging."

Maria replied with those three words, then looked at Celeste and said, "Celeste, are you hungry? Why hasn't Pedro served us dinner yet? I'm starving."