Chapter 387: Moving on [3]

"Damien!" Olivia cheerfully called to Damien when he came into view. "I have been waiting to see you."

Zayne took his mother’s interest in Damien as his cue to go back to Iris’s side. "You are saved," he whispered.

"I was enjoying her company and all the stories she had to share about you. Did one of your cousins try to dress you up as a lady?" Iris asked, and judging from Zayne’s reaction, she knew it was true.

"Why would she share such stories? They did not succeed in doing it. I didn’t enjoy it when my cousins used to visit," said Zayne.

"I used to try to dress up my brother because I wanted a sister. It was quite fun," Iris said, watching as Olivia was introduced to Eloise.

"You are cruel, just like my cousins. Fortunately, they have all grown out of it. It seems I need to go to Eloise for all your embarrassing stories or write to your brother. It is hardly fair that you get to hear about me, and I know nothing about you," Zayne said, trying to upset Iris.

"I will gladly share all my embarrassing stories with you. I can look back at them and laugh," Iris said confidently.

"Hmm. Then I think we should reconsider telling my mother the embarrassing story of how you once liked Damien," Zayne said, earning the reaction he sought.

Iris’s eyes widened, and she turned to Zayne to grab him by his shirt.

"Iris," Olivia called, unknowingly saving Zayne.

"You are fortunate that your mother is present. I urge you to be careful," Iris said, fixing where she had grabbed him and resisting the urge to threaten him further.

"I have been meaning to visit the estate, but I know how you are with visitors," Olivia explained the reason for her absence. "I was also waiting for my invitation. A pity I did not get to see the wedding."

"It was a small wedding with only my siblings and a close family friend of my wife. Had it been larger and we had more time, you would have been invited," Damien promised.

"I hope so. I had to find out about your marriage from gossip. There were so many tales that I knew were lies, like how you got married so quickly because you spoiled a young lady. Please write to me when you have important news," Olivia said, troubled by the thought that she had

been forgotten.

Olivia stepped forward to fix Damien’s messy hair. "I like to think that I am your aunt from your mother’s side. Don’t let Camille hear it, or she’ll give me a lecture about it. We might not share blood, but I’ve always considered your mother my sister."

"I think of you as family as well. You alone," Damien said, eyeing Zayne.

Olivia stepped back after tidying Damien’s hair. "You are out to break my son’s heart. While I prepare a gift for Iris, I shall pick out one for you as well, Lady Hawthorne. I do hope you will join me and Iris on one of our planned outings."

"I will be happy to join you when I am invited. I am also pleased to see that you have become quite close to my cousin already," Eloise said, noticing how close Iris stood to Olivia. "She is my precious cousin."

"I can take a hint that you are asking that I don’t hurt her, and I won’t. I don’t wish to upset you and then have Damien upset with me. Now that you are here, I must steal you away with Iris. Let the men talk amongst themselves," Olivia said, holding Eloise’s and Iris’s hands captive.

"I’m a bit concerned about your mother and my wife," Damien said, watching as Eloise was stolen away.

"I’m concerned about her and my future wife. I might not get much time with Iris before the

wedding," said Zayne.

"You can patiently wait for the days when you will live together. Did you tell your mother about Hayden?"

"If I had, she would have stormed over to Camille’s home, and you know how that would have ended. She would have succeeded in getting my uncle to torture Hayden if he were still alive, but I’m glad you no longer have to worry about him," Zayne said.

"You mean that you’re glad Iris is back because there is no longer a threat," Damien said, seeing through Zayne’s concern.

"That too, but I do care for you. It would have troubled me to know you were constantly trying to get at him. I can’t have you fixed on fighting your enemies when I need you to be at my wedding. You have to make up for not inviting me to your own by coming to mine," Zayne said, trying to guilt Damien.

"If you keep trying to make me feel sorry for you, then I won’t attend," Damien said, merely as a joke.

"I won’t take your threats seriously. Eloise isn’t going to let you miss my wedding, and to get under your skin, I was thinking that we should make use of your garden for the wedding-"

"No," Damien flatly denied the idea. "Your home is just as grand. Why don’t you have the wedding there? Why bring all your relatives to my home? You know I don’t like most of them, and you don’t like most either."

"Because you’ve made your garden so lovely," Zayne said, eyeing the garden as though seriously considering the idea and delighting in Damien’s irritation.

"You’re not going to benefit from my wife’s hard work. Make plans for your wedding to be elsewhere," Damien said.

Zayne chuckled. "I was only bothering you, but the garden is lovely. I might need to make the long journey to the countryside to get a few ideas for my future wife. Can I borrow your countryside home to use after the wedding?"

"You may use my carriage as well to get away from me. That will be my wedding gift to you, alongside already keeping Iris safe," Damien pointed out.

"And I thank you for it. I know you’ll be lonely when Iris and I leave after our wedding, so I will try my best to return in due time. We’ll have a drink after," Zayne said, looking forward to the future.

"Enjoy your time with your wife and don’t think of me. Are you secretly plotting with your mother to move up the wedding?"

Zayne glanced at where the women walked. "Did my mother tell you so?"

"I’ve known you all my life to figure out you would not wait until the end of the season," Damien answered. "Give her some time to plan the perfect wedding."

"I want her to have a wedding she enjoys. I only wish time would move faster," Zayne confessed as he felt trouble was coming soon. "Don’t speak a word of it since I have not told her yet. I have been keeping an eye on her mother."