n

n

nBeing treated like a doll and getting pulled around by the young boy was causing Yvonne's lips to bend into a frown.

nHowever, before she could object to being dragged around, she felt a deep glare falling on her back.

nThe little girl looked over her shoulder only to find that the girl she had met before was now leering at her with anger and a slight tinge of resentment.

n'What did I ever do to you? Your sister is now the Princess's playmate. What else do you want me to do?' Yvonne furrowed her brows while scoffing at the other girl.

nThe sister that she had just referred to was Rika Kiron as the one who was currently glaring at her was the elder sister, Aleena Kiron.

nThough the girls did not have much interaction and the only time she had met Aleena was at their tea party, she could sense animosity coming from her.

n

"Let's sit here, Vonny.

" Taylor's words brought her back to the present as she turned her head around.

nThe younger son of the Duke had dragged her over to the end of the table, away from Aleena and the other girl she had never seen before.

nHer eyes fell on the ones closest to her and at a single glance, she recognized who they were.

n'The son of the Kiron family… And the girl who got rejected.' She was sure of this as the awkward air around those two was easy to discern.

nThe youngest son of Marquess Kiron, Jacob Kiron nodded in greeting when he saw the two younger children coming to a halt next to him.

nIn his hand was a book which he had been reading so he went back to it once he completed his duty here.

n'I like this guy.' Yvonne was instantly pleased with his behavior as this meant that he did not want to disturb others nor did he want to be disturbed by them.

nAs someone who likes her peace and quiet, the little girl was surely impressed with this son of the Kiron family.

nHowever, the same could not be said for the girl who sat next to him.

n

"Big Brother Jacob, would you like me to pour you some tea?

" Cecily Yona offered in a sickeningly sweet voice.

nTaylor rolled his eyes when he heard this and decided to let those two be.

nHe turned towards the little girl and pulled a chair then gestured for her to take her seat.

n

"Thank you.

" Yvonne was grateful for his actions and soon the two were seated next to each other.

nAt one end of the table were Cecily, Jacob, Taylor, and Yvonne in that particular order.

nWhereas, the other end of the table which was separated by a few empty seats were Aleena and the other girl that Yvonne had never met before.

nServers brought out snacks for them and while the ladies were busy chatting, this table was silent as ever.

n'Mingle with who? These are all much older than I am!' Yvonne grumbled as she shot a glare at her mother who seemed to be enjoying a conversation with the Duchess and Marchioness Kiron.

nAleena and the other girl appeared older than her and Cecily was much older as she had her eyes on getting engaged to Jacob.

nAs she averted her gaze from her smiling mother, her eyes fell on the one who had been watching her for quite a while.

n

"You must be Yvonne St. Claire.

" The new girl smiled elegantly as she rose from her seat.

nTall with a cold appearance, this girl reminded Yvonne of how she was in the past.

n'A cold beauty' was what she was often referred to in the tabloids.

n'She has the same air of nonchalance as me in the past.' Yvonne noted and somehow felt irked.

nWhen someone reminded one of their own self, then the chances of them getting along was low.

nThis was exactly what the little girl was feeling right now.

nHowever, the other girl had already arrived close to her and was looking down at her.

n

"I am Elna Leopold, the only daughter of Marquess Leopold.

" She introduced herself without bowing as that would be against her pride as a noble, to bow before a younger and lower noble child.

nHearing the name, a light of understanding flashed in Yvonne's mind as she knew who this girl was.

n'If we exclude the Royal family, us and the Ducal families, the Leopolds come next in the line of wealthiest families.' She recalled what Marquess Samed had taught her.

nThe Leopold family was associated with the business of jewelry and most of the precious jewels circulated in the market were acquired from them.

n'No wonder that she looks so proud and aloof.' Yvonne nodded her head and smiled at the girl as she did not wish to make any enemies with them.

nAfter all, no trace of a Elna Leopold was found in the script she read so with this confidence she was sure that she could associate with them in business matters in the future.

nTherefore, she did not ignore her greeting and hopped off her seat to return the same.

n

"Yvonne St. Claire, only daughter of Earl St. Claire.

" She announced her name and her rank exactly how she had been taught.

nElna nodded with a smile and instead of returning to her earlier position, she took her seat next to the little girl.

nThis action of hers left Aleena all alone on the other end of the table, seething and gritting her teeth but her pride restrained her from moving out of her seat.

nJacob raised his head and what he saw was his sweet little sister sitting all alone which made his brows furrow.

nCecily who was observing his every move was anxious to get on his good side so she decided that this was her chance to do so.

n

"Little sister Aleena, please come join us here. The servers can move your plate here.

" She called out while patting the seat on her other side.

nYvonne smiled with helplessness when she saw how Aleena's tears of frustration for being ignored earlier vanished when someone remembered her.

n'She is a child after all.' She shook her head while watching Aleena walking towards their place.

nShooting a glare at Elna who had ignored her, Aleena sat next to the girl who had been fawning over her brother.

n

"Here, I know you like this.

" Jacob stretched out his hand and placed a pastry in her plate which further soothed her anger.

nOnce he had succeeded in appeasing her, Jacob did not look at Elna who had caused his sister discomfort but chose to return to his book.

n'Calm and collected.' Yvonne once again praised the boy who did not seek petty revenge from the other girl.

nSitting between the two, Taylor shot a glare at Jacob who seemed to have monopolized Vonny's attention without even making an effort.

n

"Vonny, would you like some pastry as well?

" He inquired, trying to divert her attention towards him.

nToday's goal was to spend time with this cute little girl and he would not allow anyone to mess it up for him.

nYvonne snapped out of her thoughts and glancing at the plate he had pointed at, she nodded in acceptance.

nCecily was least bothered about what they did but the same could not be said for the other girls.

n'So the rumors that she stays at home all day must be false.' Elna stole secret glimpses at the girl who appeared so beautiful that if she sat still, one would suspect that she was a doll.

nUnknown to these speculations, the little girl was now busy discussing which dessert would be best with what kind of tea with the Duke's son.

nConsidering how they were interacting with each other, Elna was confident that the information they had about this girl was too sparse and might even be false.

nOn the other hand, Aleena was once again furious to see how Taylor was doting on Yvonne when he had not even turned and looked at the others for a single second.

n'What right does she have to gain all of his attention?' She frowned as she wished to get closer to Taylor in an attempt to know more about her recently formed crush, Topher Tanner.

n