I'm Afraid I Won't Be Able to Leave

Chapter 120: Chapter 120: She’s No Match for Madeline

Asher Keating zoomed in on the photo. In it, Leah Sinclair was wearing a white down jacket and a fluffy hat. Her small nose was red from the cold, but her eyes were bright. It was clear that even the frigid weather couldn’t dampen her excitement. He couldn’t help but smile.

Madeline Sterling had been watching him the whole time. Asher’s long fingers rested lightly on a pale cyan porcelain cup. He was wearing a low-collared black sweater today, with an LV overcoat on top.

Though simple, the outfit looked as if it were tailor-made for him. His silver-rimmed glasses glinted occasionally in the sunlight filtering in. With his high-bridged nose and thin lips, he exuded a nonchalant elegance. He had just glanced at his phone, and the slight curve of his lips gave him an inexplicable softness.

Madeline felt her heart beating faster and faster. But the thought that Asher’s gentle smile was likely because he was chatting with Leah made her want to snatch his phone and throw it away. She clenched her jaw, her expression darkening.

”HAHAHA, have the three Keating brothers arrived?”

While they were talking, they heard Thomas Sterling’s laughter. Asher and the others stood up and greeted him respectfully, ”Happy New Year, Mr. Sterling.”

”Happy New Year, Happy New Year. Sit down, sit down.”

Thomas Sterling said with a smile as he sat in the host’s seat, ”How is this tea?”

”Fragrant and sweet, with a long-lasting aftertaste. It’s an excellent tea,” Alan Keating replied with a smile.

”It’s not easy to earn an ’excellent tea’ from you, First Master Keating,” Thomas Sterling said with a smile, pointing at him playfully.

The others laughed. Thomas Sterling’s wife, Jacqueline Vaughn, walked in smiling. ”Isn’t that the truth. Alan, where’s your wife? Why didn’t she come?”

”She’s not feeling well today. The little one in her belly is being a bit restless, so I didn’t have her come,” Alan said with a smile. His expression softened as he mentioned his wife.

”Look at that, look at that. Alan’s family is already on their second child. The four of you need to hurry up, you know,” Thomas Sterling said with a laugh, pointing at the other four.

”Exactly. Especially our Madeline. You’re not getting any younger. They’re men, so it’s not as urgent, but you’re a girl. It’s time to settle down. And you boys should help look out for our Madeline. If you find someone suitable, make an introduction, won’t you?” Jacqueline Vaughn said with a smile, patting Madeline’s hand.

”Mom~ It’s not... it’s not like that,” Madeline said, glancing shyly at Asher, her meaning obvious.

Asher sipped his tea, pretending not to have seen her glance. ’Tsk,’ Jacqueline clicked her tongue inwardly, but her expression didn’t change. She kept her elegant smile as she asked, ”Asher, Morgan told me you have a girlfriend? Why didn’t you bring her for us to meet?”

”Mm, she went to The Westerlands to visit a friend for a few days.”

”So ill-mannered. Going out to have fun by herself during the New Year. Doesn’t she know there are elders to visit?” Madeline muttered, her voice just loud enough to be heard.

”It’s precisely because there are elders to consider. She’s currently in mourning and didn’t want to be disrespectful.” Asher put down his teacup and glanced up coolly. CLACK. The sound wasn’t soft.

Jacqueline pressed down on Madeline’s hand and shook her head slightly, smoothing things over with a smile. ”Mm, she sounds like a good child. Very considerate.”

Morgan Sterling also smiled and changed the subject. ”Mom, why don’t you take Madeline to check on the soup? Don’t let it overcook.”

”Alright, you all keep chatting. Seth, come on, go play outside with Grandma.”

Jacqueline Vaughn stood up with a smile, took Alan Keating’s son, and dragged a reluctant Madeline Sterling out of the tearoom.

”Asher, Madeline is still young. Don’t hold it against her. She just likes you too much and can’t accept the situation yet,” Morgan said with a smile as he refilled Asher’s tea.

”Exactly, Third Brother. We all know the main reason you’re with that little girl is just to spite Madeline, right? To get back at her for going abroad when you were pursuing her all those years ago. Well, Madeline’s back now, and she came back for you. Girlfriend or not, how could she possibly compare to Madeline? It’s about time you dropped the act,” Aaron Keating said, clapping Asher on the shoulder.

Asher sipped his tea and shot him an impassive glance, the corner of his lip curling into a barely perceptible sneer. ”It seems you’ve misunderstood quite deeply, Second Brother. My ’little girl’ is wonderful. She doesn’t need to be compared to anyone. If all goes well, once her year of mourning is over, I’ll be inviting you to our wedding. You, on the other hand, should probably get a move on.”

A single sentence silenced the tearoom. All four men’s gazes focused on him. Asher, however, simply took a slow sip of his tea, as if he hadn’t been the one who had just spoken.

In the end, it was Morgan who broke the silence. ”Heh, Asher is really... quite devoted to Leah, isn’t he? But Leah is a great girl. You’ll see when you meet her.”

”HAHAHA, alright, alright, let’s not talk about this. What are a bunch of grown men doing, sitting around talking about a young woman?”

Thomas Sterling laughed, but the look he gave Asher grew distant. All this time, he had assumed Asher was just playing around with Leah Sinclair.

For a family like the Keatings, it would be impossible for them to let her marry in. But Asher’s attitude just now made it clear that he truly intended to marry her.

”True. By the way, Mr. Sterling, regarding Southwood, I heard the hotel location you originally planned to bid on was taken by someone else. I heard they’re also building a hotel. Do you know who won the bid?” Alan said, taking Thomas Sterling’s cue to change the subject.

At the mention of this, both Thomas Sterling and Morgan frowned slightly. The father and son exchanged a look before Morgan spoke. ”I’ve looked into it. The L&C Hotel Group won the bid. I even had dinner with their boss before the bidding opened, and at the time, he said he wasn’t interested in the Southwood area. I don’t know how they changed their minds in just a month, but not only did they bid, they offered a very high price.”

”L&C? You mean that Fatty Lawson? Wasn’t he about to go bankrupt?” Aaron asked in surprise.

”He was. He even had Morgan ask me if I was interested in an acquisition. I told Morgan to hold off, planning to press the price down a bit more. But who would have thought they’d make a comeback?” Thomas Sterling had asked Morgan to investigate who had invested in L&C, but Morgan hadn’t been able to find anything.

”I don’t think it was a comeback. More like someone injected capital,” Aaron said, his suspicious gaze turning to Asher.

Asher smiled. ”Don’t you know how much money I have, Second Brother? Other hotels, maybe. But L&C? I can’t afford to invest in that.”

Morgan had also suspected Asher at first, but after investigating for so long, he hadn’t found any connection between Asher and L&C. Besides, L&C’s financial deficit was too large.

Even if Asher had the desire, he almost certainly lacked the means. After all, the financial arm of the Keating Group was now largely in Alan’s hands. It would be impossible for Asher to mobilize that much capital without them knowing.

”Sigh. I guess you could say we just weren’t fated to have that location. The plot of land we bid on now isn’t as good as that one, but it’s not bad either,” Thomas Sterling said with a sigh.