Chapter 633

Ella thought, Should I just ask directly? Talking to Stephanie didn’t help at all because she’s always so straightforward. Even Olivia would lose to her. But Olivia is great at tricking people. Once Stephanie walks into the trap Olivia set, she’s done for.

If Stephanie feels grief, she tends to resort to violence. Can I really count on her for advice? Forget it. But what should I do?

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Bernard called out, “Ella, Mr. Moretti has gone out and wants you to have dinner alone tonight.”

Ella replied, “Okay.”

She thought, As if I’ve been having dinner with Lorenzo these past few days. In trying to avoid any trouble with him, she had worked really hard to avoid dining together.

Bernard asked, “By the way, could you do me a favor?”

Ella felt nervous. “What kind of favor?” If it was about Lorenzo, she couldn’t help at all.

Bernard explained, “It’s about Mr. Moretti’s injury—”

Ella cut him off, “I can’t help.”

Bernard, surprised, thought, Wow, that was a quick no.

Ella insisted, “Find someone else. I really can’t help. I’m seen as undercover right now; please, don’t ask me for help because I can’t.”

Bernard replied, “Are you sure?”

Ella answered firmly, “Yes.” Considering her past mistakes with Lorenzo, people no longer trusted her. She thought, “Why raise any more suspicions?”

“Just remember to eat later.” With that, Bernard walked away towards Lorenzo’s room.

As Ella listened to him leave, she sighed deeply, “Oh dear. I really need to be careful. Stefi told me to keep my distance from Lorenzo; whenever I got close, something disastrous happened.”

She thought, ‘Lorenzo almost died because of the injury. I need to take Stefi’s advice and avoid causing any more trouble!’

When Stephanie arrived at the party, she saw that Sofia was already there wearing a black gown.

Sofia noticed Stephanie and called out, “Stefi.”

Stephanie asked, “How did you get here before me? I thought you’d come with me.”

Sofia replied, “It was Richard.” Just mentioning Richard stirred up anxiety in Sofia.

Stephanie inquired, “Weren’t you going to hit him?”

Sofia sighed, “I did try, but it wasn’t that easy to chase him away.” She felt hopeless about Richard.

As they walked toward the food area, Sofia complained about Richard. Suddenly, Sebastian grabbed Stephanie’s arm. Stephanie turned back. “What’s wrong?”

Sofia, confused, looked at Sebastian. Sebastian raised an eyebrow and said, “Shall we go eat?”

Stephanie agreed. She really wanted to hear Sofia’s stories about her problems with Richard while eating. Sebastian led them forward, his hand on Stephanie’s waist. “You’ve eaten plenty already, right?”

The crowd was bustling as they entered. The Giovanni family was the center of attention at the party. No one could resist a party with Sebastian. It was rare for him to come to these events. His showing up today, especially with both Stephanie and Sofia, made it clear how important this party was to him.

Feeling the eyes on them, Stephanie blushed and said, “If you’re not going to let me eat, then let me go.”

Sebastian responded, “Let’s meet the hosts first.”

Stephanie nodded. “Alright.”

Sebastian glanced at Sofia, who promptly followed suit. When Sebastian looked away, Stephanie leaned in to Sofia and whispered, “Who is Josef? Why did Sebastian bring us here?”

Sofia answered, “Not just us; Mom is here too.”

Stephanie exclaimed, “What?”

Sofia explained, “She is with Josef right now.”

Stephanie couldn’t believe it. “Mom is here? The Murphy family has really changed so much over the years.”

Sofia continued, “Halden Murphy has gotten into politics.”

Stephanie was impressed. She realized that the Murphy family must have worked hard to gain power. If they didn’t have some authority, Sebastian wouldn’t have been here.

Sofia added, “He’s now the governor of Rivencrest.”

Suddenly, it made sense why Sebastian respected Josef. Before, Sebastian hardly interacted or showed any interest in these events.

Sebastian noticed Stephanie and Sofia whispering and took a few steps back, pulling Stephanie closer.

Stephanie asked, “What are you doing?”

Sebastian said, “You don’t need to know everything.”

Stephanie was confused. Sofia smirked and said, “So protective.”

She thought Sebastian spoiled Stephanie. Unlike him, Sofia believed Stephanie needed to learn certain truths. After all, their family was unique, and as the future leader of the family, she couldn’t stay sheltered forever.

The butler led them until they reached Josef’s study and said, “Mr. Giovanni, Mr. Murphy has been waiting for you in the study.”

Sebastian nodded and glanced back at Elliot. Elliot handed the butler a gift box and said, “This is for Mr. Murphy.”

The butler took it respectfully. As they entered the study, Sebastian told Sofia, “You and Elliot should wait here.”

Sofia agreed, “Okay.”

Taking Stephanie’s hand, Sebastian stepped inside. As the door quietly closed behind them, Sofia couldn’t help but sigh. “Sebastian shelters Stephanie as if she’s fragile, yet he also brings her to all the major events.”

Still, Sebastian kept Stephanie from knowing a lot of things. He could be overly protective at times.

Elliot cleared his throat, unsure of how to respond, well aware of how sensitive that topic was.

Seeing Elliot quiet, Sofia asked, “Do you remember when Stefi stood up to the Ashford and Hart families at Long Harbor?”