Chapter 304

As Julian stepped aside, Thorn raised an eyebrow smugly. “Heh, you really think you can mess with me? I’ll toy with you until you beg for mercy,” he wondered.

Julian then patted the shoulder of the person next to him and said, "This gentleman says we’re blocking his view and wants all of us to make way for him."

Thorn’s expression froze. His smug look barely lasted two seconds before it was wiped away by the clear, piercing stares of the people in front of him.

"Who do you think you are? This isn’t your place. Why can’t we stand here!"

"Yeah, exactly."

"No, I—" Thom stammered, his face flushing red as he faced the crowd’s scornful, judging stares. He could only grit his teeth and swallow his frustration.

He wanted to argue with Julian, but there was no sign of him anywhere; he had already vanished.

Left with no choice, Thom mumbled an embarrassed apology and hurried away.

Julian watched from a distance as Thorn fled in humiliation, a smirk tugging at his lips.

He shot a careless glance to the side, and when his eyes met Sienna’s icy, strikingly beautiful gaze, his breath caught for a split second.

Sienna rose gracefully to her feet as the music faded, and the room erupted into thunderous applause.

In the corner, Wayne kept her eyes on Julian as he made his way toward Sienna. The two shared a brief greeting before heading upstairs together, settling into a more secluded spot on the second floor.

Wayne was just about to take a sip of his drink when a hand suddenly appeared out of nowhere and snatched it away. Thorn stood in front of him, fuming, and downed the whole glass in one go.

"Whiner, you think Julian’s a schemer too, right? That guy’s so sly—what a fake gentleman. Everyone here must be blind."

"They say he’s got a good temper, that he’s gentle, but to me, he’s just a twisted snake," Thorn complained, rambling on and on.

Wayne’s eyes stayed glued to his stolen glass. He’d just drunk from it, and now Thorn had put his mouth on it too. The thought made him want to gag.

"Hey, are you even listening?" Thorn slammed the glass down on the table with a loud thud.

Wayne pushed his hand away in disgust. "Thorn, I’m a clean freak. Keep your distance."

Thorn’s mouth twitched, and he grinned wickedly. "Whiner, you’re not even as close to Sienna as I am, and you still act all grossed out by me."

With that, Thorn strutted upstairs, full of confidence.

Two minutes later, Thorn came back down with a bright red handprint on his face.

Wayne wondered, "Well, at least I never got slapped."

Rowena had just arrived when she passed a police car. To her surprise, the person inside was none other than Nina. She pulled out her phone, and it was blowing up with negative news about Nina everywhere she looked.

Never thought it’d turn out like this. You really can’t judge a book by its cover, Rowena thought. The two families didn’t cross paths often, and they weren’t close, but they’d still bump into each other every now and then.

"Stay close to me. If you embarrass me, you know what’ll happen," Yvonne said, decked out in glittering jewels.

She shot a sideways glance at Rowena, who was dragging her feet. "This girl’s been getting more and more out of hand lately," she thought.

Rowena just nodded and walked into the Bayer residence. Rowena heard Winifred was coming too; otherwise, she wouldn’t have bothered to dress up.

Another reason was that the director this time was from the Bayer family and was here as well. Rowena was worried her mother might try to pull something behind her back.

After exchanging pleasantries with a few people, Yvonne sent Rowena away and headed straight for Wade Bayer.

"Mr. Bayer, hello. I’m Yvonne," she greeted.

"Mrs. Clare, hello. I’ve heard a lot about you," Wade replied.

Yvonne was now in charge of a branch of the Clare family’s company, and she was considered a formidable businesswoman—both capable and shrewd.

"Thanks, Mr. Bayer. I heard you’re planning to shoot a film called Fleeting Blossom. Is that right?" she asked.

Wade nodded, giving a hearty smile. "Yes, Mrs. Clare. Are you interested in investing in my new project?"

He wasn’t exactly a big-name director, and it was rare for him to attract investors. So when someone showed interest, he wasn’t about to let the opportunity slip by, especially since the Clare family was one of the four major families in Vallaris.

The four most prestigious families in Vallaris were the Bayer family, the Sinclair family, the Clare family, and the Ford family.

The five prominent business families included the Preston family, the Quinn family, and the Everett family.