Chapter 622 - 618: Not a Picky Eater, but Never Takes a Loss

"Nothing what?" Cecilia Sterling cut Fiona Sanders off, asking coldly, "Are you trying to deny it?"

Fiona Sanders opened her mouth, but now that she knew Cecilia Sterling’s identity, all the provocative arrogance she’d shown in the restroom vanished completely.

Jackie was scared stiff too, but seeing the situation grow uglier, she finally spoke up. "Hey, miss, what Fiona did just now was wrong, but you don’t have to be so aggressive, do you? After all, Fiona is Emeric Grant’s friend, you should at least..."

"Hm?" Cecilia Sterling glanced at Jackie, and a simple, slight raise of her eyebrow was enough to make Jackie swallow the rest of her words.

She suddenly let out a soft laugh. "Are you trying to say I should spare my boyfriend’s feelings and pretend I didn’t hear what you said? When you were saying those things, did you consider Emeric Grant? Did you ever think that I’m his girlfriend?"

"You didn’t, did you?"

And Emeric Grant, sharp as he was, had obviously figured out what Cecilia Sterling was talking about.

Fiona must have said something nasty in the restroom, and Cecilia had overheard her.

Cecilia Sterling turned to Emeric Grant again. "Emeric, since things have come to this, I hope you understand—I’m not the kind of girl who will wrong herself and make unreasonable concessions to others just for your sake. I’m not a picky eater, but I absolutely refuse to be taken advantage of. If someone picks a fight with me, I will never just put up with it!"

"This is my place. Your friend was badmouthing me behind my back, so as the owner, telling her she’s no longer welcome isn’t going too far, is it?"

Emeric Grant’s gaze was deep as he watched Cecilia Sterling, taking in every single word she said.

"Emeric, is this the kind of girlfriend you found? Did you hear what she just said?" Fiona Sanders was so angry she started to laugh, trying to use her words to stir up Emeric’s dissatisfaction with Cecilia and get him to defend her.

However... "Fiona, please apologize to my girlfriend," Emeric Grant said, his tone serious as he looked at Fiona Sanders.

The furious look on Fiona Sanders’s face froze. "Emeric, you..."

Seeing the stern expression on Emeric Grant’s face, and knowing his personality, Fiona Sanders knew he wasn’t joking.

"Fine! You’ve really done it now, Emeric!" Fiona Sanders was so furious she was at a loss for words, instantly losing any desire to say more, because she knew nothing she said would make a difference.

She turned, grabbed her bag, and glared at Emeric Grant with slightly reddened eyes. She bit her lip, grinding her teeth, but in the end, she said nothing and stormed away.

"Sorry, Emeric, we’re leaving. We’ll talk later." Jackie shrank back, gave Emeric a quick wave, and hurried after Fiona Sanders.

Cecilia Sterling added a cool reminder, "Don’t forget to pay the bill!"

Once they were gone, the manager bowed slightly to Cecilia Sterling. "Miss Sterling, I’ll get back to my work then. Please let me know if you need anything."

Cecilia Sterling nodded, and the manager turned and left.

Only then did she realize that Emeric Grant was still holding her hand. He hadn’t been swayed by Fiona Sanders in the slightest and hadn’t let go from start to finish.

She glanced down at their intertwined hands, then lifted her gaze to Emeric Grant’s face.

"I wasn’t trying to hide it from you. You’re the one who picked this place," Cecilia Sterling explained softly. "I was planning to tell you after dinner anyway."

She had never intended to hide these things from Emeric Grant; there was no need.

Hiding poverty or wealth was a major taboo in relationships, and Cecilia Sterling had always been upfront about such things.

"I know." Emeric Grant nodded, leading Cecilia Sterling back to their table.

"Fiona Sanders and Cecilia Langley are best friends, so it makes sense that she’d be hostile toward you..."

"You don’t have to explain that," Cecilia Sterling interrupted him, pleased. "You handled that perfectly just now."

"Just as I won’t wrong myself for your sake, I won’t have you wrong yourself for mine. You don’t need to apologize to me for what your friend did. It has nothing to do with you. And I won’t demand you cut ties with her over this, either. She’s your friend, and how you handle your relationship with her is your decision."

She was just that clear-headed and rational.

It was just a relationship; she didn’t want to complicate things, and she certainly didn’t want to interfere in Emeric Grant’s social life.

She wasn’t interested in anyone but Emeric Grant.

Today, Fiona Sanders had come looking for trouble, so it became a matter between the two of them. And she was going to handle it based on her own feelings.

Emeric Grant understood her meaning at once and nodded. "Alright, let’s drop it then. After we eat, I’ll take you somewhere."

Her mood unaffected by the incident, Cecilia Sterling asked curiously, "Where are we going?"

"Somewhere you’ve definitely never been," Emeric Grant said mysteriously.

After dinner, Emeric Grant drove Cecilia Sterling to a place very, very far away, finally stopping at the foot of a mountain.

Cecilia Sterling got out of the car and looked around. The area was even more remote than the distant suburbs, yet many cars were parked at the foot of the mountain, and people were heading up a flight of stone steps from a nearby path.

"Never been here before, have you?" Emeric Grant asked, looking at her.

Cecilia Sterling shook her head. "No. The only mountain in Lorcain I’ve been to is Mount Lyra. Where is this?"

"This is Mount Emberglow. We’re in the farthest western suburbs of Lorcain, near the Shadowcreek District. It’s normal that you’ve never been here."

Cecilia Sterling looked at the people heading up the mountain. "What’s on this mountain? Why would so many people come all the way out here?"

"You’ll see when we get up there."

As he spoke, Emeric Grant spread his fingers, lacing them with Cecilia Sterling’s, and led her up the mountain with their hands intertwined.

The path up the mountain was clearly man-made, built for the convenience of hikers, with benches placed at intervals for people to rest.

After climbing for a short while, the temperature on the mountain was noticeably lower than at the base. Emeric Grant took off his thick jacket and draped it over Cecilia Sterling. "Just a little further. We’re almost there."

Cecilia Sterling smiled and nodded. She didn’t feel tired or cold at all.

In fact, she was filled with anticipation, wondering what Emeric Grant would show her on their first date. ’Why climb a mountain?’

Then, as they reached a certain point on the mountainside, the stone path suddenly curved, turning toward the western face of the mountain. A stunning swath of red unexpectedly burst into Cecilia Sterling’s view.

Her mouth fell slightly open in surprise. The western face of the mountain was an endless forest of maple trees. The deep autumn leaves painted the mountain range red, like a layer of fiery sunset clouds that had fallen to earth.

"It’s so beautiful!" Cecilia Sterling exclaimed, feeling surprisingly moved.

Because... this was the first time in her entire life that she had seen a maple forest with her own eyes.

Even in her past life, where she had lived for sixty-five years, she had never climbed Mount Emberglow in Lorcain during late autumn or seen such a beautiful maple forest.

"Do you like it?"

Emeric Grant’s gentle voice sounded by her ear, his tone clearly tinged with a hint of pride. He had obviously noticed the glimmer of tears in Cecilia Sterling’s eyes.

Visibly moved, Cecilia Sterling nodded and leaned unconsciously into Emeric Grant’s embrace. "I love it."