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Instead, ed him

The partygoers clapped politely, and a few even ratulations

“Are you ?” someone asked loudly as a joke Or maybe they were serious, it was ienuinely, and others did it to cover their unease with the situation, but any hulare landed on the man who’d asked the question

If looks could kill, that guy would have been vaporized

The irritation drained off my father’s face, and it returned to the cold, superior look he usually held “Thank you”

He dropped the knife off at the table he’d borrowed it frone as he strode back to Sophia’s side I wasn’t surprised when he passed his glass off to her because my father didn’t drink

I et in line Evangeline Gabbart was the first to approach and gave the, and I watched with comical fascination as my father accepted it They’d ‘dated’ briefly before he’d started seeing Sophia, but I knew better, and this stilted hug was further proof their relationship had been all for show

When she moved on, I worked ratulations”

His grip was firret I didn’t get a chance to tell you before the announcement”

Because he’d called me twice today and I’d pushed them both to voicemail I had toohis coht Da to go out on a limb and assume you didn’t ask his permission”

Tradition was everything to us Hales, and I wondered if this had been a hard one for hio

“No, I asked Stephen Alby,” he said

This was news to Sophia, and she looked up at him in surprise “You did?”

His face contorted “I didn’t necessarily ask I may have just informed him of my plans”

She gave a short laugh and shook her head, as if saying, “classic Macalister behavior”