Faux Vows, True Desires novel Chapter 409

Cecilia bit her lip and then spoke, her voice steady, "I believe you."

In his own words, if she asked Mr. Coleman to dig some dirt, he could unearth the truth.

He knew it, and he wouldn't lie to her.

She trusted him.

Owen sighed with relief and felt a wave of emotion at Cecilia's trust in him.

"Cecilia," he said with a sheepish grin, "the mastermind behind my so-called heroic rescue was actually Stefan."

Cecilia raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Yeah, you wouldn't guess it, right? Stefan's a sly one. Don't be fooled by his gentlemanly facade; the guy's got schemes darker than a stout. I followed his lousy advice."

Cecilia poked his chest with her finger, admonishing him, "Mr. Coleman wouldn't just cook up a plan for no reason. You obviously went to him first. What's going on between you two, huh? You walked right into his trap and now you're complaining about it? You had the choice to use his advice or not. And now you're thinking of ratting out Mr. Coleman? Is that your idea of crossing the river and tearing down the bridge?"

Owen stuttered, "Cecilia, no, that's not it. I'm just being honest with you, that’s all."

Yet, inside, he was thankful he hadn't complained to Lucinda. If Lucinda had mentioned anything to Cecilia, she would have been furious.

Being scolded by Cecilia somehow felt better than fearing her wrath.

"Ever since our divorce, I've been a mess, can't eat, can't sleep. Worried sick you'd fall for Avery's charms. In my desperation, I sought advice from someone experienced, hence Stefan. Little did I know he'd hand me a bum steer. You know the saying, ‘desperate times call for desperate measures’? Well, I was desperate."

"And Cecilia, I have to tell you something, and you must not fall for Avery's act. He will never like you; he's deceiving you. The truth is, he's gay, and he's got a thing for Cedric Frost."

Cecilia paused, puzzled, "And how would you know if he's gay or not? Have you tried to, you know, with him?"

"Ugh, no way! I'm straight as an arrow. The person I really want to, you know, is you."

Owen's voice softened, "I did some digging. The guy's trying to steal my wife; I gotta know everything about him. His ancestors would turn in their graves if they knew he was batting for the same team and not into women."

"People have the right to like whoever they want. It's not our place to judge."

Knowing Avery was gay cleared up a lot for Cecilia. Someone had clearly sent him to pursue her under false pretenses.

She had thought well of Avery – he was a looker, after all. But his sexual orientation was his choice, and she wouldn't discriminate against him just for being gay.

Owen grimaced, "Pretending to be my rival and chasing after my wife, and you expect me to speak well of him? I didn't wreck his career out of respect, but thank goodness he's gay. Otherwise, hmph!"

The real issue was the force behind Avery – his powerful grandfather.

As his own grandpa had said, without Avery's interference, he wouldn't have realized his true feelings for Cecilia so quickly.

"Does it still hurt?"

Cecilia changed the subject.