Chapter 837

Noreen looked up.

He was backlit by the streetlamps, his chiseled features cast in shadow, making his expression impossible to read.

But she mumbled his name anyway. “Seth… Didn’t you leave?”

The alcohol was really hitting her now. Squatting on the sidewalk, she swayed slightly on her feet.

In her blurred vision, the halos of light behind him seemed to drift and dance.

“Did you want me to leave?” Seth stared at her flushed cheeks, his gaze growing noticeably warmer.

Noreen’s face scrunched up in distress.

As if he had just asked her the hardest question in the world.

Deciding to take a different approach, Seth asked, “Do you want me to stay, then?”

Noreen still looked utterly troubled. “I don’t know.”

Seth’s lips curled into a faint smile. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

In the distance, fireworks suddenly burst over the bay, illuminating the dark blue sky.

Distracted by the lights, Noreen turned her head.

No matter how many times she saw The Esplanade’s fireworks display, it always took her breath away.

Catching her awe, Seth asked, “Want to go watch them?”

Noreen nodded honestly.

“Come with me.” He held out his hand to her.

Noreen’s eyes lingered on his bandaged palm for a fraction of a second before she reached up and took it.

After pulling the car around, Dariel couldn’t find Noreen anywhere, so he tried calling her.

It rang out without an answer.

Just as Dariel was debating whether to round up his men for a search, his phone buzzed. It was Castle.

Castle instructed, “Stand down for the night. Tell the others to pull back, too.”

Dariel never questioned his boss. “Understood.”

Over at the hospital, Castle ended the call and looked at his older brother, Sage, who was sitting by his bed. “I called Dariel off, just like you asked.”

Sage stared intensely at him, looking grave.

Castle pinched the bridge of his nose. “Go ahead. Ask what you want to ask.”

“Your engagement to Noreen is fake, isn’t it?” Sage cut straight to the chase.

This time, Castle was entirely honest. “Yes.”

“To secure custody of Katy?”

“Not entirely.”

Seeing Sage frown, Castle quickly elaborated. “I have no romantic

feelings for Noreen. I just trust her.

Plus, she still feels indebted to

Harme

so know she won’t fly anything underhanded.”

With that explanation, it clicked for Sage.

Given Castle’s vast wealth and status, bringing any other woman into the picture could lead to a world of complications.

“Most importantly, Katy adores her. Leaving Katy in her care is the only way I’ll have peace of mind.”

That was the real deciding factor.

Sage had basically raised Castle. There was a ten-year age gap between the brothers.

Decades ago, the Joyner family was little more than fallen aristocracy.

To rebuild their dynasty, their father, Donovan Joyner, had married Mira Selwyn the most prominent socialite in Harborview, blessed with both striking beauty and formidable family backing.

Leveraging the Selwyn family’s resources and power, Donovan not only resurrected the Joyner legacy but expanded into a massive empire.

It could have been the perfect success story.

However, for all his business acumen, Donovan had a deeply rotten core.

Once he got rich, he showed his true colors.

He was no exception to the age-old cliché.

The moment he solidified his power, he cast his wife aside and spent his days womanizing.

Worse, while Mira was pregnant with Castle, Donovan brought a mistress home, declaring his intention to take her as his second wife.

At the time, polygamy hadn’t been fully outlawed in the city.

Mira threatened to take her own life, but even that couldn’t stop the Second Wife from moving in.

Donovan threw a wedding for his mistress that eclipsed his first marriage in pure extravagance.

Castle was born on the very night of that wedding.

It was a terribly complicated labor.

When the doctor called Donovan to ask whether to save the mother or the child…