Quiana had already changed into a new outfit.
She liked the red color scheme, it made her pale skin look like snow.
And with her pretty features, she looked like one of those seductive fairies from old stories.
Kelsey couldn't stop staring at her.
The two of them had been in the room for a while when Hunter came to hurry them along.
"We're coming!"
Quiana heard the knock on the door and rushed over, lifting her skirt slightly.
When the door opened, the guy standing outside had a bit of a frown, but it faded the moment he saw what Quiana was wearing. The impatience on his face disappeared just like that.
"Can you try being on time for once?"
Quiana had a lot of bad habits, and being late was something he always scolded her for. She knew she was in the wrong and smiled, taking his arm and kissing his cheek. "I'm sorry! Let me make it up to you, okay?"
"Are you trying to make it up to me or just taking advantage?"
Quiana instantly let go of his hand. "I'm not talking to you anymore."
Hunter just shook his head and pinched her face, half amused, half helpless. "You're so spoiled. And you've got a bad temper too."
Quiana ignored him and went to grab Kelsey's hand. "Just sit next to me later, okay? They're all Hunter's friends and around our age, so don't feel too awkward. With me here, you'll be fine."
Hunter finally noticed the girl behind her, and his expression went back to normal, cold and a bit distant, like he usually was around people.
Kelsey nodded and smiled at Quiana.
"Okay."
Downstairs, the kitchen staff had already finished setting the table. A man and a woman were sitting there waiting.
As Kelsey walked down the stairs, she suddenly felt a pair of eyes on her. She looked up.
And, sure enough, her gaze met a pair of eyes she knew way too well.
They were dark and distant, deep like a night sky full of stars, and just staring into them made people feel like they were falling in.
Kelsey froze. Her whole body tensed up like she was in some kind of dream, and even her breathing stopped for a second.
It was him...
Was she dreaming?
Why would she see Rhett here, of all places?
Quiana noticed that Kelsey had stopped and asked, kind of confused, "What's wrong?"
Kelsey snapped out of it, shook her head, and looked a little uncomfortable. "Nothing."
She bit her lip and followed Quiana to the table.
The whole time, she could feel his eyes on her, following her, watching her every move.
But she didn't react. She didn't even glance at him.
She didn't look at Rhett. She didn't look at the woman sitting next to him either.
But deep down, she could tell that the second she appeared, the whole atmosphere had shifted.
Rhett never looked away.
His eyes were always dark, impossible to read, and people could never tell what he was thinking.
But now, he just stared and stared, like she was some stranger he couldn't figure out.
When Kelsey finally sat down, Rhett pulled his gaze back and said to Hunter in a flat voice, "You never said there would be outsiders."
He was talking to Hunter.
Hunter stayed calm and sat down on Quiana's other side after she sat down.
"She's Quiana's friend. Don't worry about it."
When Kelsey heard Rhett say the word outsider, her brows twitched slightly, but she still didn't look at him.
She sat stiffly at the dining table, her head spinning. She really didn't expect Hunter's guests to be Rhett and Elise.
Rhett noticed her the second she showed up.
And so did Elise.
When Kelsey appeared, Elise almost froze on the spot. She seriously thought she was seeing a ghost.
Her face went pale, and she couldn't believe what she was seeing until Kelsey actually sat down across from her—and suddenly she had goosebumps all over.
She would never mistake that face. Not in this lifetime.
Why was Kelsey here? Wasn't she supposed to be dead?
Cold sweat started forming on her back, but after surviving in the entertainment industry for so long, she still managed to keep it together. Her first instinct was to look at Rhett sitting next to her.
His eyes were locked on Kelsey.
Elise's fists clenched so tightly you could barely notice, her teeth grinding together.
…Was Kelsey really still alive?
Her mind went completely blank. She couldn't think. All she could do was stare at Kelsey.
Quiana, obviously noticing how weird the mood had gotten, looked back and forth between Elise and Kelsey in confusion.
"You two… know each other?"
Kelsey shook her head. "No. We don't."
She seemed calm on the outside, but her fingernails had already dug deep into her palms.
Elise finally snapped out of it, forced herself to look away, then stared straight at Quiana. Her voice was shaky. "Who is she?"
Quiana was totally thrown off by her reaction. It even scared her a bit, and she stepped back without thinking.
Hunter frowned, clearly annoyed. He pulled Quiana behind him protectively and looked straight at Elise.
"Miss Collins, if you have something to say, please just say it. If you've got a problem with my wife, speak up."
Elise and Quiana weren't exactly friends.
But since Hunter was Kingston's doctor, and Kingston was close with both Kelsey and Elise, they'd always kept things civil.
Still, that little outburst of Elise's came off pretty rude.
Even so, Elise was still a guest in their home.
Quiana didn't want to make a scene, so she quickly explained,
"This is Kaitlyn. She was my teacher during training class."
"Kaitlyn…"
Elise repeated the name, slowly, like she was trying it out. Her tone had a slight edge to it, like she was forcing herself not to say something worse.
She was starting to calm down, though. She looked back at Kelsey, but this time her eyes were full of suspicion and confusion.
…Was this really not Kelsey? Just someone who looked a lot like her?
Not just the looks, even the voice sounded the same. And even the name felt way too close...
Something about it gave her a really weird feeling. She couldn't help glancing at Rhett again, but the guy didn't react at all. Like, seriously nothing.
He didn't seem to care that this woman showed up.
But the calmer he acted, the more Elise started to panic.
How could he just sit there like it meant nothing?
This woman looked exactly like Kelsey, and she might be her.
And what about back then… when Kelsey fell off that building in such a crazy and heartbroken way?
Elise realized something.
What was bothering her even more than Kaitlyn being here, was Rhett's complete lack of emotion.
After sitting there in silence for a while, she finally spoke, her voice dry and hoarse.
"Kaitlyn… that's really her name?"
Her reaction was honestly weird, and Quiana couldn't help but ask, "Do you know her?"
Elise shook her head. Her face was pale, but she forced a smile.
"No. She just… really looks like someone I used to know."