The Billionaire's Unexpected Proposal by Samantha

Chapter 169

Derek arrived at the Quinn house, pulling up to the driveway with a steady resolve. He knew tonight would be a

test of his patience and control.

As he approached the front door, it swung open, revealing Sandra, who beamed at him, her face lighting up with

enthusiasm. It seemed like she had been waiting for him. "Derek! You're here!" she exclaimed, stepping forward

as if to hug him, but he subtly shifted, pretending to give her a once-over.

"You look good, Sandra", he said, making her flush with pleasure and not realize that he had just avoided her

hug.

"You're always so full of compliments. Thank you," she said with a wide smile and then ushered him in, "Cin,

cin! My parents are so eager to see you."

Claire and Eric, who were seated in the living room watching the television, looked up when Derek followed

Sandra into the living room.

They both maintained a carefully neutral expression so as not to give away the fact that they were familiar with

him already.

"Dad, Mom, this is Derek, CEO of Stone Corp. Derek, my parents," Sandra said with a beaming smile as she did

the introductions. Claire and Eric greeted him with warm smiles and extended their hands with a practiced air of

cordiality.

"Hello, Derek," Claire said, her tone deliberately neutral.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Quinn," Derek replied, giving them a polite nod.

They exchanged the usual pleasantries, keeping the conversation light and cordial while Sandra went in to finish

her look and get her purse.

All three of them could sense the tension in the room, apart from Sandra, who had no idea that they were all

very much aware of her plans.

After a few minutes, Sandra reappeared, her makeup finished, and her excitement apparent. "Alright, ready to

go!" she announced, glancing at her parents. "I will be back late. Or not. Don't wait up," she said as she reached

for Derek's arm, attempting to hold on to him, but he subtly stepped aside, gesturing toward the door.

"We will be leaving now. 'll bring her back early," Derek promised, and Sandra pouted for a moment but quickly

masked it with a smile since she didn't want to offend Derek by seeming too clingy.

"Our reds don't match. Mine looks sharper while yours is deep" she observed as they walked outside.

"You toldred. You didn't exactly givea specific shade," he pointed out, glad that it didn't match.

"You're right. | suppose red is red. It doesn't matter the shade," she said, and Derek hoped she would think so

when she saw Evelyn's outfit.

When they got to the car, Derek opened the car door for her and then took his place behind the wheel.

As he drove, she tried to make small talk, chatting about her week and work and how she was excited about the

evening ahead, but he only offered brief responses, his thoughts elsewhere.

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In his mind, Derek kept replaying his last conversation with Evelyn before Ethan's call cin. He was

concerned about the tension he'd noticed in her earlier and wondered if she'd truly been okay.

Had something else happened that she wasn't telling him? And why had she claimed she received a kitchen

delivery yet had cout from the guest room instead of the kitchen? Something felt off, and he couldn't shake

the feeling that she was hiding something. "Derek?" Sandra's voice broke into his thoughts, pulling him back to

the present. "Hmm?" he murmured, barely glancing her way.

"You seem distracted," she observed with a hint of annoyance that she tried to mask. "Thinking about the

reunion?"

"Yeah... something like that. | don't attend such events, so I'm wondering what I'm going to say and how I'm

going to fit in, he replied, giving her a half-smile.

"Oh, you don't have to fit in. I'm not exactly very friendly with them.

Besides, I'm sure when they know who you are, they will be the ones trying to entertain you," she said with a

smirk, proud of herself for getting a man like Derek.

There was no doubt in her mind that Evelyn had lost Derek and didn't even stand a chance with him. Not when

she was a Babymama to sman. All she had to do now was get Evelyn and Michael out of the picture to

secure her triumph. In a couple of hours, that would be done.

Thinking about it, Sandra looked away from Derek as she pulled out her phone, remembering that she had yet to

send an important message to the hitman.

[Also, when you get Michael, do not forget to use his phone to give Evelyn several calls. You should also send

scrazy texts that would make it seem like he is obsessed with her. Make it believable.] Satisfied, she put her

phone away. "What are you up to?" Derek asked, catching her movement from the corner of his eye.

"Oh, I'm just checking the group chat to see if everyone has arrived," she replied breezily, flashing a casual

smile.

Arriving at Rayna's bakery, which was the venue, Derek parked and stepped out of the car, going around to get

Sandra's door.

As they stepped into the bakery side by side, Derek immediately looked around for Evelyn, and his gaze landed

on her across the room.

She looked stunning in her red jumpsuit, and he felt his chest tighten at the sight of her. The red color matched

his own perfectly, and he resisted the urge to smile, keeping his composure so that Sandra would not notice.

Across the room, Evelyn felt Derek's gaze on her, and when she turned and saw him, she pressed her lips

together to keep from grinning when he winked at her.

On the other hand, Sandra's face fell when she caught sight of

Evelyn. She glared at the deep, complementary shade Evelyn wore, which fit Derek's red perfectly and made her

own attire seem a shade too sharp and out of place beside Derek.

If she didn't know better, she would have thought they had planned it, Sandra mused as she glanced from

Evelyn to Derek to see if he had noticed Evelyn looking at him, but to Sandra's pleasure, Derek was smiling down

at her instead of looking at Evelyn, "Let's join the others."

As they drew closer to the long banquet table, Sandra noticed, to her frustration, that the only available seats

were one next to Evelyn and another directly across from her.

When they got to the table, they were greeted with polite nods and waves from former classmates since Sandra

wasn't exactly very friendly with others, unlike Evelyn, who got along with everyone and was loved by all.

"Is there a way we can adjust the seats so | can sit next to my boyfriend?" Sandra asked hopefully since the last

thing she wanted was for either of them to sit beside Evelyn.

"No, Sandy. The seats were arranged this way to encourage mingling. No one is to sit beside their partner since

they would be too distracted to focus on the rest of us," Rayna said sweetly, and Evelyn resisted the urge to

giggle. Evelyn had not noticed what Rayna had done until then, and it warmed her heart to see that Rayna was

looking out for her so that she wouldn't have to see Sandra sitting so closely with Derek.

"That doesn't even make any sense. Why do | have to sit separately from my boyfriend..."

"Calm down. Don't make a scene," Derek whispered, and Sandra stopped.

"I'm sure you have all the tin the world to spend with your fine-looking boyfriend. A couple of minutes away

from him won't be the end of your relationship," someone said dryly, and the others laughed.

"And maybe you should let your boyfriend sit beside Evelyn, seeing as you both don't get along. | don't want any

fighting in my bakery," Rayna said, and Sandra scowled at her while the others murmured amongst themselves

as they looked on in interest.

"I thought | was imagining things. What possibly could have torn you both apart?" Someone asked curiously.

Not wanting to miss the opportunity Rayna had presented, Derek spoke quickly. "She is right. | will sit beside

Evelyn, and you can sit here. It's only for a couple of hours. It's not a big deal," Derek said, guiding Sandra to the

seat opposite Evelyn.

Reluctantly, Sandra settled in the seat opposite Evelyn as Derek held out the seat for her, and after that, Derek

went to take the seat beside Evelyn.

The moment he sat down, Evelyn greeted him with a soft smile,

"Hello, Derek. It's good to see you again," she murmured, her gaze meeting his.

Knowing that Sandra was watching, Derek spared Evelyn a brief glance, unable to bring himself to ignore her

even though it was only for show. "Shere. You look gorgeous," he said flatly, but from the look in

his eyes, Evelyn could tell it was a genuine compliment.

Derek turned away from her, feigning disinterest, but under the table, he reached for her hand and gently

squeezed it.

She felt butterflies flutter in her stomach, and she held back a smile, feeling comforted by his touch.

"You both know each other?" Someone asked, and Evelyn smiled.

"Of course. This is Derek..."

Sandra fumed as she watched the interaction, her irritation barely concealed. "He is Derek Stone, my boyfriend."

Rayna, seated next to Evelyn, smirked as she watched Sandra's irritation. "You know, if | didn't know better, I'd

say Evelyn and Derek are the couple here, matching and all."

Sandra's eyes narrowed as she glared at Rayna. "Derek is my boyfriend, not Evelyn's," she snapped. "Don't joke

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about that."

"Relax, Sandra"" Rayna laughed, waving her off. "No one's going to steal your man tonight," Rayna said while

everyone else watched the exchange with amusement.

Evelyn chuckled, giving Sandra a teasing smile. "No worries, sis.

I've got my own man.

Rayna giggled, chiming in, "Oh, | wish he had cwith you tonight, Evie. A total package, that guy is, | tell."

Derek struggled to keep a straight face as he gestured for Sandra to calm down. Sandra did her best to stay

calm, casting a glare at

Evelyn.

"No one will be stealing anyone's man tonight. Besides, you can't steal a full-grown man that doesn't want to be

stolen. | have no desire to be stolen from the love of my life," Derek assured the ladies. Thinking he was referring

to her, Sandra blushed while Evelyn and the rest of the ladies let out a collective aww.

"You're so sweet. Makesthink of Evie's boyfriend," Rayna said with a wink at Evelyn, and Evelyn giggled.

"Tell us about this charming boyfriend of yours, Evie," one of the ladies said, and Evelyn giggled.

"Yeah, tell us. Ray is makingreally curious," another lady said.

"I don't know where to start," she said with a grin, "He's so charming, romantic and sweet..."

"He is handsand financially loaded, too," Rayna added enthusiastically, and Sandra huffed.

Determined to disgrace Evelyn, she brought up a topic she thought might embarrass her. "By the way, Evie," she

said with an exaggerated smile, "how is your daughter? Why have | yet to meet my niece?" She asked sweetly.

"Daughter? Evie, you have a kid?" One of the guys asked. "Yeah. | was surprised to find out, too. She kept it

hidden from us all probably because she was too embarrassed about being a single mom," Sandra said, and the

room grew quiet.

Derek looked at Sandra with disapproval, and she flashed him an apologetic smile since he seemed displeased

with her for revealing that.

A few people turned to Evelyn in surprise. Unruffled, Evelyn laughed softly, "Why would | be embarrassed? | have

the most adorable little girl."

Rayna jumped in, "Oh, Samantha's the

"Yeah. Let's see," the others said, and lettiest, smartest kid! Evie, you should show everyone a picture!" She said,

knowing that Sandra had brought it up to embarrass Evelyn.

Evelyn pulled out her phone and showed off photos of Samantha, earning compliments from everyone around.

Sandra clenched her fists in anger as she watched as everyone admired Evelyn even more.

Rayna continued, "Do you guys know what the sweetest thing is?

Her man adores them so much. He even both them both cars recently. Evelyn got herself the absolute best."

Sandra, frustrated and searching for an edge, let out a deep sigh as she suddenly exclaimed, "Poor Michael. |

can't imagine how he must feel to know that Evelyn dumped him on their wedding day for someone more

successful." Everyone fell silent at that, and under the table Evelyn felt Derek's fist clench, but she placed a

hand over it to calm him and laughed out loud, the sound calm and unbothered. "Well, anyone in my shoes

would do the safter finding their fiance in bed with their stepsister a day before their wedding. Am |

wrong?" Evelyn asked with a sweet smile.