Belated Moonlight: He Regretted Only After I Left-Chapter 124: What Is This?

The atmosphere of the engagement banquet remained lively.

However, Beatrice Donovan felt like every second was frying her in oil.

Her face was adorned with a smile, yet her gaze uncontrollably flitted towards Shane Donovan.

At that moment, Shane was moving among the guests with Stella Sterling, chatting and laughing, the sharpness in his eyes undiminished. Not only did he not show any public gaffes, but there wasn’t the slightest hint of anything unusual.

The cup of drugged toast wine seemed to sink into the sea, without even a ripple.

What’s going on?

Why isn’t anything happening to him?

Not far away, Philip Donovan held a wine glass, seemingly exchanging pleasantries with others, but the corner of his eye remained locked on Shane Donovan.

As time ticked by, the smile on his face gradually became hard to maintain, and his brow furrowed more deeply.

Something’s wrong.

His peripheral vision involuntarily swept towards Beatrice Donovan not far away.

At this moment, she was forcing a smile while exchanging pleasantries with a society lady, but her gaze kept darting towards Shane Donovan, with sweat seeping from her temples, unable to be covered by powder.

A flame ignited in Philip Donovan’s heart, and he found an excuse to grab Beatrice Donovan’s wrist with such force that it nearly elicited a cry from her.

"Come with me."

He practically dragged her through the bustling crowd into a secluded lounge.

The door locked with a ’click’.

"What’s going on?!"

Philip Donovan released her hand, his face so dark that water seemed about to drip from it, "How long has it been? Why is he perfectly fine?!"

Beatrice Donovan was panicked, "I... I don’t know, Brother Philip! I saw Rhys personally carry the wine over, and Shane drank it too! I added the drugs exactly as you instructed in his cup, and to be sure, I added a little extra!"

"Extra dosage?"

Philip Donovan’s brow furrowed deeply, "Could it be that the dosage was too large, causing a delay in the effect?"

He irritably raked through his hair; after all, it was expensive and supposed to have a swift effect, according to the seller. It shouldn’t be like this...

Yet he felt uncertain, as it was the first time he used that drug. The seller only guaranteed the effect but didn’t specify the exact onset time.

Could there really be a delay?

"Let’s wait a bit longer, wait and see..." Philip Donovan forced himself to stay calm, breathing heavily, "Perhaps... perhaps different people have different physiques and react more slowly... stay composed, don’t panic!"

Beatrice Donovan nodded helplessly, her hands clammy.

The two of them discussed quietly for a few more moments but didn’t dare stay away for too long, fearing to arouse suspicion. They each straightened their expressions and exited one after the other.

The lounge returned to its quiet state.

Little did they know, in the shadowed corner of the lounge, a tall figure was lazily leaning against the back of a velvet sofa.

Rhys Lennox had left the center of the banquet at some point to seek some peace here.

He held an unlit cigarette between his fingers, spinning it absently, while his short golden hair remained striking under the dim light.

When Philip Donovan dragged Beatrice Donovan over, no matter how low they kept their voices, the inherently quiet lounge allowed several key phrases to drift clearly into his ears.

His originally indifferent expression gradually stiffened, and his fingers stopped spinning the cigarette.

In a flash, memories of his mother’s unusual tension linked together in his mind...

A ridiculous yet terrifying suspicion surfaced in his heart.

Instinctively, he clenched his fist, his knuckles whitening from the force, his eyes darkening ominously...

...

As the engagement banquet neared its end, guests gradually dispersed, and the noise subsided.

Stella Sterling had been standing in high heels for most of the day, feeling her ankles sore and weak. She quietly leaned against Shane Donovan, using his strength for support.

"Tired?" Shane Donovan, with his arm around her waist, asked in a low voice.

"Mm..." Stella replied softly, a hint of fatigue showing in her eyes and brows.

Shane gently pinched her fingertips, "I’ll have the driver take you home."

Stella instinctively raised her hand to refuse but then saw her parents and brother, Aidan Sterling, walking towards them.

"Let’s go..." Aidan’s gaze flicked between Stella and Shane, giving Shane a glance that was not quite expressionless but lacked the usual tension, "I’m taking her now."

His tone was firm, yet the usual hostility between them was absent.

Shane raised an eyebrow, uncharacteristically without retorting, simply saying, "Take good care of her."

Aidan gave a dismissive snort, which counted as acknowledgment.

Seeing her brother’s awkward demeanor, Stella couldn’t help but smile, turning to Shane and whispering, "Shall I go then?"

"Mm." Shane lowered his head, and without regard for others, planted a kiss on her forehead, making Stella’s cheeks flush bright red. Instinctively, she looked at her parents.

Isla Sutton smiled and averted her eyes, while Theodore Sterling cleared his throat, and Aidan rolled his eyes outright, muttering, "Cheesy."

In the car heading back to the Sterling residence, the atmosphere was light.

Stella kicked off her high heels, curled up in the comfortable back seat, and let out a long breath.

Isla handed her a bottle of opened water, "Have some water; your throat must be parched?"

"Thanks, Mom." Stella took it and sipped.

Aidan, sitting in the front passenger seat, glanced at her through the rearview mirror, "Feeling wilted after standing for only half a day?"

Stella put down the water bottle and couldn’t help but kick the back of Aidan’s seat, "Brother! Can’t you say something nice?"

Aidan scoffed, "Save the sweet talk for your fiancé."

Theodore spoke, with a hint of amusement, "Today was quite the scene; the Donovans take this seriously."

He paused, looking at his daughter, "Shane is a methodical guy. You should restrain your temper and don’t always argue with him."

"I don’t..." Stella mumbled softly, her lips curling into a slight smile.

The car traveled steadily, the scene outside streaming past.

Relaxed, Stella leaned against her mother’s shoulder, chatting about interesting things from the banquet. Laughter filled the car lightly.

...

Elsewhere, in the main residence’s living room of The Donovan Estate.

Old Mr. Donovan sat in the main seat, taking a sip of ginseng tea, and looked at Shane Donovan, "Today went well, with no mishaps."

Shane stood to the side, his expression calm, "Thanks for your concern, Grandpa."

"Next comes the wedding preparations; you should hold your temper and don’t make things difficult for Stella," the old man advised.

"I understand."

Old Mrs. Donovan was seated nearby, fiddling with her Buddha beads, remaining silent and her expression not too pleasant.

Philip Donovan felt a bit uneasy, his eyes flickering, often glancing at Shane Donovan.

At this moment, Beatrice Donovan cautiously approached, her smile stiff, "Shane, you’ve been busy all day. Are you tired? I noticed you drank a lot; are you feeling dizzy? Perhaps we could have the kitchen prepare some hangover soup for you?"

She asked cautiously, her eyes scanning Shane’s face meticulously, looking for any hint of abnormality.

Shane looked up, his dark gaze landing on her without warmth, making Beatrice’s heart shiver.

Rather than answer, he asked back, his tone revealing no emotion: "Has Aunt always been this concerned about me today?"

Beatrice’s heart skipped a beat as she forced a smile, "It’s just... it’s just that you seemed tired from socializing, so of course, I should care for you, right?"

"Is that so?" Shane suddenly let out a soft chuckle, a faint curve appearing at the corner of his lips.

Under Beatrice’s uncertain and suspicious gaze, he leisurely took something out from the pocket of his trousers.

It was a very tiny transparent glass bottle, without any labels, containing remnants of a colorless powder.

Using his fingertips, he held it up to his eyes, his gaze sharp as a blade, "Since Aunt is so concerned about me, could you perhaps tell me..."

"What is this?"