Cousin
“Sandstone?” Sonia blinked and looked at Toby. “Oh, I get it. You said that the Herrais family exists, but
they don’t use that name. So your mother comes from the Sandstones, right?”
“Smart,” Toby praised.
Sonia looked embarrassed. “You’ve made it obvious, so if I can’t even guess that, I’m… That’s not
important.” She waved her hand. “But there are a lot of families in the nation with the same last name.
Which family did your grandfather come from?”
“The one in Westsanshire,” Toby answered.
“Westsanshire…” Sonia thought about it, then her eyes widened as realization struck her. “The one
who’s friends with the Salzburgs?”
“Yes.” Toby nodded.
That was why his mother used to date Connor.
“I see. So the Sandstone Family is your mother’s family, huh?”
“Yes. Even though they’re the Sandstones, the lynchpin is actually a Herrias, so the guys in
Westsanshire call them the Herrias Family,” Toby explained.
Sonia nodded. “I see. Since they’re in Westsanshire, I didn’t know the Sandstone Family was the Herrias
Family, but I’ve heard rumors about your company being at odds with Sandstone Group. Is that true?”
“That is true,” he told her honestly, and he squinted.
The news shocked Sonia. “Wow, that’s real? I thought that’s your mother’s family. So why are they at
odds with the Fullers?”
“Because the one in charge isn’t my grandfather.” He patted her head gently, but there was only an icy
chill in his eyes.
Sonia could see that he was in a bad mood.
“My great grandfather had two sons. His eldest son was my grandfather. He inherited the family
business, but he only sired one daughter, that was my mother. After they passed away, I was supposed
to take over, but halfway through the succession, my grandfather’s brother showed up and took away the
rest,” Toby said coldly. “My grandfather just passed away back then. I wanted him to rest in peace and
keep things under control, so I didn’t fight them. I let them take the inheritance away.”
“Aren’t you mad about that?” Sonia looked at him.
Toby chuckled. “No. What they took was just something that’ll be obsolete in the near future. It just
looked valuable back then. I think you’ve heard about their financials being in hot soup now, right?”
“Of course.” Sonia adjusted her position. “I read finance news a lot. Last week, I saw an analysis on their
company’s situation. The news said they’re working on a sunset industry, and they’ll be booted out of the
business world if they don’t change soon. I actually thought it was sad that an old company was going to
be bankrupt. I thought they should go with the flow instead of stubbornly insisting on the old ways. Now
that I know they’re actually robbers, I don’t feel sorry anymore.”
She could see that Toby hated the Sandstones, so she wasn’t afraid he would be upset if she said that.
And as expected, Toby wasn’t upset at all. In fact, he smiled.
“You’re right. There’s no point pitying them now. They thought they got something good, but it’s really
something I don’t care about. Even if they didn’t take it, I would have given them half of the inheritance
and worked with them too. Before he died, my grandfather said he owed his brother a lot, so I would
have given them half of the inheritance anyway, but…” Toby squinted.
Sonia looked at him sadly. “But they let you down.”
Toby massaged his forehead. “They did. Their company started to rot years and years ago. They came
to me four years ago, asking me to help them, but I refused. That’s how I am. I would help them if I was
the one who gave them the business, but since they took it forcefully from me, what happens to them
has nothing to do with me. That’s why I didn’t help. They started a smear campaign against us after they
went back. That’s why you heard the rumors about us being at odds.”
“I see.” Sonia smiled. “I get it, but they can do what they want. It’s not like they’re your grandfather’s
descendants anyway.”
“Yeah. I never really cared about what they were up to.” Toby smiled. “But I’m actually friends with their
second family.”
Sonia stretched her arms. “Second family?”
“Yes. He’s the brother of the current head of the Sandstone Family—my uncle. He knows he’s not in line
for the inheritance, so he didn’t work with his brother back then. He protected my mother when they were
kids, so the bond is still there. That’s the only bond I have with the Sandstones.” Toby straightened out
her clothes which had gotten messy after she stretched her arms.
Sonia curled up in his embrace. “I see.”
“You’ve seen his daughter before. She’s my cousin.” Toby suddenly remembered something, and he
looked at her.
Sonia looked at him curiously. “Cousin? I don’t remember seeing her before.”
“The one who danced with me back at the ball,” Toby answered.
Sonia thought about it for a few moments, then she sat up. “Oh, so she’s your cousin?” Back then, she
went to the ball with Zane while Toby went with another woman. That woman wasn’t exactly gorgeous,
but she was tall, and her air was regal. Sonia thought she was a model. Toby had chatted and drank with
her, and he had even danced with her. Sonia had thought the woman was a rich lady who caught his
eyes. So she’s his cousin? Oh, darn. Sonia blushed as she felt awkward about her misunderstanding.
Toby arched his eyebrow curiously when he saw her blushing. “Why are you blushing?”
“Well, I misunderstood your cousin.” She stared down sheepishly.
Toby squinted. “Is that so? What kind of misunderstanding was it?”
“Stop asking. It’s embarrassing!” She covered her face.
Huh? Oh, I see. I get it now. Toby started chuckling.
His laugh only made her feel more embarrassed. “Stop laughing!” She glared at him. I know I thought
she was his new love-interest, but it’s only natural. He was so close with her. He started the whole thing,
and now he’s laughing?
Toby knew she was feeling awkward, so he stopped laughing and cleared his throat. “Alright, alright. Put
your hand down. Stop covering your face. Can you even breathe through that?”
Sonia didn’t move, so Toby, left with no choice, did it himself. He pulled her hand away, but she was still
blushing, and he pinched her cheek.
“What are you doing?” She quickly retreated.
Toby smirked. “Nothing. I just think you’re looking a bit too hot, so I’m cooling you down.”
“I’m fine.” Sonia fidgeted.
Toby knew she got embarrassed easily, so he stopped teasing her. He changed the topic and asked,
“Where did you go this afternoon anyway?”
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