Never Forgive Never Forget (Celeste and Philip) novel Chapter 131

"No wonder you grew up playing in the dirt—every word out of your mouth reeks of it."

"The only reason you get to parade around here with your precious violin is because you've forgotten who dragged you out of that backwater town in the first place, haven't you?"

"Viola, if I could pull you out of that hole back then, trust me—I could just as easily bury you right back in it."

Celeste spoke each word with icy precision, tearing off the mask of propriety in front of the gathered socialites and exposing Viola's humble origins for all to see.

A few of the women gasped behind manicured hands, eyes wide with shock.

Viola's pupils contracted.

She never expected—never in a million years—that Celeste would stoop to humiliating her about her background, and in public no less.

The Celeste she remembered, no matter how much she fell from grace, would never have used someone's background as ammunition.

Fury welled up inside Viola. She wanted desperately to explain herself to the other women, to salvage her reputation—but just then, Philip arrived. He stood at the top of the stairs, looking just as stunned by Celeste's words as everyone else.

"You—"

"Philip!"

Before he could say a word, Viola rushed to intercept him, her voice tremulous with tears. "It's my fault, I upset Celeste. She was just angry and didn't mean what she said. Please, don't be upset with her!"

Celeste didn't even bother to lift her gaze.

The same old act. How long was Viola planning to milk this routine?

Before Philip could respond, several of the women exchanged knowing glances, their voices pitched just loud enough to be overheard.

"So this is Viola's boyfriend? He's quite handsome."

"That's Philip Robertson, the Robertson Group heir. Viola's luck really is something else."

Viola blushed and moved closer to Philip, clearly enjoying the attention.

Philip listened to the whispers as he let Viola guide him toward the center of the room. Suddenly, he stopped.

"H-Husband?!" Kate nearly squeaked, clapping a hand over her mouth.

Celeste… married? When did that happen?

People nearby were starting to stare, so Celeste hustled Kate out before anyone overheard something they shouldn't.

It's just marriage—was that really something to get so worked up about?

Once they were in the car, Kate finally turned to her, gripping her shoulders. "What's the deal between you and Philip, then?"

"It's over. Completely. No point digging up the past," Celeste replied, sounding utterly uninterested.

Kate hadn't seen her old friend in years, but she knew better than to poke at fresh wounds. After all, breaking up with someone you'd spent a decade with—Celeste would know best how that felt.

She quickly changed the subject. "It's still early. Want to see my studio?"

"Sure," Celeste answered, grateful for the change of topic.