'What friends!?' The little girl's disgruntlement was not visible to the elders.
Yvonne did not consider either of those girls to be her friend and hence she was not willing to accept the words that her mother had just spoken.
"The three of them looked so good together!" Raylene gushed as she began narrating how they had met outside the cafe and had even followed her inside.
'Here it comes!' Yvonne braced herself for when her mother would come to the part about the interaction between herself and Baron MacIntyre.
Rutherford was all smiles as he heard about his child mingling with the other girls in high society.
He had always felt that when compared with the other noble girls, his daughter was more reserved and reclusive.
Therefore, he was happy to hear that she had friends even when she didn't venture outside the mansion as the other girls did.
They would hold gatherings and playdates while his chid was always cooped up in her room or recently she began wandering the woods with her etcher.
He was glad that she was becoming more physically active but he was nonetheless worried that she would have a tough time in the future if she remained adamant about staying at home all the time.
Now those worries seemed to fade away just a little when he heard that she had friends of her own.
'That tea party at Marquess Kiron's place must have brought Vonna close to their daughter.' He speculated and was partially right.
Rika had been introduced to Yvonne at that tea party but whether they were close or not was a whole other matter.
Similarly, he had assumed that since the Marquess' daughter was the second playmate to the Royal Princess along with the daughter of Duke Brodie, this was how the three little girls had become friends.
'It is good that Vonna has friends. Maybe we should host some parties as well so that she gets a chance to meet more children and become friends with them.' He decided with a nod.
He would soon have to discuss this matter with his wife and then after they came to a consensus, he might ask the Butler to start preparing for it.
Yvonne had no idea about the plans that her father was making and even if she did she would have tried her best to talk him out of doing the same.
"And Ruthy, Vonny helped the Baron when she was there!" Raylene's excited voice brought that man back from his thoughts.
'Vonna helped the Baron?' He glanced at the child who sat in silence and continued to watch them from her seat opposite theirs.
The petite little girl smiled at him, a smile that melted his heart as he smiled back at her following which he turned towards her wife.
'That's it! Be charmed!' Yvonne grinned but once the man had looked away this prompted her to drop the smile soon after.
Rutherford was confused as to how his little girl might help that obese man in any way possible.
So he didn't interrupt his wife and let her speak further to help him clear the confusion that he had in his mind.
Yvonne on the other hand was examining his expressions with great interest.
After all, she needed to adjust and adapt her strategy according to how he would react to the news he was about to receive.
Raylene for once did an excellent job as she narrated the entire incident to her husband without missing out on a single detail.
The Earl heard his wife's account of how their lovely child had called for and conversed with the Baron.
"Vonny asked him to come over tomorrow for lunch." She ended her narration and nodded, pleased with the good job that she had done.
While Rutherford was trying to make sense of what had taken place between the child and the Baron at his cafe, Raylene sat up straight as though she had just remembered something.
The father and daughter turned in her direction and they noticed the conflicted look on her face which made them wonder what was wrong.
Raylene noticed their curious gazes and chuckled sheepishly before explaining what she had just thought of.
"We have to prepare a special menu if the Baron is going to come over. I should speak to the chef about this!" She declared and rose from her seat in haste.
Their family rarely ever had people visiting them and this was a chance for her to show off her skills as a hostess which had gotten the Countess excited.
"Excuse me!" She announced and soon left the room.
Rutherford and Yvonne watched as the woman exited the room in a hurried manner and then glanced at each other.
The same helpless and indulgent look that they had was seen on the other person's face.
Yvonne sat up straight after she felt her father's eyes on her as she shot him another smile.
However, this time, she did not receive the same smile in return, instead, she was now looking at his curious and intrigued face.
Rutherford observed his daughter's face to obtain any clue about what she was planning but could not find a single idea as she sat with a simple smile on her face.
The poker face that she had on right now was throwing off Rutherford as he could not figure out what was going on in her mind.
How could he gain any valuable information from the Yvonne St. Claire who was trained by her Grandpa Leo from a young age to be indifferent and poised?
Though now she was in a child's body, there were certain changes in her demeanor that were inevitable.
She could not control her emotions like she could back when she was in her old world but she was learning at her own pace.
She did not have to be indifferent to her surroundings and vigilant at all times like she had to in the past but she still had to hone some of her previous skills.
The first that she had mastered in the past few weeks of training with Captain Desmo Reel was to keep a straight face at all times.
Even when she was in pain due to the heavy exercises that he had asked her to do, she would keep a poker face in order to not get mocked by that Spawn incarnate who did not hold back his vicious tongue.
To avoid getting mocked and derided, she had learned this skill that she was proficient in during her last life.
Therefore, Rutherford was not going to get any reactions from her unless she was willing to show him how she felt.
Tired of trying to figure what was on her mind when she sat with that same kind smile, he decided that it was better to be upfront and question her about it.
"What do you have in mind, Vonna?" Rutherford interrogated as he sat with his back straightened and his eyes narrowed at her.
Yvonne had been preparing herself mentally for the past half hour to answer any query that he might have.
Therefore she did not have any fears as she shot him another smile, a business smile before she leaned forward.