Chapter 6
After returning home, Nathaniel remained visibly shaken by Grant’s provocation. He kept staring at my belly with a gloomy expression
Wiping sauce from the corner of my mouth, I stood and pressed his face against my stomach. “He’s been very well–behaved. Do you want to talk to
him?”
Nathaniel wrapped his arms around my waist, his voice heavy with guilt. “This is my fault.”
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His long absence had been for a confidential experiment—it wasn’t as if he’d chosen to leave. Unable to resist teasing him, I said, “So, you think Grant better? Should I go back to him?”
Mathaniel stiffened as if electrocuted, his face flushing red. “He doesn’t deserve you!”
1 sighed and ruffled his hair. “Seven years have passed, and I still don’t know what’s gotten into him.”
Back then, he’d been so convinced I was with him for his money that he cut me off without hesitation. Now, he practically flaunted his wealth, as if begging me to want it.
Pathetic.
Grant didn’t show his face again after that day. Nathaniel, however, became oddly secretive, busy with some unknown project
Then one evening, he handed me an evening gown and announced we were attending a banquet.
Standing outside the familiar mansion, I stared at him in disbelief. “You mean… Holloway family event?”
Nathaniel adjusted his the, his expression as solemn as a soldier gearing up for a mission. “Vivian, tonight, you’re the guest of honor.”
I was baffled–until Mr. and Mrs, Holloway hurried over to greet us,
Years had passed, but Mrs. Holloway was as elegant as ever, her shawl draped gracefully over her shoulders. Yet her perfectly curated smile taltered for a split second when she saw me before she smoothly looked away.
Mr. Lawrence Holloway extended a hand to Nathaniel, his tone police. “Mr. Graves, what an honor. Thank you for joining us.
Nathaniel shook his hand, then pulled me closer. “This is my wife, Vivian.‘
Mr. Holloway, who didn’t recognize me, smiled warmly. “Mrs. Graves.”
H
Nathaniel corrected him gently, “My wife is an accomplished scholar in her own right. She doesn’t take my surname.”
Mr. Holloway chuckded “Of course. Mr. Graves, Miss Lockwood–please, come in.”
Stepping into the Holloway family’s mansion–once so familiar, now so foreign–left me momentarily dazed. The memories of humiliation and pain that had once haunted these hall felt like relics of another lifetime.
Nathaniel’s warm hand settled on the small of my back as he whispered, “Smile, love. Let the people who despise you seethe in helpless rage.”
I burst out laughing, my gaze flickering to Mrs. Holloway. Sure enough, her flawless mask had cracked, revealing a hint of suppressed fury.
–
How it must gall her to host someone she’d once looked down upon as an equal guest.
And I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel good.
That satisfaction peaked when I caught Grant’s stunned expression across th
the room. My smile widened,
Then Mrs. Holloway spoke abruptly, her voice saccharine. “Vivian, it’s been so long.”
Mr. Lawrence Holloway, who’d been introducing Nathaniel to Grant, paused and glanced at his wife. “You know Miss Lockwood?” Mrs. Holloway adjusted her shawl, her smile benten. “Don’t you remember? Mic Oblivious to the sudden tension, she added, “Such a pitiful woman–deal and muty, If I recall Though it’s a shame she resorted to stealing in the end-
Lockwood’s mother worked for us as a paid for several years.”
Before she could finish, Nathaniel cut in icily, “If you know you’re being rude, learn to shut your mouth.”
Mrs. Holloway’s face paled, then flushed with humiliation. Even Mr. Holloway’s expression darkened as he shot her a warning look. “Age must be affecting your memory and your manners.” He turned to Grant. “Take your mother to the garden for some air.”
Grant, who hadn’t spoken a word since seeing me, muttered an apology and gulded his trembling mother away.
The guests around us quickly steered the conversation elsewhere, I heard Miss Lockwood has been invited by multiple labs since returning to Rivermere -trudy exceptional”
Chapter 6
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