เข้าสู่ระบบPeople were already pointing and whispering.
Zofia could not let anyone know she had planned the whole thing with her daughter, so she turned on Rebecca first.
“Rebecca, how could you do something like that?”
Rebecca stood beneath the flood of accusing looks, her face burning.
“I did not mean to.”
Calder’s reply came without pau
“You still expect me to approve of this?”Samuel’s temple throbbed.“Who do you think you are?”Anger seemed to sharpen every line of him.Calder did not raise his voice.“What would it take for you to let this go?”Most days, he was the one making decisions for the Rook family.He ran the household. He managed the company. People waited for his judgment.Today, he stood before them as though he had been placed on trial.His gaze lowered for a moment.One hand closed slowly at his side.He had known this day might come.“I will give you two choices.”Samuel’s breathing had turned harsh.“First, you end things with Nola completely. You marry Brina and remain the head of the Rook family.”His stare burned into Calder.“Do that, and I will overlook everything.”A flicker of hope r
The moment Nola appeared, every head in the room turned toward her.She slowed.What were they all staring at?She had not suddenly grown fur on her face.Xian looked the strangest of all, as if he were suffering from something too painful and embarrassing to explain.Calder saw her and reacted at once.“Xian, take Nola to school.”His tone left no room for delay.“Go now.”“Oh. Right.”Xian started toward her.Brina stepped in front of them.“Why the hurry?”A satisfied curve touched her mouth.“Nothing has been explained yet.”Nola looked around the room.“Explained what?”Everyone in the Rook family was acting strangely.Brina glanced toward Samuel.“That depends on what he wants to say.”She had already committed herself to this.If Calder would
Blythe smiled.“Calder, I heard you changed your mind. You are going to marry Brina, is that right?”Melissa immediately joined in.“This is wonderful news. The Rook family is about to celebrate another wedding.”Cameron and Leslie offered their congratulations as well.“That is great. Congratulations to both of you.”Soren laughed.“Dad, if you had agreed last time, the wedding might already be over by now.”Gwenyth clapped her hands.“It should have happened long ago. Better late than never.”Joren said nothing.His father would not reverse such a major decision without reason.Something was wrong.Samuel looked at Calder.“So you are finally willing to marry Brina?”“No.”Calder answered at once.“I have made no such decision.”Then he turned to Brina.
The kiss went on until neither of them had much breath left.Calder kept one arm around Nola and rested his forehead against hers.“Come to Admiralty House.”“Mm.”Her head was still spinning. Her knees had gone soft, and most of her weight rested against him.When he asked her to come with him, she did not refuse.The moment they entered Admiralty House, Calder lifted her into his arms and carried her upstairs.Outside, a shadow lingered long enough to watch the doors close.Then it slipped away.Wilson ran back to Silvercrest House and told Brina everything he had seen.Calder had returned from Europe and gone straight to Nola.They had met in the private woods of the Rook estate, embracing and kissing where no one was supposed to see.Brina had spent days refusing to believe there was anything between them.Now Wilson had witnessed it himself.It was tru
Joren studied Nola, his brows slowly drawing together.For a moment, he seemed to imagine what would happen if she and Calder were truly together.The Rook family would be thrown into chaos.The outside world would erupt with it.The very idea was almost too absurd to consider.“That would be unbelievable.”He shook his head.Nola clapped once.“See?”“If you could accept me as your stepmother, you would not be struggling like this now.”She leaned back in her chair.“You cannot even break out of the cage in your own head. Other people can advise you all they want, but it will never matter.”“You are the one tying yourself up.”At the heart of it, Joren still could not let go of family background, status, and the rules everyone else had placed around him.He let those things lead him wherever they pleased.“W
“Joren? Joren, what happened?”The moment he hit the floor, Nola rushed over and tried to help him up.Wanda’s heart lurched, though her first reaction was suspicion.“Stop pretending. Get up.”“Auntie, I do not think he is pretending.”Joren looked awful.Cold sweat beaded across his forehead. He had curled in on himself, one hand pressed hard against his stomach, each breath coming with effort.When Wanda saw how pale his lips had turned, her voice softened.“What is wrong? Where does it hurt?”“My stomach.”The words barely came out.Nola caught his arm.“Auntie, let us get him upstairs first. He cannot stay on the floor like this.”“We should call 911.”“No.”Joren forced the word out.“I just need to lie down for a while.”Since he refused an







