His Uncle's Priceless Jewel: Unmasking His Regret のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 51 - チャプター 58

CASSIAN'S POV:The charity gala was supposed to be a triumph. That was what Eulalie had called it. A triumph. She had spent three hours getting ready, trying on dresses, adjusting her hair, practicing her smile in the mirror. She had dragged me there with promises of good press and good connections and good opportunities to show the world that we were still a power couple, still strong, still unstoppable.But the triumph never came.It started small, the way all these things always do. A comment about the wine that was too dry. A complaint about the table arrangements that were too crowded. A snide remark about another guest's dress that was too loud. Eulalie was in fine form, her sharp tongue slicing through the evening like a knife through butter.I tried to ignore it. I tried to focus on the conversation, on the business contacts, on anything other than the woman on my arm who was slowly making everyone around us uncomfortable. But it was hard. She was everywhere, her voice carryin

3RD POV:The silence in the apartment was so thick Alaric could feel it pressing against his skin. The papers were still in his hands, the handwriting still burning into his memory, the photograph still showing him a woman he had never met but somehow recognized completely.Thalassa had not moved. She was still frozen on the couch, her hands gripping the edge of the cushion, her eyes wide and frightened behind the mask. She looked like a trapped animal, like she was waiting for the blow to fall, for him to turn away in disgust the way everyone else had.Alaric set the papers down on the table. Slowly. Carefully. Like he was handling something fragile that might shatter if he moved too fast."Thalassa," he said again, and this time her name came out soft, almost gentle. "Why did not you tell me?"She flinched at the question, her shoulders hunching inward. "I could not. I have spent years hiding who I really am. Years building walls so high that nobody could see over them. And you... y

THALASSA'S POV:Alaric had been acting strange all week although not in a bad way, but in a way that made me suspect he was building up to something. He would start sentences and then stop, shake his head, say it was nothing. He would look at me with this expression that was half nervous and half excited, like a child who was about to reveal a surprise and was not sure if it would be well received.I let him have his secrets. I had enough of my own.But when he finally asked, on a quiet Tuesday afternoon in my tiny apartment, I was still caught off guard."There is a family dinner this weekend," he said, his voice carefully casual. "My father hosts them every few months. Everyone is expected to attend. And I was hoping... I was hoping you would come with me."I set down my tea. "Come with you? To meet your family?""Yes. I know it is a lot to ask. We have not been seeing each other that long. But you are important to me, Thalassa. I want you to meet them. I want them to meet you."I s

3RD POV:Cassian stared at her, his face pale as chalk, his hands trembling at his sides. His mouth opened but no words came out. He tried again, forcing the name past his lips like it was a physical object he had to push out of his throat."Thalassa?"She did not answer him. She just stood there, her emerald mask glittering under the chandelier, her hand resting on Alaric's arm like she belonged there. Like she had always belonged there.Alaric looked between them, his brow furrowed, his voice sharp with confusion. "Cassian, what is going on? You know Thalassa?"Eulalie's voice cut through the room, sharp and venomous. "What is she doing here? Why is she with you?"The room fell silent. The whispers stopped. The aunts stopped staring. Everyone was holding their breath, waiting for an answer that no one seemed to have.Victor Deveraux's face had gone rigid, his jaw tight, his eyes fixed on the woman in the doorway. His wife Rosalind had her hand pressed to her chest, her expression ca