Rhea Shepherd was still fuming.
Her anger hadn’t subsided in the slightest, and she failed to notice the odd look on her son’s face as she continued her tirade.
“Was I wrong?
If she weren’t so shameless, how could she have gotten pregnant out of wedlock?
And now look at her, using her son as leverage—”
“Mom!” Jaden Lancaster’s voice rose sharply.
His gaze darted toward the stairs before he quickly looked away.
“That’s enough.
I know what I’m doing, so please don’t bring it up again.”
Rhea Shepherd finally noticed her son’s strange reaction and followed his gaze toward the stairs.
Although she saw nothing, she had a pretty good idea of what was going on.
She snorted coldly and lowered her voice.
“You handle this.
Don’t let her ruin our plans.” With that, she turned and went back to her room.
Jaden Lancaster stood there for a moment, took a deep breath, and then headed upstairs.
He pushed open the bedroom door to find Summer Sullivan sitting at her vanity, slowly removing her makeup.
Her expression was calm, as if nothing had happened.
“What were you and Mom talking about downstairs?
She sounded pretty loud.”
Summer Sullivan met Jaden Lancaster’s eyes in the mirror, her tone feigning nonchalance.
Jaden Lancaster walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, feeling her stiffen for a moment.
“Nothing much, just company business.
She’s anxious for me to persuade Wynn Shaw to come back and help.”
He gently massaged her shoulders, trying to get her to relax.
“You know Wynn Shaw has been with the Lancaster Group for years.
She controls many of our key projects and client resources.
Everyone acknowledges her competence.
Now that she’s suddenly left, the company is having a hard time keeping things running.”
Summer Sullivan put down her cotton pad and turned to look Jaden Lancaster straight in the eye.
“So you’re really just going to wait for her to come back?
Is it impossible to manage without her?”
Jaden Lancaster avoided her searching gaze.
He walked over to the bed, sat down, and loosened his tie.
“It’s just for work.
Once we get through this, things will be handled as they should be.”
“For work?” Summer Sullivan scoffed and walked over to him.
“Jaden Lancaster, look me in the eye and tell me, do you really just see her as a valuable employee for the Lancaster Group?
If that’s all it is, why did you get so frantic when she didn’t reply to your messages?
I’ve never seen you so concerned about anyone before.”
Jaden Lancaster frowned, his tone growing impatient.
Haven’t I already explained this?
I’m anxious because of company business!”
“Company business?” Summer Sullivan’s voice trembled slightly.
“Then why do you never look that way for me?
Why—”
“Enough!” Jaden Lancaster shot to his feet.
“I’m tired.
I don’t want to discuss this anymore.
Let’s just go to sleep.
I have a lot to deal with tomorrow.”
He walked straight into the bathroom and shut the door, leaving Summer Sullivan standing alone as her eyes slowly reddened.
‘On what grounds?
Besides being competent at work, what does Wynn Shaw have that she doesn’t?
Summer Sullivan considered her family background, looks, and temperament in no way inferior to Wynn’s.
What’s more, she had even given Jaden Lancaster a son.
That should have been her greatest bargaining chip, so why was Jaden’s heart still leaning toward a woman he was bound to part with sooner or later?’
The night deepened.
Jaden Lancaster was long since fast asleep, but Summer Sullivan tossed and turned, unable to find rest.
She gazed at the profile of the man sleeping soundly beside her, recalling the words she’d overheard on the staircase.
Tears began to slide down her cheeks without her realizing.
She sobbed softly, the sound quiet but enough to startle the lightly sleeping Jaden Lancaster awake.
“What’s wrong?” Jaden Lancaster turned and wrapped his arms around her, his eyes heavy with sleep.
Feeling her tear-streaked face, he instantly became wide awake.
“Why are you crying?”
Summer Sullivan leaned into his embrace, her crying growing more aggrieved.
“I regret it…
I should have never had this child with you…
Now look, the Sullivan Family has disowned me.
They said I brought shame to our name…
and your heart belongs to someone else…”
Jaden Lancaster’s heart instantly softened.
Remembering everything Summer Sullivan had sacrificed for him, a wave of guilt washed over him.
“Don’t be ridiculous.
How could I ever leave you?”
“Then tell me, is it even possible for me to go back to the Sullivan Family now?”
Summer Sullivan lifted her tear-blurred face.
“If…
if we sent our son to an orphanage, would I be able to go back and accept the arranged marriage from my family?
That way, you wouldn’t have to be in such a difficult position…”
“What nonsense are you talking about!”
Jaden Lancaster shot upright, his voice laced with anger.
How could I possibly abandon him?
And you’re important to me, too.
I don’t understand what you’re so upset about.”
Summer Sullivan sat up too, staring straight into Jaden Lancaster’s eyes in the darkness.
“I’m not sure if there’s still a place for me in your heart.
Look, Wynn Shaw just doesn’t reply to your messages, and you get so frantic…
That kind of anxiety and tension is something I’ve never seen from you.
Jaden Lancaster, tell me, if I were the one who left today, would you try every possible way to get me back?”
Jaden Lancaster froze.
Summer Sullivan’s question struck him like a heavy hammer, awakening a long-ignored corner of his heart.
‘He was indeed unusually anxious about Wynn Shaw’s departure, but was it really purely for the company’s sake?’
He didn’t dare to think about it too deeply.
All he could do was pull Summer Sullivan tightly into his arms, not letting her see the confusion and panic on his face.
“Don’t overthink things,” he comforted her softly, running his fingers through her long hair.
“I will only ever love you.
There’s only a place for you in my heart.
Don’t worry.”
Summer Sullivan sobbed quietly in his arms without responding.
Jaden Lancaster continued, as if trying to convince her, and perhaps himself as well.
“Our love story began when I was in college in Eldoria.
I was so down on my luck back then, and you were the one who always helped me out, even financially.
I’ll never forget that kindness.
You’re so wonderful and pure, how could I ever leave you?”
As he said these words, Summer Sullivan’s body stiffened almost imperceptibly.
She remained silent for a long time, growing unusually quiet.
But in the end, she said nothing, merely nodding slightly and hugging him back, burying her face in his chest to hide the flash of unease in her eyes.
Jaden Lancaster felt her response and breathed a sigh of relief, kissing her lightly on the forehead.
“Go to sleep.
Don’t think too much.
How about I take you and our son to the zoo tomorrow?”
“Okay.”
Summer Sullivan agreed softly and closed her eyes in his arms, but her mind was in turmoil.
Jaden Lancaster’s starkly different attitudes toward her and Wynn Shaw, along with Rhea Shepherd’s undisguised contempt…
it all felt like a giant net, trapping her completely.
‘She had to find a way to break free.
Otherwise, even with her son as a bargaining chip, she might not have a place in the Lancaster Family.’
The night grew late.
The two of them slept in each other’s arms, but each harbored their own hidden worries.
Beneath the surface of calm, an undercurrent raged.
「The next morning.」
Jaden Lancaster was woken by his son.