Jaden then took out a velvet box he had prepared in advance.
Inside was an intricately designed, hot pink, fringed dress.
With a single glance, Wynn said wearily, “I don’t like this color.
Take it back.”
‘After all this time together, he still didn’t know that she hated bright colors, or even what style of clothing dominated her closet.’
‘Hah.
This dress seems more like something Summer Sullivan would like, doesn’t it?
Which probably led him to think all women love to dress this way.’
‘Even Vincent Preston, who she’d only met once, could nail her aesthetic perfectly, yet Jaden couldn’t.
It was as if fate was always reminding her at the worst possible moments of the laughable irony of being fated to meet but not meant to be.’
Jaden frowned, scrutinizing her expression, trying to determine if she genuinely disliked it or was just throwing a tantrum.
‘In the past, even if he gave her some small, inexpensive gift, she’d be as happy as a child and treasure it like a precious jewel.’
‘Whatever.
Wynn was just making a scene to get his attention, to make him dote on her more.
All women were like that.’
“Never mind.
Your birthday is in a few days.
We can make up for tonight’s candlelight dinner then.
As for a gift, what do you want?”
Since he was offering, Wynn didn’t hold back.
“Forget the birthday gift.
Since you went and spent the money from our wedding fund, it wouldn’t be too much to ask for that old villa at the main estate, would it?”
She had accompanied Mrs.
Lancaster to pick out that house years ago.
Its market value was staggering, and its location was second to none in Eldoria.
‘Most importantly, it was right next to Kaelus—just a ten-minute drive.
If she needed to travel to Kaelus for personal matters, having a temporary base there would make things easier.
It would also let her escape Jaden’s orbit for some peace and quiet.’
Jaden was visibly taken aback.
He frowned.
“But Mom is living there now.
We can’t just have her move in with the neighbors.”
Wynn’s tone was calm but insistent.
“We can have your mother stay here for a few days.
Then you can find her a new place downtown before she moves.”
Seeing Jaden still hesitate, Wynn’s expression instantly turned cold.
“If you’re not willing, then forget it.”
‘How ridiculous of her to hold on to a shred of hope, expecting him to actually make things right.’
Catching the chill in her eyes, Jaden’s heart clenched, and he blurted out, “Fine, fine, I promise.”
Now it was Wynn’s turn to be surprised.
She hadn’t expected him to actually agree.
Seeing her expression soften slightly, Jaden breathed a silent sigh of relief.
‘When he saw Wynn was unhappy, his own mood was inexplicably dragged down.
After all these years, how could there be no feelings between them?’
‘On second thought, bringing his mother over might not be a bad idea.
He could use it as an opportunity to test her attitude toward Summer Sullivan.
He could have Summer visit the house more often to smooth things over.
After all, his mother was reasonably satisfied with Wynn, and she’d never really liked Summer back in the day.’
Back in her room, Wynn examined the diamond ring Vincent Preston had given her.
She found it exquisite.
When she put it on, the size was a perfect fit, making her fingers look even more elegant.
「A few days later.」
Wynn was driving back from running errands when she passed by the office and “happened to run into” Summer Sullivan downstairs.
Before she even got close, she overheard Summer Sullivan complaining softly into her phone.
“Jaden, can’t you put off being busy until tomorrow?
You promised you’d have dinner with us today.
My son and I have been waiting for so long, and he just wants to spend more time with his dad…”
Wynn had deliberately taken a few days off, feigning illness, and the work piling up at the Lancaster Group had left Jaden too swamped to get away.
Beside her, Chase Sullivan tugged on his mother’s skirt and whined, “Mommy, I’m hungry, I’m hungry!
Let’s go to Daddy’s house for dinner tonight!
We can have Miss Shaw cook for us!
That way I’ll have Daddy with me, and I’ll have something to eat!”
The mother-son duo certainly didn’t act like strangers.
The next second, Wynn’s phone rang in the car.
It was Jaden.
“Wynn, I’d promised Summer Sullivan we’d discuss a project today, but I got too busy and made her and her son wait for ages.
I feel terrible about it, so I invited them over to our place for dinner.
Go and get things ready, and prepare a portion for Mom as well, be a dear.”
“Chase is a picky eater—no fish, no cilantro—so you’ll need to make a generous spread.
As for Summer, it’s best to let her choose what she’d like—”
She suppressed the disgust churning inside her and hung up, her face expressionless.
“Yeah, you were saying?
The signal’s pretty bad on my end, hello?
Hello…?”
BEEP.
BEEP.
BEEP.
Both she and Jaden knew perfectly well that his mother, Miranda Shepherd, was moving in today.
By inviting Summer over at this exact moment, his intention to test the waters was blatantly obvious.
‘He’s actually daring to be this blatant.’
‘Fine then.’ A mocking smile touched Wynn’s lips.
She might as well play along and see how this little drama would unfold.
「The Lancaster Residence.」
Miranda Shepherd sat poised in the living room, her sharp gaze sweeping over the servants bustling back and forth.
“Good day, Madam.”
“Where is Jaden?”
The butler replied respectfully, “President Lancaster…
is occupied with business and cannot return just yet.
He instructed that Miss Shaw should attend to you upon her arrival.”
When Wynn walked in, Miranda Shepherd’s stern expression softened slightly.
“Wynn, come sit.”
Wynn did as she was told and sat down.
‘The strong-willed Miranda Shepherd treated her reasonably well.
Though she wasn’t pleased with Wynn’s family background, a traditional family wouldn’t typically dislike a future daughter-in-law who was easy to control and who clearly adored their son.’
‘At least, they acknowledged her devotion.’
“What have you been busy with lately?
As for the wedding with Jaden, when is it finally scheduled?”
Wynn answered truthfully, “He’s been busy managing a few major clients.
He said we should postpone the wedding for a while.”
Miranda Shepherd looked thoughtful.
“It’s still better to get it done sooner rather than later.
You’re such an earnest child, completely devoted to him before you’ve even married in.
If we don’t lock this down soon, I’m afraid some other family will snatch you away.”
Wynn merely gave a wry smile.
‘If I did run off, it would only be because her son let me.’
Just then, Summer Sullivan appeared at the Lancasters’ front door.
“Hello, Mrs.
Lancaster.” She smiled graciously.
“President Lancaster and I are colleagues.
He invited me to stop by.”
The moment she saw Summer Sullivan, Miranda Shepherd’s pupils constricted.
For a second, she thought her eyes were deceiving her.
Her gaze hardened, making no effort to hide her shock and displeasure.
Wynn didn’t miss the clear look of aversion on Miranda Shepherd’s face.
She took in the subtle undercurrent between the two but chose to see all and say nothing.
Rising at the perfect moment, she played the part of the gracious hostess.
“You two chat for a bit.
I’ll go get dinner started.”
‘In reality, she hadn’t bought many groceries—Jaden had extended the invitation, but he’d done so without her consent.’
“Go on.”
As she looked at Wynn, Miranda Shepherd’s gaze softened considerably.
The subtle difference in her demeanor made it clear whose side she was on.
Only Summer Sullivan, her son, and Miranda Shepherd were left in the living room.
“Weren’t you the one who would have rather died than marry Jaden back then?” Miranda Shepherd got straight to the point, her tone cold and hard.
“So what are you doing back here now?
Your Sullivan family looked down on my son, and our Lancaster family doesn’t necessarily think much of you.”
‘As if the Sullivan family looked down on him.
Summer was just an illegitimate daughter; how much influence could she possibly have in the Sullivan family?
From Miranda’s perspective, it was clear that Summer had simply grown tired of Jaden and found an excuse to dump her son.’
‘She had never believed Summer’s feelings for her son were genuine.
When it came to character, Summer was hypocritical and scheming, not nearly as sensible and well-behaved as Wynn.’
‘In fact, when Summer had left all those years ago, Miranda had been secretly relieved.’
Summer struggled to maintain her smile.
“Mrs.
Lancaster, you’ve misunderstood.
I have loved Jaden deeply all these years.
Otherwise…
I wouldn’t have had Chase.”
But Miranda was older and wiser.
Her eyes were dismissive as she shot a quick glance at the child.
“Whether he’s actually Lancaster blood, well, that remains to be seen.”
The color drained from Summer’s face.
She shot to her feet.
“Mrs.
Lancaster, what are you implying?!”