Sharon met Silas’s furious glare with cool indifference.
“And why,” she asked flatly, “should I listen to you?”
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Silas froze. Even Scott and Victoria looked at her in disbelief. 1
Scott’s voice carried a chill.
“Sharon, enough. Jamie is a guest of our family, not someone you can treat however you please. I’m warning you, apologize to him now, or else—”
Sharon cut him off, her tone razor–sharp.
“Or else what? You’ll drive me out like before? Call security to throw me onto the street again?”
With that, she sat back down on the sofa. Thomas, perfectly timed as always, handed her a sanitizing wipe. (1
Unhurried, Sharon began wiping the hand that had just slapped Jamie. Inwardly, she marveled once
more–Thomas understood her so well. 1
Silas’s face twisted as he watched her calm defiance. By now, the commotion had drawn nearly every guest’s attention.
Many stared in shock, unable to believe what they were witnessing. But some found it unsurprising.
Everyone knew Jamie pursued Victoria, often stepping in to shield her from anyone who bullied her. And in wealthy families, it was almost expected that ties between illegitimate and legitimate children would be strained. That Sharon clashed with him was hardly beyond reason.
Besides, Jamie’s temperament was infamous. Who was to say he hadn’t provoked her first?
Still, even if he had provoked her, Sharon’s response was reckless. To slap someone’s face, of all places–she couldn’t have chosen a harsher insult.
Scott stiffened, then felt a surge of fury at her open challenge. So many eyes were watching, yet Sharon had left him no dignity.
And worst of all, he had only been trying to protect her–afraid she might incur Jamie’s wrath. She refused to see it, refused to be grateful. 1
Johanna dabbed the wine from her brother’s face, her gaze turning sharp as ice toward Sharon.
“Sharon, what has my brother ever done to you? Why would you do this to him?”
Then she turned to Silas and Scott.
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Chapter 980
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“Today, the Kalen family owes us an explanation.”
Both men’s expressions darkened.
“Sharon-” Scott began.
But Sharon interrupted again, “If you mean to make me apologize, save your breath. Too many people are watching. I’d rather not strip you of your last shred of dignity. Because no matter what you say, I will not apologize to him.”
Her gaze swept over the Kalen family, her face impassive, her tone as crisp and cutting as shards of ice.
“I’ve already shown restraint by not throwing him out, for the sake of tonight’s banquet. Don’t test me further. If you insist on meddling, don’t blame me when you get humiliated.”
Reclining against the sofa, Sharon radiated an aura so commanding it silenced the room. Against a crowd, she didn’t falter in the slightest.
Silas, hot–tempered as ever, stormed forward, his expression savage as though ready to tear her
apart.
“Sharon, you’re insolent!”
But before he could get too close, a sharp kick landed squarely against his shin. 1
His balance faltered and he dropped heavily to his knees.
Thomas’s voice came light and mocking.
“Silas, while I know you’re overjoyed at Sharon’s return to the family, surely such a grand gesture isn’t necessary? You’ll embarrass her.”
A ripple of laughter burst from a few young heirs who had no love for Silas. Others went so far as to raise their phones, recording gleefully.
There he was the proud Silas–brought to his knees at Sharon’s feet, humiliated as never before.
–
Chapter 981
