Chapter 85
Sydney had suspected Caleb’s reason for inviting her to the banquet, but she hadn’t foreseen his mother’s scheme.
The moment she arrived, she spotted several elite young women gathered around Adeline, and everything clicked. This wasn’t just a birthday party for Dorothy. It was a matchmaking event, and Adeline was using it to reassert her authority in full view of the guests.
Now that the divorce was final, the message was clear: “With you out of the picture, my son can find someone far better.”
Apparently, the marriage had been a mistake from the start.
“Cal, you’ve arrived.”
As Sydney and Caleb entered arm in arm, Adeline’s eyes licked to the hand resting on her son’s sleeve.
Her expression cooled, and a flash of displeasure passed through her gaze, but her tone stayed composed. ” Sydney, I was just speaking about you. You should greet Grandma first.”
“Okay,” Sydney replied quietly.
No one wanted to be the unwanted guest tonight. She gave a small nod and stepped away.
“I’ll go with you,” Caleb offered.
“Caleb, go later,” Adeline said, as if nothing were wrong “The unmarried daughters from the Soren and Collin families are here to celebrate Grandma’s birthday Host them in the sitting room. Don’t neglect your
duties.”
Caleb hesitated, his frown deepening. He couldn’t defy her here. “Understood.”
Sydney genuinely wanted to congratulate Dorothy, but someone told her the elderly woman had gone upstairs to rest with her relatives. She turned toward the buffet instead.
As she neared the table, a sharp pinch on her waist stopped her cold.
Sydney froze. She turned to find Victor smirking nearby relaxed and smug.
“Don’t think I can’t see what the Hamptons are doing. They’re replacing you,” he said with a mocking edge.
Anger and humiliation surged. He was a fool, but he wasn’t wrong. Adeline had always wanted her gone. If Caleb found someone he liked tonight, Adeline might even announce the divorce publicly.
Sydney tightened her grip. Before she could speak, Victo skin crawl. “I could do anything to you right here, and me. You get that, right?”
stepped closer, grinning in a way that made her cause of who my family is, they wouldn’t dare stop
She did. The Hamptons would cover up anything that could bring shame. They’d bury her without a sound. Victor could destroy her tonight, and no one would ever hear a word of it.
It was the first time he saw fear on her face. He seized he wrist and dragged her from the hall.
“Victor, let go of me!” She didn’t dare struggle too much She didn’t want to draw attention.
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Chapter 85
+15 BONUS
“Try it. I dare you.” He hauled her across the courtyard and slammed her against the garden wall. “Sydney, you know I’ve wanted you for years.”
His gaze swept over her. He might have lived in Julian’s shadow, but as the second heir, Victor had seen his share of beautiful, high–class women.
Julian had studied abroad, mingled with foreign elites, and always got what he wanted. Victor was trying to prove he could do the same.
