Chapter 400
Lucia’s eyes flashed with anger. Fuming, she shouted, “I’m your mother. How could you say something like that? You’re out there living a high life, but you don’t care if I live or die?”
Audrey remained perfectly composed. Not only was she unruffled, she carried a faint smile, as if she were narrating someone else’s tale.
Audrey shot back, “While you were cozying up to rich men and living in luxury, did it ever cross your mind that you still had a daughter? You abandoned me at your ex–husband’s doorstep just to please a man. Did you even care if I lived or died?”
“Why do you always have to dig up the past?” Lucia snapped. “What’s done is done. What’s the point of rehashing it now?”
Audrey nodded. “Actually, it can.”
Lucia was left speechless.
“It can change your quality of life,” Audrey replied.
Lucia could barely contain her anger. But she knew this was Audrey’s turf–any confrontation would only end badly for her.
She drew deep breaths, one after another, forcing herself to calm down.
After a quick glance at the time, she made herself continue negotiating with Audrey.
As Lucia rambled on, Audrey would either respond with a faint smile or offer a well–aimed retort–always calm and composed, exuding effortless grace.
With most of the guests gone, only a few society ladies remained–they had come to visit Audrey and the babies.
Lucia rose with an ingratiating smile, greeting them. “Hi, my dear friends.”
The ladies had no idea that Lucia was going through a divorce. When they didn’t see her in the dining room, they simply figured she was here with Audrey.
One of the ladies said, “We came to see the baby. Mrs. Winifred, how blessed you are.”
“Audrey is sweet,” Lucia said pointedly, flashing Audrey a meaningful smile. “As experienced elders, it’s only right for us to help out. And look how thoughtful she is–she’s giving me a little compensation for all my efforts right now.”
The ladies exchanged knowing glances.
One of the ladies remarked, “Audrey is thoughtful.”
“Absolutely right,” Lucia replied. She had been waiting for them to come over.
‘With all these ladies watching, there’s no way Audrey would dare refuse me,‘ Lucia thought.”
Audrey rose gracefully with a smile and instructed Sylvie to have the babies brought out. She avoided any mention of the so–called compensation. Noticing Amelia’s presence, the society ladies–who had already given gifts–presented additional small gifts. They were well aware of Amelia’s formidable reputation and the powerful backing of her husband’s family.
They all felt the visit was well worth it, and soon the conversation naturally turned to the babies.
Lucia might as well have been invisible–she forced a smile at each lady in turn, but the ladies treated her with polite indifference.
Seeing the ladies about to leave, Lucia brought it up again. “Audrey; just a little something for my trouble. Whatever you give me will come back to you anyway!”
Sat, 28 Jun
Chapter 400
Sandra frowned slightly and exchanged a glance with Celeste.
Celeste shot Sandra a look, signaling her to enjoy the show.
Smiling graciously, Audrey looked at the ladies. “Lucia has always been so thoughtful. She shed many tears knowing how difficult my pregnancy was and how dangerous the delivery turned out to be.”
Audrey then took three red boxes from Sylvie, saying, “These are Lucia’s gifts for the baby. They’re far too precious.
“And since you said everything you have will eventually go to the babies, would you be so kind as to hold onto these for them?”
With that, Audrey presented the three light boxes to Lucia.
Lucia was left speechless. She clenched her teeth until she tasted blood.
She thought, ‘How could Audrey pull this stunt on me? Returning the empty box
I gave
her? And scoring points with these ladies in the process?
“You must be tired recently. Why don’t you go home early and get some rest?” Audrey said with a saccharine smile, pressing the boxes into Lucia’s hand. It was a clear dismissal.
With a forced smile that didn’t reach her eyes, Lucia insisted, “I’m not tired at all. I can stay and keep you company a while longer.”
Audrey said, “We have enough help here. Amelia will
go
back with us.”
Still unwilling to give up after failing to get the money, Lucia was about to protest when Celeste interjected, “Mrs. Winifred, you do lock rather fatigued. Since Audrey is so concerned about you, you should really go home and rest.”
Trapped by social decorum, Lucia had no choice but to follow the other ladies out.
The other two ladies, not being particularly familiar with Lucia, lagged slightly behind the others, whispering between themselves.
One of them said, “The boxes look light–do you think they could be a check?”
The other replied, “Who gives a check for little babies? I saw the babies wearing a golden pendant. Maybe it’s some kind of certificate.”
“That golden pendant was a gift from Celeste,” Vivian called out over her shoulder.
Vivian thought, ‘Celeste got one but ended up giving away three. What a loss. I gotta make sure everyone knew about it.
Eager to stir up trouble, Sandra asked, “Mrs. Winifred, what did you give the babies?” As she spoke, she cast a pointed glance at the boxes in Lucia’s
hand.
Lucía forced a smile that was more painful than crying as she awkwardly tucked the boxes away.
“I gave the babies gold bracelets,” she stammered, trying to save face.
Sandra replied, “Gold bracelet? Weren’t they gifts from the babies‘ three godfathers?”
Lucia’s eyes darted around nervously. “The bracelets I sent are much bigger. The babies can’t wear them, so I put them away.”
“Exactly, you’re both Audrey’s mother and mother/in–law, so you definitely prepared gifts.” Celeste smiled as she linked arms with Sandra. “We’ll be heading to the salon now. Please excuse us.”
The other two ladies also left. Lucia was left standing in the cold at the hotel entrance.
She thought, ‘Audrey went way too far. Don’t blame me for being too ruthless.
08:52 Sat, 28 Jun
Chapter 400
Later, Yann found himself facing allegations.
Media outlets accused him of exploiting his position to profit from his children’s party.
Yann reassured Audrey, saying, “Don’t worry. Let’s wait and see.”
With dedicated caregivers looking after the kids, Audrey mostly focused on getting
shape. Whenever she got bored, she’d play with them for fun.
The kids‘ names still hadn’t been decided. Logan believed naming them was his job.
However, Yann insisted on naming his own children.
With neither willing to yield, the children were temporarily called “big boy,” ““little boy,” and “little girl.”
The three godfathers went even further–each gave the baby a special nickname of their ow
Keith named the kid that he chose Dollar.
Hardy named the kid that he chose Veggie..
Quentin named the kid that he chose Silver
“Are they trying to turn my kid into a lucky charm?” Audrey mused.
However, Audrey didn’t interfere. A–anyway, she just called her daughter “sweetheart“.
She noticed that her daughter rarely cried, but when she did, all hell broke loose–spitting up milk was just the norm, and sometimes she’d even soil her diaper mid–wail.
But the moment Yann picked her up, she’d stop crying right away.
In contrast, her eldest son was fine with anyone holding him, except Yann. The moment his dad picked him up, he’d burst into loud wails. Anyone who didn’t know better would think Yann was pinching him.
During the Christmas holiday, Yann’s new daily routine became making the eldest son cry at least once a day.
As Christmas approached, rumors that Yann was using his kids‘ party to rake in cash became a trending topic.
To set the record straight, he had his secretary, Freya, work overtime to release the official records of all the gifts received that day.
Lucia was totally stunned. They spent hundreds of thousands on the party, yet most guests only gave them some small gifts.
She thought, ‘They spent so much but got only this little in return? That’s a total loss.‘
Netizens quickly changed their tune, thinking, ‘This is not what the rumors said. He’s just over the moon about having triplets and wants to share his joy with everyone.‘
Sharp–eyed folks saw through the game–people at that level would never give hard cash as gifts. The numbers on the books were just for show.
If anyone really wanted to build a connection, they’d come with business proposals after the holidays. No one in their right mind would dare to mess
with Yann.
Before long, Lucia was exposed online–revealed as Logan’s wife and Audrey’s biological mother.
Back then, she abandoned her husband and daughter just to marry into a wealthy farmily for status.
Now, green with envy at her daughter’s success, she stooped to every underhanded trick–embezzling Audrey’s money, stealing her valuables, and more
Marla and her family filed a formal complaint, exposing Lucia’s fraudulent schemes.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
