“It was Aunt Felicity.”
Selene had already guessed that would be the answer.
Harrison always stood up for Felicity, and Dames just followed his lead.
No sooner had Daphne finished speaking than Dames’s furious shout burst through the phone:
“The candy bottles were from Mommy! Not Flick!”
“Dames! You’re lying!”
“Shut up! Ahhh!”
Selene had no idea what chaos was erupting on the other end, but soon, Dames’s wails echoed through the line.
A teacher’s voice cut in, sharp and reprimanding: “Daphne Vaughn! Don’t hit
Damien!”
Hearing that her daughter was clearly not the victim here, Selene hung up and immediately dialed Nadine.
“Nadine, I just got a call from Dames’s teacher. She said the candy bottle treats Dames brought today were a huge hit with the kids. The teacher is hoping you can send more to the school.”
“Uh, what candy bottles?” Nadine sounded completely lost, but Selene gave her the message and ended the call without another word.
Thinking back, Nadine recalled hearing the driver mention that on the way to school that morning, they had run into Felicity.
Acting quickly, Nadine went to the driver to confirm, and sure enough, the treats were from Felicity.
She picked up her phone and called Felicity.
“Felicity, where did you get those candy bottles? Dames’s classmates loved them, and his teacher asked if 1 could bring more to class.”
Felicity’s heart leaped. Here was her chance to play the doting new mom to Dames in front of everyone,
“How about I pick some up and drop them off at the preschool myself? No need for
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you to trouble yourself, Nadine.”
“Perfect, thank you,” Nadine agreed at once.
Selene drummed her fingers lightly on the steering wheel, her gaze distant.
A sharp rap on the window startled her.
She lowered the glass. A hand–elegant, with long sculpted fingers–slipped a business card into her view.
Black card, gold lettering: Adrian, Partner, Starlight Law Group.
“If you ever need divorce advice, you can call me,” he said.
Selene accepted the card, a faint smile on her lips. “Mr. Shaw is the best attorney in the Capital Circle. I’m afraid your rates are too high for me.”
Adrian slid one hand casually into his pocket. Dressed in a suit without a tie, his shirt collar open, he had å kind of easy, careless allure.
“I could do it for free,” he replied.
Selene’s smile widened, tinged with irony. “Besides money, there’s nothing else I can offer you.”
“Five years ago, you quit your PhD halfway through,” Adrian said quietly. “You told my grandfather you were leaving to get married. He’s retired now, spends all day talking about you. His health’s been getting worse. If you have time, come visit him. Stop by, and I’ll handle your case for free.”
Adrian’s grandfather, Theodore Shaw, had once been the Dean of Mathematics at Capital University–her doctoral advisor.
When she’d first arrived at Aldonia University of Science & Technology, Dean Shaw would often pass by her, urging her to grow up quickly and apply for his doctoral
program.
Later, when she began her doctorate at Capital University, the old man worked her relentlessly, always pushing her to pick up the pace. Sanctions and embargoes on universities abroad, he warned, would only make their research harder.
But Selene was constantly torn between her work at Capital University and obligations to the Vaughn family. Mrs. Vaughn enrolled her in cooking, flower arranging, and art appreciation classes–everything a proper society wife was expected to master. She was supposed to be the perfect wife and the perfect
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M
Chapter в
scholar, but she couldn’t do both.
The year she got pregnant, after a scare, she handed in her withdrawal to Theodore Shaw.
“I can’t face him,” she murmured, remembering the look on Shaw’s face. There’d been no anger, no reproach–just the way he turned away, silent, refusing to say another word to her.
Adrian leaned against the car door, gazing down at her in the cramped driver’s seat. “When you’re young, it’s never wrong to love who you love,” he said softly. “And when you’re grown, it’s not wrong to let go of what you must. But there’s someone still waiting for you, right where you left off–if you can find the courage to start again.”
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