Director White turned to the headmaster and said, “I just got off the plane and came straight here for this. If she doesn’t step down, forget about recruiting new students–Charteris Academy won’t even be able to hold on to the ones you
The headmaster glanced anxiously at the elderly woman.
Gemma shot him a look. “Jason, Vaughn Enterprises is Charteris Academy’s largest sponsor…”
have!”
A look of distress passed over the headmaster’s face. On one hand, he couldn’t afford to lose Vaughn Enterprises‘ financial support; on the other, he didn’t dare offend the school board.
“Mom, that’s enough!”
Harrison’s voice cut through the air like ice, freezing everyone in place. “Haven’t you embarrassed yourself enough?”
He turned to Director White. “I’ll be taking over my mother’s seat on the board.”
His presence was commanding, leaving no room for argument.
Director White’s gaze flicked between Harrison and Selene before settling on Harrison. He smiled. “I trust, Mr. Vaughn, that you’ll prove even more capable than your mother.”
Selene spoke gently to Daph. “Let’s go.”
“Selene!” Harrison’s voice rang out behind her, but she didn’t look back.
“Oh, Harrison!” Gemma breathed, watching her son stride after Selene as she left
the auditorium.
The headmaster noticed Director White still watching Harrison’s retreating figure and quickly added, “Mr. Vaughn is one of Capital City’s most outstanding talents. With him on the board, Charteris Academy will surely reach new heights.”
“She was once even more remarkable…” Director White murmured.
The headmaster blinked, not quite understanding, but didn’t dare ask for fear of seeming foolish.
*
At the preschool parking lot, Harrison caught sight of Selene as she helped Daph into the car and shut the back door.
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Chapter 25
She was about to walk around to the driver’s side when Harrison strode toward her. He cut a striking figure in his tailored suit–tall, lean, and impossibly handsome. But the perpetual sternness of his face made him look more like a debt collector than an ex–husband.
Selene didn’t slow down. She slid into the driver’s seat and was about to close the door when it met resistance.
She looked up. Harrison stood at the door, his hand gripping it firmly.
His gaze was like frost. “If you take Daph away from the Vaughn family, you’ll ruin her.”
Selene’s cool, steady eyes swept over his face.
A cold wind seemed to slice through Harrison’s chest.
When she loved him, the way she looked at him had been bright and fierce.
Now, staring into eyes stripped of all light and expectation, Harrison felt as if he’d plummeted from a great height–weightless and wounded.
“The night of Dames’s birthday,” Selene said suddenly, “he had an allergic reaction,
didn’t he?”
“So you knew!” Harrison snapped, his tone sharp.
Selene replied calmly, “I just want you to understand–if you keep shirking your responsibility as a father, Dames is going to be the one who suffers.”
Harrison narrowed his eyes, as if he could see right through her. “You still care about Dames, yet you deliberately keep your distance. Is this your way of forcing him to change–by freezing him out? He’s just a five–year–old boy!”
“When I left the Vaughn family, I knew there was no going back.”
Her words were final.
Harrison drew a deep breath. The chill in his lungs felt like shards of ice.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a deep blue gift box, holding it out through
the window.
“Take it. I picked it myself.”
From her seat behind the wheel, Selene shook her head with a soft, almost bitter laugh..
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22:28
“Beyond what the law grants me from our marriage, I’m not taking anything else from you.”
“Selene, if you keep this up, I’m going to file for divorce for real!“.
He was losing patience.
“I’m willing to overlook what happened to Felicity–Daph is still a child, after all, But you’re not five years old anymore!”
Harrison let go. The gift box tumbled into Selene’s lap, as if he were bestowing some royal favor on a stubborn subject.
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