Chapter 44
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In the sitting room, Lainey was gently stroking Jayden’s bright red cheeks while saying, “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll make sure she gets a proper scolding this time.”
The next second, Jayden pointed excitedly behind her. “Mommy, she’s here.”
Lainey turned around, intending to assert her authority and make a show of it. But the moment her eyes landed on Theodore, all that momentum evaporated in an instant.
“Why is he here too?‘ she thought, her chest tightening with alarm.
Noticing Lainey’s eyes fixed on Theodore, Eliana subtly stepped forward to shield him from her line of sight.
Taking in her protective gesture, Theodore pressed his lips together with a complicated expression.
Eliana asked calmly, “Lainey, is there something you wanted to speak to me about?”
Lainey tried to collect herself. She pointed to Jayden’s red face and snapped, “Ellie, why did you hit Jayden so hard? Look, his face turned like this.”
‘So hard? Come on, it’s just a little red,‘ Eliana scoffed inwardly.
“Oh, we were playing a snowball fight,” Eliana explained. “It got a little intense. Look, I’m soaked thanks to him.”
But Lainey wasn’t backing down. “You’re an adult. He’s a kid. He doesn’t know when to stop, but you should. Look at his delicate face. What if you hurt it permanently?”
Just as Eliana opened her mouth to respond, Theodore’s voice cut in. “If it gets ruined, he can always get plastic surgery.”
Eliana let out a mental snort. ‘This man is downright savage.‘
Lainey choked on her indignation and glanced sharply at Theodore again, her eyes filled with disbelief and fury.
Though she had always condoned Jayden and Wyatt’s mistreatment of Theodore in private, she had to maintain appearances. After all, Theodore was still the eldest son of the Russell family. She forced a stiff smile and said, “Theodore, this matter doesn’t concern you, does it?”
Her implication was clear. She wanted Theodore to stay out of it.
Theodore replied, “Why wouldn’t it concern me? I handed Ellie the snowballs myself.”
Lainey was struck by his defiant tone, like time had reversed. It felt just like the days when she had to bow and scrape to please Theodore.
She reminded herself inwardly, ‘No, this isn’t right. Theodore is blind and powerless. Why should I be afraid of him?‘
She straightened and said, “Theodore, Jayden is your brother. Even if you don’t care for him, how can you side with an outsider and pick on him?”
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“Outsider?” Theodore lifted Eliana’s hand and held it casually. “Ellie is my wife. That makes her my family. She’s your sons’s sister–in–law.”
Jayden denied before Lainey could reply. “No way. She has nothing to do with me.”
Theodore tilted his head slightly and said with a sneer, “Hear how your son speaks? So rude and arrogant. I guess, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
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12:36 Wed,
Chapter 44
Lainey’s face twisted with fury. “Theodore, what are you implying?”
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With a cold smile, Theodore retorted, “Angry, huh? Should I remind your son how exactly you married into this family, one detail at a time?”
“Mommy?” Jayden looked up at her, curious.
Lainey panicked and clamped her hands over Jayden’s ears, shrieking at Theodore, “Get out. GET OUT OF HERE!”
Theodore stood still, watching her unravel with quiet composure. Then, turning to Eliana, he said calmly, “Let’s go back to our room.”
“Huh? Oh, okay,” Eliana replied.
To be honest, Eliana was still in shock. She led him upstairs in a daze, barely registering the movement of her own feet.
Once they were inside the room and shut the door, she released his hand and asked, unable to hold back her curiosity, “Mr. Russell, can I ask you something?”
Theodore felt her hand slip away like a darting fish. He resisted the urge to reach out and catch it again, then said evenly, “Go ahead.”
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