Chapter 144
“Byron, are you done yet?” Sylvia’s face turned ice–cold the moment she heard Byron’s words.
She rose from the sofa, walked behind her desk, and assumed a strictly professional demeanor.
Byron tugged at his tie irritably. “I’ve said my piece. What’s your take on this?”
Sylvia sneered, “Joanna brought this on herself. She won’t get a single dime back from me.”
“Sylvia, you and Joanna go way back. Is it really necessary to make things this unpleasant between you two?” Byron frowned, a flash of irritation flickering in his deep–set eyes.
“Go way back?” Sylvia repeated, a cold, mocking laugh escaping her lips. “Of course, we go way back. But it’s much more than that. We’re sworn
enemies.
“She destroyed my family and took everything from me. Do you really think just a few words can wipe all that away?”
Byron hesitated for a moment before saying, “That’s all in the past now. If you could just let it go, maybe you’d finally be able to move on and be happy.”
With a loud thud, Sylvia slammed her hand on the desk and sprang to her feet, glaring at Byron. “Mr. Blair, don’t you dare forget? It was Joanna who wrecked my marriage by seducing my husband.
“Because of her poisonous words, even Zack refuses to acknowledge me as his mother. I had no choice but to flee abroad in utter despair. Can you even fathom what that feels like? And now you expect me to just let it go and forgive her? How unbelievably arrogant of you.”
Byron fell silent.
Sylvia’s anger only grew as she spoke, her eyes turning icy cold. She gritted her teeth. “Forgive Joanna? Never in a million years. My hatred for her runs too deep to ever fade. The more miserable she is, the happier I am. She wants her money back? In her dreams.”
Byron hadn’t expected Sylvia’s hatred for Joanna to run this deep. He raised his hand in a calming gesture, his tone more conciliatory. “Hey, calm down, okay? Let’s just put this aside for now and talk about it later.”
Getting Sylvia to return Joanna’s money was clearly going to be an uphill battle.
“Byron, you’re unbelievable. If you didn’t want me this worked up, you should never have brought it up in the first place,” said Sylvia.
She gave a mocking laugh, pointed at the door, and said, “Since you blurted out something inappropriate and ruined my mood, you might as well leave
now.”
Byron felt conflicted. Though he regretted bringing up Joanna, he simply had no other choice.
Otherwise, his mother would nag him about it nonstop, and might even go to Sylvia on Joanna’s behalf. The last thing he wanted was for the two of them to end up in a confrontation.
Byron remembered that Sylvia had wanted to say something earlier. “Sylvia, didn’t you have something to tell me before? Go ahead. I’m listening now.”
“Nothing,” Sylvia said curtly, keeping her eyes fixed on the documents before her, completely ignoring Byron.
‘If Byron cares so much about Joanna, then he doesn’t need to be part of our Children’s Day plans tomorrow, I’ll take Zack and Ruby out myself,‘ Sylvia thought.
Without pressing further, Byron tugged irritably at his tie and strode out of the office, his footsteps heavy with frustration.
Byron was in a foul mood. Even after returning to the office and burying himself in work, he still couldn’t shake off the oppressive frustration weighing on
him.
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Chapter 144
That evening, Byron got home to find Zack already back after being picked up by the driver. The moment Zack spotted his dad, he came bounding dower. the stairs with a huge grin on his face.
“Dad, did you finish up your work for tomorrow? We’re going out to have fun together,”
Zack exclaimed excitedly.
Zack’s words caught Byron completely off guard. “What’s special about tomorrow? Why are we all going out fogether?”
Zack tilted his head curiously and asked, “Didn’t Mom tell you?”
Byron grew increasingly puzzled. Suddenly, he remembered that Sylvia seemed to have something to tell him earlier, a flicker of curiosity rose in his
heart.
Just as Byron was about to press Zack for details, a phone rang upstairs.
“Dad, someone’s calling. I’ll tell you in a sec,” Zack called out as he rushed upstairs, flopped onto his bed, and answered the phone. “Hey, Mom, what’s up?”
“Don’t forget to wake up early tomorrow and put on your new clothes. I’ll come pick you up in the morning.” Sylvia’s voice came through the phone. “Got it, Mom.” Zack chirped happily, swinging his legs. “Oh, and my teacher gave us a Children’s Day assignment. We have to draw a picture of our whole family together.”
Byron stood rigid outside the door. As the voices inside reached him, his heart lurched. ‘So tomorrow is Children’s Day,‘ he wondered.
Suddenly, it dawned on Byron. What Sylvia had wanted to tell him earlier was that they would be celebrating Children’s Day with the kids tomorrow.
A barely perceptible smile flickered across Byron’s face. ‘She’s so stubborn,‘ he thought, ‘but it seems her heart is finally warming up to me. Maybe tomorrow will finally be the fresh start we need.‘
Byron slowly descended the stairs and made his way into the kitchen. Turning to the maid, he instructed, “Prepare the food for tomorrow’s picnic.”
Though a mountain of work awaited him at the office tomorrow, Byron was determined to power through all the documents tonight.
After finishing his call, Zack came downstairs to find Byron sitting quietly on the sofa, anticipating that Zack would bring up their plans for tomorrow’s holiday.
But Zack just walked right through the living room and headed out to the backyard to play.
“Zack,” Byron called out, stopping him. “Didn’t you have something you wanted to tell me? So, where are we going tomorrow?”
Zack scratched his head awkwardly. “It’s nothing, Dad. Just focus on your work tomorrow.”
With that, Zack dashed out into the yard. ‘Mom made it crystal clear on the phone. Dad isn’t invited,‘ he wondered. Zack could only shrug helplessly.
Byron’s face instantly darkened as he wondered, ‘We clearly agreed to celebrate Children’s Day together, but Zack changed his mind right after one phone call.
‘Could Sylvia have said something to him on the phone? She’s so petty.‘
Byron suddenly regretted mentioning Joanna to Sylvia so soon. If only he had waited a couple more days. At least they could’ve celebrated Children’s Day first.
His frustration intensified, yet he still clung to a glimmer of hope. He recalled that during Zack’s phone call, his teacher had assigned them to draw a family portrait.
‘How can it be a family without me?‘ Byron thought bitterly.
Chapter 144
That evening, Byron spent the night in his study, poring over documents and frequently checking his phone. He was absolutely certain sells would en
But the whole night dragged on, his phone lighting up with all sorts of random calls yet the one call he was desperately waiting for from sylvis nice
came.
The next morning, with dark circles under his eyes from a steepless night, Byron forced down his breakfast, watching helplessly as Zack’s phone buzzed right beside him.
“Dad, it’s Children’s Day. I’m off to play.” Zack grabbed his phone, checked a message, then bolted upstairs. Slinging his sketchpad over his shoulder, he dashed out of the villa.
Byron stood in the courtyard, stone–faced, watching as Sylvia’s car pulled up to the gate.
Ruby pressed her face against the car window, waving excitedly at her big brother. “Hurry up, Zack.”
Zack darted into the car, the door clicked shut behind him, and the vehicle slowly pulled away from the curb.
Byron’s face darkened like a thundercloud. He thought, ‘Did they seriously just forget about me?‘
AD
