Chapter 63
Jeannette listened to her parents’ wild talk of forcing a marriage. Normally, she would’ve put a stop to it, but now, pregnant again, she found herself caught in a tangle-Eddy had been nothing but attentive since learning about the baby.
Meanwhile, in the backseat of a sleek sports car, Blanche frowned at the surveillance footage of Eddy.
Eddy’s face was unreadable. “I have no intention of marrying Jeannette,” he said flatly.
The color drained from Pollock and Rhoda’s faces.
Jeannette jumped in quickly, trying to smooth things over. “He just means not right now. The most important thing is having a healthy baby.”
She shot her parents a warning look. “Come on, let’s eat,” she said, nudging them to change the subject.
Dinner dragged on. Eddy barely picked at his food before excusing himself to the restroom.
As soon as he left, Rhoda leaned in, her voice lowered. “Didn’t you say there was no love between him and his wife? You’re about to have his second child-why hasn’t he divorced her to marry you?”
Jeannette kept her tone light. “He’s the CEO of a public company. A divorce would tank the stock price. But Mom, Dad, Eddy treats me well. Anything his wife has, I have too.”
“We don’t need to fuss over the details,” she added breezily. “You heard them earlier-they called me Mrs. Simmons.”
Rhoda nodded, half convinced. “That’s true.”
Pollock, however, wasn’t so easily placated. “Don’t tell me he’s just keeping you on the side,” he muttered. “We Griffiths may not be as rich as
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the Simmons, but we’re not desperate. Don’t disgrace the family, Jeannette.”
Rhoda frowned, thinking hard. “Eddy… why does that name sound so familiar?” She searched her memory, the answer hovering just out of
reach.
Suddenly, Pollock slammed his hand on the table, realization dawning in his eyes. “He’s-he’s Laney’s husband!” He turned to Jeannette, rage twisting his features, and slapped her hard across the face. “How could you steal your sister’s husband? You’re nothing but a homewrecker!”
In the car, Blanche stared at the monitor, her mind spinning back to her childhood.
Before she’d discovered her father’s affair, she’d believed Pollock was the perfect dad-loving, generous, eager to give her the world.
But when she learned of Eddy’s betrayal, her world collapsed. Suddenly the wide, wide world felt suffocatingly small, as if there was nowhere left for her. Her heart was shattered, and the only thing keeping her going was the thought of taking her mother’s ashes and leaving it all behind.
Yet today, for the first time in years, she realized—someone still remembered her.
Blanche’s emotions warred inside her. Hearing Pollock defend her, she couldn’t help but recall how close they’d once been. But she couldn’t forget how her mother had withered away, weighed down by grief, and how much of that suffering lay at Pollock and Rhoda’s feet.
With a deep breath, Blanche stepped out of the car and walked slowly toward the restaurant.
The surveillance feed kept rolling.
“Dad, did you forget the days when Sheila kicked us out, when we were left on the street fighting stray dogs for scraps?” Jeannette’s voice was tight with resentment. “Even if you forgot, I never will.”
Chapter 63
“Sheila’s always had everything handed to her,” she spat. “When she was a girl, you doted on her. When she grew up, Eddy doted on her. Now she’s married to the head of Simmons Group, drives a Ferrari, her son goes to the best school in the city, her bank accounts are overflowing, and she lives in a mansion worth millions.”
“Why does she get everything, while I have to claw my way through life, barely surviving in the gutter?”
“I won’t accept it. I’m going to take her husband, and I’m going to take her place as Mrs. Simmons.” The words had barely left Jeannette’s mouth when Blanche reached the door to the private dining room.
“She’s had her happiness long enough,” Jeannette finished coldly. “It’s my
turn now.”
“She can’t have children-Loraine’s already lost patience with her. But I can keep giving the Simmons family heirs.”
Blanche, listening through her earpiece, heard her father’s voice: “I’m proud of you, sweetheart.”
“I thought you’d just settle for being the other woman, but you’ve got guts.”
“I support you, Jeannette. Take everything from your sister. Let her see what it’s like to lose everything and be cast out.”
Each word from Pollock drove Blanche further into despair. The gentle father she remembered twisted into something monstrous in her mind. She could still hear his voice echoing:
“Tomorrow, I’ll go see your sister. She’ll step down from her position as Mrs. Simmons. And if she refuses, I’ll do what I did before-find someone to kidnap her. This time, I’m not settling for a few million.”
