Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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After the call ended, the air felt frozen.
Lydia pulled her phone out of Rachel’s hand and sat calmly across from her. “You heard it. The Leonard family was never interested in you guys.”
Anger rose on Rachel’s face. She glared at Lydia and snapped, “This is all your fault. If you hadn’t made Hayden unhappy, he wouldn’t have thought sending you was an insult.”
Lydia was used to her insults by now. She just gave a careless shrug.
“We’re not married yet. If you want to back out and send Effie instead, that’s fine,” she said. “Maybe if Hayden’s happy, he’ll still hand over that urban renewal project.”
She paused, then turned to Effie with a bright smile. “But that depends on whether you’re willing to marry him.”
Effie saw the smugness in her eyes and looked furious. Her face twisted in rage. “I’d never marry a cripple. You and Hayden -a loser and a cripple—you deserve each other!”
Lydia slowly lifted her phone and waved it. “Oops. I accidentally hit record. What do you think would happen if Hayden heard that?”
Before she could finish, Effie lunged at her, trying to grab the phone. But Lydia moved fast and dodged easily, leaving Effie swinging at the air.
The stone bench in the garden was fixed to the ground. Effie tripped over it and fell hard, face first.
Lydia stood just a step away, looking down at her. “So this is the Hollander family’s manners? Not so impressive.”
Effie’s knees burned from the fall. Furious, she looked up at Rachel. “Lydia just attacked me! Aren’t you going to say anything?”
Rachel had been about to help Effie, but after hearing that, she straightened up and glared at Lydia. Without hesitation, she raised her hand and aimed a slap at Lydia’s face.
Seeing the hand coming, Lydia grabbed Rachel’s wrist hard.
When she was little, Rachel used to hit her all the time. But Lydia wasn’t that helpless girl anymore.
“In a few days, I’ll be Hayden’s wife–a member of the Leonard family. If you hit me now, it’ll be like hitting them,” Lydia said, her eyes cold. “You sure you can handle the fallout?”
“No matter who you marry, you’re still my daughter,” Rachel said, struggling to pull her wrist back. Her face darkened, the usual elegance gone. “It’s my right to discipline you.”
Lydia had heard that line more times than she could count.
Rachel used to claim it was her right as a wife to control her husband, so she trashed Patrick’s work and dreams. She called it her right as a mother, too, hitting Lydia regardless of who was right.
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Chapter 7
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Rachel never cared how Lydia was doing in Raventon. All she ever wanted were the things Patrick left behind. Now she called Lydia her daughter, just to protect Effie.
It was ridiculous.
Lydia suddenly let go of her hand and said coldly, “If you don’t want that urban renewal project, go ahead and slap me.”
Rachel froze, her hand still in midair. She was weighing the pros and cons in her head.
Effie, on the other hand, didn’t care. She grabbed the table and pushed herself up, then raised her hand to slap Lydia.
“If you hit me, that recording goes straight to Hayden,” Lydia said.
Effie stopped, her hand hanging in the air. Her face burned with anger, but in the end, she lowered it.
Rachel rubbed her red wrist, forcing down her rage. “I’ve said what I needed to say. If you can get the Leonard family to work with the Hollanders, you’ll get what you asked for.”
Lydia noticed the frustration in her eyes. Looked like Rachel hadn’t had an easy time with the Hollander family either.
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Today’s outburst wasn’t just about anger. Rachel was using this chance to push the Leonard–Hollander partnership–just so she could hold onto her place in the family.
After a whole day of running around, it was already evening when Lydia got back to the hotel.
She held a cup of coffee and stood quietly on the balcony, looking down at Jettridge as the city lights began to glow. The sunset cast a red hue across her cheeks, tinting her eyes.
Lydia was born in Jettridge. When she was little, Patrick was always busy, but whenever he had time, he would tell her stories about the city’s history.
That was her only comfort under Rachel’s constant pressure.
This city once held her home. But after Patrick was gone, that home disappeared too.
Later, she met Michael in Raventon. She thought she was lucky, and she hoped to build a home with him.
But over time, that hope faded away.
The buzz of her phone pulled Lydia from her thoughts. She glanced down and saw a text from Hayden. [My grandmother is eager to see you. Come with me to the Leonard Manor tomorrow.]
Then another one: [To make sure we don’t slip up, let’s meet tonight and rehearse. I’m waiting downstairs.]
The last bit of light in the sky was swallowed by the night.
When Lydia stepped out of the elevator, she saw Hayden in his wheelchair right away. “Sorry to keep you waiting,” she said.
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Chapter 7
Hayden’s cool gaze swept over her, and he looked pleased. “This outfit suits you much better.”
Lydia thought of the revealing dress Rachel had picked for her that morning. Clearly, the Hollander family didn’t know much. Hayden obviously wasn’t into the sexy type.
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She walked behind him, and when he didn’t object, she placed her hands on the wheelchair handles and slowly pushed him toward the quiet garden.
Maybe sensing the silence, Hayden teased, “When you become Mrs. Leonard, you’ll have to push me often. You seem pretty good at it.”
But Lydia was distracted and barely heard him. She just nodded absentmindedly.
Hayden noticed her distant look and assumed she had a lot on her mind. His tone turned cool. “Looks like you had a rough time at the Hollander residence?”
Lydia smiled and asked, “Mr. Leonard, you don’t think I’m the kind of person who suffers in silence, do you?”
Hearing her light tone, Hayden guessed the Hollanders had gotten the short end of the stick today.
As Lydia pushed him down the hotel corridor, she shared a few details of what had happened at the Hollander residence. The tension between them began to ease.
Seeing Hayden in a better mood, Lydia took the chance to ask, “Have you already decided who gets the urban renewal project?”
Hayden thought she was trying to plead for the Hollanders and looked puzzled. “After the way they treated you, you still want to help them?”
Lydia shook her head right away. “I’m no saint. I just want to know–are you really giving it to Finnian Group from Raventon?”
The moment Hayden heard her say Finnian Group, his face darkened. He raised his hand, stopping the wheelchair, the veins on the back of his hand faintly showing.
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