Chapter 125

Whether Helena's docility was an act or not didn't matter to Rosalie. What mattered was that she was being less annoying. Helena glanced at her with a lift of her eyelids, picked up her fork, and began to eat.

However, she was interrupted by Riley's sarcastic remark. “Everyone has been waiting for you this late, and not only do you not apologize, but you are eating before the elders have even touched their forks. Just because your mother is gone doesn’t mean you can be so ill-mannered.”

Riley was the legitimate eldest grandson of the Graham family, born to Claudia and Edward after their marriage. Unlike Helena, he didn't need to be submissive to Rosalie. From a young age, Claudia had instilled in him the idea that he and Rosalie were not full siblings and that he didn't need to take her seriously. Claudia had even manipulated him into believing that Rosalie's mother had taken Edward away, making Helena a child born out of wedlock. As a result, Riley harbored grievances against Rosalie.

Though Riley hadn't been home last time, he'd heard about Rosalie angering Helena into a faint. He'd been furious and wanted to confront Rosalie, but Edward and Claudia had stopped him. Tonight, having waited two hours because of Rosalie, Riley was seething. Seeing Rosalie's attitude, he couldn't hold back and lashed out.

As soon as Riley finished speaking, the dinner table atmosphere changed dramatically. Edward and Claudia turned their gazes on Riley, frowning disapprovingly. They didn't want any more conflicts with Rosalie, which was why they had been tolerating her. Riley's words directly offended Rosalie. Rosalie lost her mother as a child; Bella was a sensitive topic for her, and Riley's disrespectful tone was bound to provoke her. The latter part of his sentence implied Rosalie lacked upbringing due to losing her mother—a direct challenge to her.