When Aurora spoke, her face was serious – there wasn’t the slightest hint of a joke.

Grace felt helpless inside. Did they really have to talk to each other this way as mother and daughter?

“Can’t we just sit down and have a proper conversation?”

Aurora replied, “I am talking to you properly, but I feel like you’re always scheming against me. I can’t trust myself to speak freely with you.”

It was the first time Aurora had ever voiced her true feelings to her mother. In the past, she might have hesitated, but now Grace’s intentions were practically written across her face. If Aurora didn’t make things clear now, she knew there would only be endless entanglements ahead. She was tired. She had her own work to handle and couldn’t keep wasting time on this.

“You’ve misunderstood me,” Grace said quickly. “I just wanted to ask whether he is or isn’t. That’s all – nothing else.”

Aurora arched a brow. “Can I really believe that?”

“Of course you can,” Grace said without the slightest hesitation. “I’m your mother. Isn’t it natural to trust me? How could there be lasting resentment between mother and daughter?”

Aurora tightened her grip on her handbag, torn by hesitation after hearing her words. But she decided to bargain. “I’ll tell you the truth – but in return, you tell me how you found out about this.”

It mattered to her to know where the leak came from. Someone had clearly been watching from behind the scenes, and though Aurora already had her suspicions, she needed confirmation.

Grace thought for a moment, then finally nodded. “Alright, I’ll tell you.”

“Fine,” Aurora said. “At first, I didn’t know who Lucas really was. I found out later by chance, and after meeting his family, I attended the banquet.”

Hearing that, Grace finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then a rush of excitement rose within her – she could hardly believe it. Ravenshore’s wealthiest man was her son-in-law? The thought itself felt like a dream. “That’s good, that’s good.”

When Aurora saw the faint smile on Grace’s face, she couldn’t help but frown. Suddenly, she began to regret it. Should she have told her at all? Why did it feel like her mother had something else in mind?

Still, she pressed on. “Then tell me, who exactly told you about this?”

“It was just a coincidence,” Grace said. “Your sister saw it when she attended the banquet.”

Since Aurora was her own daughter, Grace didn’t bother hiding it. But even so, realizing how much scheming there was between her and her own child made her lose faith in the idea of real trust. If things were like this within her own family, how could she possibly trust her business partners? They weren’t even related by blood – why would they ever deal with her sincerely?

Hearing her mother’s answer, a thoughtful look crossed Aurora’s eyes. It was just as she suspected. She had suspected as much all along, but hearing it confirmed hit differently.

“Alright, I get it. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving.”

After saying that, Aurora stood up, picked up her bag, and prepared to leave. But Grace suddenly spoke. “Aurora, when you have time, bring Lucas over for dinner.”