Lucas completely ignored Grace’s earlier question, showing no intention of responding at all.

To him, anyone who stood against Aurora was his enemy, whether elder or junior—it didn’t matter. In his eyes, there was only Aurora. Besides, Grace was no longer fit to lecture her daughter.

To Lucas, she was nothing more than an unqualified mother; especially after favoring one daughter over the other, she had lost every bit of respect he might have had for her.

He didn’t bother to hide his disdain. If Grace had treated Aurora better from the start, he might not have treated her this way now.

Seeing that Lucas ignored her completely, Grace grew angry. With no other choice, she repeated herself, “Lucas, no matter what, I’m still your elder. Do you really think it’s appropriate to speak to me like this?”

“Whether it’s appropriate or not has nothing to do with you,” Lucas’ tone was cold and steady. He no longer cared who stood before him—his stance was the same for everyone.

“You’ve already made it clear you play favorites. Since you can’t treat your daughters equally, why should I respect you? Wouldn’t that make me a joke?” He let out a short, cold laugh. “After all, I’m still a CEO, a Carter. Do you really think I’d stand by and let my own wife be mistreated?”

Even he found it a little absurd to say out loud, but beside him, Aurora looked at him with shining eyes, as if seeing him for the first time. She hadn’t expected Lucas to defend her so fiercely.

Grace, however, bristled, her tone turning sharp. “She’s my daughter. How I treat her is my business. It’s not your place, as a junior, to lecture me.” Her opinion of Lucas had completely changed now, and not for the better. No matter what, Lucas was still her son-in-law, but if she allowed the younger generation to walk all over her, how could she maintain any authority afterward?

Lucas, however, couldn’t care less. “If that’s how you handled things in the first half of your life, then for the second half, you can stop worrying about it.” He tightened his grip on Aurora’s hand. “From now on, I’ll be the one taking care of her. She has nothing more to do with you.”

Chapter 1487

Tessa stood nearby, jealousy burning in her eyes. How she wished that man’s gaze would fall on her instead of being fixed entirely on Aurora. But that dream was destined to be shattered.

Grace frowned in confusion. “What do you mean by that?”

“Do I really need to spell it out?” Lucas gave a faint, amused laugh. “I’m telling you not to interfere in Aurora’s life anymore. I’ll take care of her completely from now on. You have no part in it.”

With that, Lucas started to lead Aurora away. He didn’t want to spend another second in this place. But Grace couldn’t bear to let such a valuable connection walk out the door. If she let him go now, who knew when she’d get another chance to see him again?

“Aurora, don’t forget, I’m your mother,” she called after them. “The bond between us isn’t something you can erase in a lifetime.”