In the past, she had always held back for the sake of her mother’s pride, telling herself to give in a little more.

But now she saw it clearly. Endless tolerance didn’t change anything. It didn’t change her mother’s stance, nor her so-called sister’s opinion of her.

Since that was the case, Aurora figured it was time to stop playing nice. She wanted to see just what other tricks her good sister had up her sleeve.

Did she really think that man was such a prize? That anyone would be desperate to have Julian? Aurora’s lips curved slowly into a colder smile. How could she forget him? She had only kept her silence before to protect Tessa’s reputation. But looking at it now, everything followed a pattern—it had been building all along.

So why keep holding back? Might as well wipe the slate clean in one decisive move.

As she stared at the viral video on her screen, the fire in her chest burned hotter and brighter. She hadn’t provoked any of them, so why did they keep coming for her, one after another? All she wanted was to grow Walton Corporation and nothing more. She hadn’t even spared a thought for these petty, tangled, personal games. And yet these people kept rushing in, wave after wave, like fish swarming upstream, crowding in. Just thinking about it gave her a headache.

For some reason, Lucas’ face suddenly floated into her mind. And oddly enough, the first thing she thought of was wanting comfort from him. After everything that happened yesterday, something between them had shifted.

It wasn’t like before—now, whenever something went wrong, Lucas was the first person she thought of. And this time, again, his image was the first to surface.

For some reason, ever since what happened yesterday, Aurora found herself growing slightly dependent on Lucas. The moment that thought crossed her mind, she instinctively recoiled—was she really becoming that attached? But the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. He was her man, after all. So, what was wrong with leaning on him a little?

With that settled in her heart, Aurora didn’t head straight for the guest room when she got home that evening. Instead, she went directly to the master bedroom. Lucas wasn’t back yet, but that didn’t bother her. She figured he’d be home soon.

What she hadn’t expected was that before Lucas even showed up, Wendy came looking for her. The moment Aurora saw her, she felt a headache coming on. After all this time, Wendy was still hanging around the house, refusing to leave. It was obvious Lucas had no romantic interest in her—at best, he treated her like a little sister. Even Aurora, who hadn’t known them long, could see that clearly.

And yet Wendy clung to him so stubbornly. Aurora couldn’t understand it. This situation benefitted none of them. That was why just seeing Wendy now made her temples throb.

“What do you want?”

Aurora didn’t bother putting on a friendly face. Truthfully, she didn’t even know what tone she should use with this woman.

Wendy, on the other hand, couldn’t stand the way Aurora always carried herself—so composed and superior. Why was she the one who got Lucas’ love? Why was she the one Lucas went out of his way to protect?