If she were the one lying in that hospital bed, would Julian treat her the same way?

Tessa didn’t know why, but even without living through it, she was certain the answer was no.

And maybe that was why her envy and resentment toward Aurora ran so deep.

Why did everything seem to fall into Aurora’s lap so effortlessly?

She didn’t have to fight and scheme, yet somehow, all the good things in life always ended up at her feet.

Lucas glanced up when Tessa entered the room but said nothing.

His eyes stayed on Aurora, his gaze cold and unreadable.

Irritation flickered in his expression as he frowned slightly. “You made such a fuss about coming in, so now what?”

Tessa was still staring at Aurora, lost in her own thoughts, not registering his words at all.

The executive beside her tugged lightly at her sleeve, subtly urging her to respond.

It was his first time meeting Lucas, and he was already overwhelmed by the man’s presence.

He’d never even seen this kind of aura in their company’s chairwoman.

Who was this man, really?

For someone like him to exist, and for them to know nothing about it until now, was mind-blowing.

Finally snapping out of it, Tessa cleared her throat, forcing a smile. “Oh… nothing, really. I’m Aurora’s sister, after all. I just thought I should come check on her. She’s my little sister, whom I care about.”

She tilted her head slightly, smiling with a hint of mockery. “What’s wrong? Can’t a sister visit her own family? Do I need my brother-in-law’s permission for that, too?”

Her tone was light, but her stare was bold—she didn’t show a trace of fear.

Kenneth and Wendy exchanged a glance.

They’d been curious about who this woman was, and now that they knew she was Aurora’s sister, it all made sense.

So that was where the confidence came from.

Still, it was the first time either of them had seen a woman speak to Lucas with such blunt defiance.

Anyone who’d dared cross him before had long since disappeared, probably buried under two feet of grass.

Tessa was someone worth paying attention to.

Even the executive who’d come in with her felt a flicker of admiration.

Bold didn’t even begin to cover it.

Here he was, nearly trembling in the presence of Lucas, and this woman was throwing barbs like it was nothing.

To his surprise, Tessa didn’t seem afraid at all.

Watching her, the executive began to see her in a new light.

Maybe it was time to let her take on more responsibility within the company.

She didn’t belong confined to some small office, buried under stacks of paperwork.

Those contracts suddenly didn’t seem so important anymore.

If she was given the chance to take a real swing at things, maybe she wouldn’t perform any worse than her sister.

Perhaps it had only been her past health issues that kept the chairwoman from allowing her to step into the spotlight.

But now, judging by what he was seeing, she was just as capable as Aurora.

The executive found himself quite satisfied with Tessa’s performance.

What he didn’t know was that Tessa’s knees were trembling.

She just refused to let anyone see it.

She was Aurora’s older sister—if she looked scared in front of her own brother-in-law, wouldn’t that invite ridicule from everyone present?

That thought alone made Tessa straighten her posture, standing even taller, as if unshaken.

But her little act didn’t fool Lucas one bit.

He saw right through her in an instant.

She was bluffing and just barely keeping it together.

He’d seen far too many women try to mask their fear in front of him.

Did she really think he couldn’t tell the difference?

He’d been through too many situations like this.