Chapter 46: Who’s Really Lonely?

Ellis smirked. “No one’s drinking tea, so why does it smell so strong?”

Victoria acted as if she hadn’t heard and continued, “Separation is a big deal. The longer it lasts, the more it affects a marriage. Ms. Ellis, you should move back into the Hudson house sooner rather than later. You wouldn’t want Easton to be all alone, would you? I went to see him there yesterday, and he looked so lonely. It was heartbreaking.”

More like she waltzed in, eager to take over as the lady of the house.

Ellis almost laughed. Victoria didn’t even mind living in the house she and Easton had shared? She didn’t think of getting a new place!

“Move,” she snapped, too impatient to deal with Victoria’s theatrics.

She had expected Victoria to drag things out, but surprisingly, she stepped aside almost instantly, making a show of looking apologetic.

Ellis didn’t roll her eyes outwardly, but she was doing it a thousand times in her head.

There was a time she had envied Victoria—envied that she had been Easton’s fiancée, that she had his love, his care. She had even been jealous. Now, she felt nothing but pure disgust toward both of them.

To hell with their great love story! Just leave her out of it!

As Ellis walked away, Victoria’s smile deepened with satisfaction. She took out her phone and pressed a number. The moment the call connected, she spoke in a soft, delicate voice.

“Easton, guess where I am?”

“You don’t want to guess? I’m at the auction!”

“And guess who I ran into?”

“I saw Ms. Ellis here. She’s buying something. What a coincidence.”

She spoke a few more sentences, but there was no response from the other end. Thinking there might be a signal issue, she was about to repeat herself when Easton’s deep voice finally came through.

“Ellis bought something at the auction? What was it? How much did she spend?”

“I think it was an antique, around eight million. I was talking to her and—”

Victoria kept talking, but Easton’s focus had already shifted.

Where did Ellis get that kind of money? Who was giving her money? His mother? Or his aunt?

No wonder she hadn’t caved when he cut off her access to all his supplementary cards. No wonder she was still living outside and refusing to come home.

In an instant, he had figured out part of the reason she had been able to hold out this long.

As soon as the call ended, Easton dialed the person managing the family trust fund and gave a cold order.

“Starting this month, stop all payments to Emma.”

Then, he severed all his aunt’s other financial sources as well. He couldn’t control his mother’s money, but making his aunt’s life financially difficult? That was all too easy.

Ellis sat at work, torn. Sophia had asked both her and Easton to pick her up from the airport. But had she told Easton separately? Or was she expecting Ellis to pass on the message?

If she went to the airport, would she run into Easton? The last thing she wanted was to see him. Every part of her resisted going. But if she didn’t go, what excuse could she use to get out of it!

After much internal debate, she finally decided to take the day off and go. No matter what, Sophia had always treated her well as a daughter-in-law. She hadn’t even finalized the divorce yet—hurting Sophia like this would be too heartless.

At the VIP exit of the airport, Ellis stood watching every passenger that walked out. Before long, a casually dressed yet elegant middle-aged woman appeared in her line of sight. The moment Sophia saw her, her face lit up with a smile, and she waved.

“Mom,” Ellis greeted, instinctively smiling back. But before she could finish her sentence, a tall shadow was cast over her. Then, a familiar male voice, dripping with sarcasm, murmured close to her ear.

“Aren’t you getting divorced? Still calling her ‘Mom’ so affectionately?”

Ellis’ gaze snapped toward the voice. There, dressed sharply in a suit with his hands in his pockets, stood Easton—appearing out of nowhere, abrupt and startling. And the way he looked at her. It was as if he was assessing her, or perhaps sneering.

Ellis instinctively touched her face—thankfully, Bree’s scratches had fully healed. Lowering her hand, she shot him a glare. She had mentally prepared herself for the possibility of running into him. Now, she just needed to adjust her mindset and act normal. She simply chose to ignore him.

Easton’s expression darkened. The moment she saw him, she turned away with an obvious look of disdain—the same rude reaction as last time. Ellis continued pretending he didn’t exist. She had no intention of putting on some fake happy couple act in front of Sophia. It wouldn’t benefit her in any way; it would only cause more trouble for herself.

Instead, she focused solely on Sophia, keeping up her warm smile.

“Mom, you must be tired after such a long flight.”

“I’m not tired. But you—” Sophia’s gaze flickered to the noticeable space between Ellis and Easton. Then, without warning, she smacked her son hard on the back.

“You little brat! I heard all about what you’ve been up to from your aunt before I even got on the plane!”