Chapter 265
Amelia waited until the early hours of the morning when Landon finally returned. “How did it go?” she asked.
“It’s Dad’s kid,” Landon replied, his brows heavy with weary fatigue. “What about the kid?” Amelia asked.
“His name is Jeffrey Kingsley. He’s thirteen. He was born with a condition. When he has an episode, he goes wild and smashes things. Otherwise, he’s withdrawn and cold,” Landon explained.
“What?” Amelia froze in shock.
“All these years, Aunt Shelby has kept him hidden away in a sanatorium, with specialists looking after him. He doesn’t even know about his illness; he thinks the place is his home,” Landon continued. “Where is he now?” Amelia asked.
“I sent him back to the sanatorium. Aaron is personally watching over him. The Gellar family won’t get close to him again,” Landon said, rubbing his temples and sighing. “Amelia, I don’t know how to tell Mom about this…”
Amelia sighed, feeling just as helpless. Even though the wedding went off without a hitch, this news left everyone unsettled. Worse, a nagging sense of something bad looming lingered. “Maybe we should just hush it up,” Amelia suggested.
“You think they’ll be happy with just a third of Kingsley Group’s shares?” Landon scoffed. “Aunt Shelby’s never satisfied. This is just the beginning.”
“So what do we do? We can’t silence them for good,” Amelia said.
“Let things settle down, and then we’ll tell Mom,” Landon said. “That’s better than having your aunt drop a bombshell. But…” Amelia trailed off, her heart aching for Gloria’s faithfulness to her late husband. ‘The more you love someone, the less you can stand being betrayed,’ Amelia thought.
“Did your dad know about Jeffrey?” Amelia asked. Landon shook his head. “I’m not sure. According to Aunt Shelby, Dad supposedly knew and accepted it. But I don’t buy that.”
“I don’t either,” Amelia agreed. “If your dad knew, he would’ve left something for him in his will.”
“Exactly! But aside from giving shares to Uncle Henry’s family, he left everything else to me and Mom,” Landon said, still skeptical. “Shelby really managed to keep her cool, hiding Jeffrey all these years. Honey, do you think Tristan knew?”
“From pregnancy to birth—that’s a long time. He must’ve known,” Landon replied.
“Then why don’t we go see Tristan tomorrow?” Amelia suggested. Landon nodded. “Alright.”
It was almost one in the morning, and just as Landon was about to go to bed with Amelia, the butler knocked urgently. “Mr. Kingsley, Mrs. Kingsley,” the butler called out. “What’s going on?” Landon asked.
“Mrs. Gloria Kingsley is coughing up blood!” the butler blurted.
Even though it was her wedding night, Kayla had no interest in being intimate with Tuff. The thought of her father having a secret child left her suffocated. “Kayla, it’s our wedding night…” Tuff coaxed.
“Oh, give it a rest! It’s not like this is our first time,” Kayla shot back, glaring at the seductive Tuff. ‘He’s totally addicted to being a tease!’ she thought. ‘Uniforms, fitness trainer—he’s got more tricks than I can count,’ she grumbled inwardly.
“No matter how many times we’ve done it before, tonight’s different,” Tuff said, flashing his abs. “It’s our wedding night, after all…”
He was such a tease. Kayla averted her eyes, her voice softening. “I just can’t stop thinking about that kid…”
“He’s not a little kid anymore. No one can change the fact that he exists. Try not to dwell on it. Let’s wait for Landon to tell us what’s really going on tomorrow,” Tuff said.
“I want to know tonight…” Kayla pressed, her voice tinged with frustration.
“Honey, he’s not going to say anything tonight,” Tuff replied, moving closer, his fingers tracing lazy circles on her waist. He thought, ‘If anyone dares to ruin my wedding night, I’ll make sure I’ll give him a piece of mind!’
Kayla squirmed away, giggling, “Quit messing around…”
“Nope, I’m gonna keep messing with you!” Tuff shot back, even more mischievous. He doubled down on his teasing. Soon, the room was filled with laughter and playful pleas. “Okay, okay, I give up…”
“Then say I’m the best husband ever,” Tuff grinned.
“You’re the best husband. Now stop messing around,” Kayla laughed.
“Alright, I’ll stop. Time for the real deal,” Tuff grinned. All night long, they lost themselves in bliss.
Kayla sprawled on the bed, totally spent, and mumbled, “Good thing we had the place soundproofed when we renovated…” She thought, ‘God, it’d be mortifying if Landon overheard us!’
Tuff, looking satisfied, grinned, “That’s what I call foresight.” He thought, ‘Man, being an elite of the Flying Tiger Sect really pays off—my stamina’s on another level!’
“Can I call now?” Kayla asked, reaching for her phone. She was still thinking about that boy. ‘How could he be my dad’s illegitimate child?’ she thought.
“Go ahead,” Tuff said, pulling back the curtains. A sliver of dawn was already peeking over the eastern mountains—it was almost morning. ‘Oh my god, did we really go all night?’ Kayla thought, her cheeks burning red. She quietly pulled her hand back, face flushed with embarrassment. ‘Guess I’ll just wait until it’s a normal hour to make that call,’ she thought.