“Mom, Ms. Lambert’s putting in so much effort to carry this baby for us. We can’t be stingy – just give her two million dollars up front,” Kayla said.

Maggie was taken aback. “Two million dollars?”

Lily snarked, “It’s not about the money. The Lambert family isn’t exactly hurting for cash.”

“Then what do you think this is about?” Kayla’s gaze turned icy, sharp enough to make anyone shiver.

Lily shrank back under Kayla’s glare, feeling like she was about to get sliced in half. After a moment, she muttered, “Childbirth is like walking through the gates of hell for a woman…”

“So, you’re suggesting we make Ms. Lambert part of the family?” Kayla’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

Back in the day, getting a wife was a proper, formal process, but taking a mistress was just a quick decision.

But what era was this?

Who still took mistresses nowadays?

Joyce’s face kept turning paler.

‘Who wants to be a mistress anyway? I want to be Tuff’s wife – the real Mrs. Prescott!’ She thought.

“Ms. Lambert, don’t get upset. That was all Lily’s idea. If you’re looking for someone to blame, blame her,” Kayla said, tossing the blame to Lily before she could even respond.

Lily’s head was buzzing. “Kayla, you’re twisting everything! That’s not what I meant at all!”

“I’m not giving up my place. If Ms. Lambert wants to have this baby with her head held high, the only way is as a mistress. But hey, that’s illegal now, so she’ll just have to be the third outside the house. At least she knows what she is – maybe that’ll make her ancestors proud!” Kayla sneered.

“Y–you!” Joyce stammered, her whole body trembling with rage.

‘How did I never realize Kayla could be this vicious with her words?’ she wondered, stunned by Kayla’s cold, cutting tongue.

Then Diane said, “Joyce, be sensible. Just go and get rid of the baby.”

“Yeah, whatever compensation you want, we’ll give it. Just go and get it done!” Maggie quickly chimed in, backing Diane up.

She thought, ‘Two million dollars? Heck, I’d even give three million if it meant Joyce would stop causing trouble.’

“Absolutely not,” Joyce shook her head, her voice unwavering. “I’m having this baby.”

“Thank you so much for everything, Ms. Lambert. Besides Mom’s compensation, I’ll add a little extra myself. Just focus on resting up and taking care of yourself,” Kayla said, pulling out her phone. “Ms. Lambert, can you send me your payment info?”

Everyone was stunned, not sure how to react.

‘How could I possibly take her money?’ Joyce thought, her mind reeling.

Chapter 379

She couldn’t even accept Maggie’s money.

If she took their money, she would really become the mistress who tried to force her way in with a baby and ended up being kept on the side.

“Kayla, I’m doing this because I truly love Tuff. I don’t want your money,” Joyce said, her voice steady and unwavering.

“Love? Great, that saves me money,” Kayla quipped, immediately slipping her phone back into her pocket.

Maggie was getting a headache from all the bickering, and she was embarrassed that this drama was happening right in front of the other branches of the family.

She stepped forward, took Joyce by the arm, and led her out. “Come with me!”

Joyce knew she couldn’t win against Kayla and was actually grateful for the excuse to leave, so she just went along with Maggie.

Diane tried to comfort Kayla. “Maybe this is all just a misunderstanding. Tuff isn’t that clueless…”

“You never know what a guy will do when he’s drunk,” Lily jumped in.

Diane shot her a fierce glare. “Lily, are you trying to mess up the whole family? Should we go air this out in front of our mother-in-law?”

Lily finally shut up.

Kayla just shrugged it off with a smile. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up, Diane, but honestly, I don’t care.”

“Kayla…” Diane started, but Kayla cut her off.

“I’ve been to war, killed people, seen rivers of blood. This little drama is nothing,” Kayla said, her voice calm and steady.

Lily and Diane were both stunned.

“Wait, you mean you’ve actually killed someone?” Lily stammered, barely able to get the words out.

“Sure have! Tuff always said I was a great shot,” Kayla replied, sounding almost proud.

“You know that’s illegal, right?” Lily blurted out, eyes wide in disbelief.

“Oh, is it? Then I guess you two better keep your mouths shut, unless you want the cops showing up at my door,” Kayla said with a sly grin.

Lily and Diane nearly fainted from shock.

‘Kayla actually keeps a gun at home? Seriously?’ Lily thought, her mind reeling with disbelief.

‘What if she ever gets pissed off one day…’

Lily wasn’t about to stick around and find out. She grabbed the first excuse she could think of and made a quick exit.

As soon as they were gone, Kayla’s expression darkened.

‘You’ve really got some nerve, Tuff – cheating on me?’ Kayla seethed, her jaw clenched in fury.

Chapter 379

Meanwhile, Tuff, who was working on Project Azurevell, suddenly sneezed so hard. “Who’s cursing me behind my back?”

Once Maggie had dragged Joyce outside, she lost it. “Joyce, are you out of your mind?

“I was just trying to help you,” Joyce said, rubbing her wrist where Maggie had yanked her so hard it was turning red.

“You never told me you were the one carrying the baby!” Maggie yelled, her voice trembling with anger.

If she’d known Joyce herself was going to be the one having the baby, she never would’ve agreed to any of this.

Her plan was simple: find a pretty, well-educated girl who was just in it for the cash, pay her off, and never have to see her again.

But now, it’s Joyce standing here.

From the way Joyce acted today, she was hell-bent on going toe-to-toe with Kayla.

And Kayla was no pushover. Things were about to get real messy for the Prescott family.

Not only would Tuff be furious, but even her mother-in-law and husband would blame her – and that was a burden Maggie could not bear.

“I was just trying to help you,” Joyce insisted again.

Maggie had heard that line so many times, she was numb to it by now.

“No, you weren’t. You’re trying to break up Tuff and Kayla so you can marry him yourself!” Maggie snapped, her voice sharp with accusation.

Joyce just stayed quiet.

“See, I was right, wasn’t I?” Maggie was even more pissed off. “I’m going to talk with your parents about this!”

“Maggie, do you even know what state I was in when I got home that night? Tuff saw everything with his own eyes,” Joyce called out from behind, her voice low but forceful.

Maggie stopped dead in her tracks.

“I was all banged up, even had to get checked out at the hospital. If I went to the police and said Tuff got drunk and forced himself on me, what do you think would happen then?” Joyce’s tone was calm, but there was a cold threat beneath every word.

“You’re crazy… you’re really crazy…” Maggie snapped, her voice trembling with rage and disbelief.

For the first time, she saw Joyce’s true colors, and it made her shake with fury – yet she was completely powerless to do anything about it.

She couldn’t afford to risk Tuff’s future or drag the Prescott family’s name through the mud.

All she could do now was try to sweep it under the rug and hope the whole mess would just blow over.

“Joyce, what exactly do you want?” Maggie finally asked, her voice heavy with frustration.

“I can’t marry the man I love, so is it really too much for me to have his child and raise him on my own?” Joyce said, gently rubbing

Chapter 370

her belly with a soft, almost maternal smile. “And the doctor says it’s a boy.”

Maggie didn’t even care about the baby’s gender anymore. All she wanted was to keep the peace.

But Joyce was dead set on having the baby, so Maggie had no choice but to try and calm her down.

“You really are… hopeless! Do you like him that much?” Maggie said, her face full of frustration and disappointment.

Joyce nodded, her voice soft but unwavering. “Yes, I love him… so much…”

“Alright, go ahead and have the baby,” Maggie sighed, sounding worn out.

Joyce looked up in shock. “Wait, really?”

“He’s my first grandson – I can’t just turn my back on him,” Maggie said, her face still tight. “I’ll help you out with money, but you can’t stir up any more drama at our place. And seriously, just make sure you stay away from Kayla.”

“Okay,” Joyce agreed, her smile bright and genuine.

Kayla had always been proud, used to being the center of Tuff’s world. There was no way she’d ever let Tuff get away with knocking up another woman.

Joyce had already gone to the Prescott family today and pushed Kayla’s buttons. She figured Kayla would be filing for divorce any day now.

And when that happened, Joyce would finally get her shot at becoming Tuff’s wife herself.