Chapter 194

Hooked into Jared’s eyes. He hesitated for a split second, almost flinching, before finally meeting my gaze. Those eyes, always potent in my memory, now seemed shadowed by a touch of melancholy.

“Why?” I asked, my old shyness nowhere to be found. Everything I’d been through lately had pretty much purged any sense of embarrassment.

Jared looked surprised that I’d pressed him. He froze for a second, and then replied, “When you’re not home, the place just feels so empty.”

“Oh, so you got used to having me around, huh? Now you can’t live without it?” I raised an eyebrow, grinning.

“No, that’s not it,” Jared shook his head, but couldn’t really put it into words. He let out a low sigh and said, “Come home for dinner tonight. Yvonne wants to see you.”

“Let’s not do that,” I said, staring down at the floor, my tone flat. “We’re going to be living separate lives soon anyway. She has you and the Holcomb family to look after her. I’m not worried.”

“Victoria, how can you be so heartless?” Jared snapped, his temper flaring. He just couldn’t take it when it came to Yvonne.

I looked at him coolly. “I’ve been even tougher on myself, and I still made it through, didn’t I? The world doesn’t stop for anyone. Yvonne will grow up. She doesn’t really need me. To her, I’m just a high-end nanny. What’s the point?”

“That’s not true. You’re her mother,” Jared argued, almost desperate.

“Yeah, I’m her mother. If she ever needs my help in the future, I’ll be there.” With that, I pushed open the door and left, leaving Jared standing there, his face stiff and unreadable.

Back in my office, a pang of sadness hit me. Sometimes I’d think, if I never had a child, no one would ever have the power to hurt me. But now Yvonne was in my life, and there was no undoing it.

As parents, we tried every trick to smooth things out for our kids, even trying to map out their entire future. But we forgot that once they were born, they were free. Hovering too much wasn’t always for the best.

When it came to Yvonne, I’d decided to let go. No matter what kind of person she grew up to be, I wouldn’t interfere.

As night fell, my parents showed up in Hachester and called me back to the villa. When I walked in, Jared was sitting on the couch with Yvonne in his arms. My parents were chatting with Sally, and Quinn was there too.

She looked at me like I was some kind of ungrateful brat and gave me the biggest eye roll ever.

I stood by the door, feeling like a criminal on trial. A chill ran down my spine. But I quickly pulled myself together and went over to greet everyone.

My mom shot me a silent look of judgment. My dad let out a heavy sigh. Sally’s face was anything but friendly.

Jared kept his eyes down, lost in his own thoughts.

Quinn liked running her mouth. When everyone else stayed quiet, she jumped right in.

“Victoria, what’s up with you? You vanished for so long and finally decided to show your face. Since when are you busier than Jared? It’s almost impossible to see you these days,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

My expression darkened.

Jared looked over at Quinn and said, “Don’t stir things up.”

Quinn crossed her arms and huffed, “If you two really get divorced, there’ll be tons of women dying to marry into the Holcomb family. You better think it through.”