Chapter 129

“Oh, it’s Mr. Felton.”

Seeing Mr. Felton walking toward them, Logan and Raven shook his hand politely and exchanged pleasantries. “Mr. Felton, are you discussing business with Mr. Gray?”

“Yes, Mr. Gray’s company has several projects I’m quite interested in, so I came to chat with him.”

Noticing that Johnny and Freya had not come over, Logan paused but didn’t pay much attention. Mr. Felton, unaware of the tension, found Mr. Gray’s behavior a little strange. After all, as a businessman, even if Mr. Gray didn’t know the Brown family, it wouldn’t hurt to offer a greeting and expand one’s network of friends.

While Raven and Logan continued to chat with Mr. Felton, Grandma Brown, after greeting him, walked toward Freya and Johnny with Janice. Johnny looked at Freya. Freya, seeing them approach, remained unmoved.

Grandma Brown, with a gentle smile, spoke first, “Mag, long time no see.” Freya didn’t reply. Grandma Brown sighed when she saw Freya’s stubborn expression. “Mag, you…”

At this moment, Janice spoke coldly, “Freya, no matter how much misunderstanding or resentment you have toward me, it’s between me, you, and your mother. It has nothing to do with Logan or your grandmother. Auntie hopes you don’t push away the people who care about you just because of misunderstandings.”

Freya remembered how Logan had once told her, before his divorce with her mother, that Janice, true to her name, was a proud and cold woman who was his ideal lover, the perfect woman he had always dreamed of. He said he had only understood what true love was after meeting Janice. They were mutually in love. Logan had mentioned that although Janice appeared cold, she was actually a good person. He hoped she would not follow her mother’s example and act out, but rather recognize others’ excellence.

Unlike other women, Janice was always stoic. After many years, Janice remained as dignified and proud as Freya remembered. Thus, when Janice offered her advice, her words didn’t sound like empty platitudes or the kind words others might offer their stepdaughters. After all, someone like her, with such a cold and proud demeanor, would never stoop to making life difficult for her stepdaughter. If there were any conflicts, it would surely be because the stepdaughter lacked understanding. Janice claimed that the issues between her, Freya’s mother, and Logan did not affect the relationship between Logan and Grandma Brown.

Children long for their father’s love, for family bonds. This longing became stronger after a divorce. At that time, she was only eight or nine years old and loved both her parents. She couldn’t bear to lose either of them. However, her heart leaned more toward her mother, and she felt sympathy for her. So, when Logan and Jason divorced and fought for custody, even though her mother, Jason, had already suffered a mental breakdown, she insisted on staying with her mother despite Logan and Grandma Brown’s pleas. Even when she was with Jason, she still kept Logan and Grandma Brown in her heart. But, not wanting to upset her mother, she never showed this.

Over a year after the divorce, Grandma Brown visited the capital and secretly arranged to meet her. She had not seen Grandma Brown in more than a year and missed her, so she came to meet Grandma Brown in secret, without telling her uncle. But she didn’t know that Grandma Brown had brought Raven along. Grandma Brown said they were sisters and should get along. She didn’t want to. But when she saw the reproachful look in Grandma Brown’s eyes, accusing her of being too much like her mother—sharp and difficult—she felt heartbroken and began to wonder if she was truly a narrow-minded child.

Chapter 129

That day remained vividly etched in her memory. She remembered how, after feeling upset, she went to the restroom. When she returned, she saw Grandma Brown holding two ice creams, one for her and one for Raven. One of the ice creams had been scratched and had some oil stains on it after a waiter passed by with a dirty tray. Raven immediately chose the intact one. Grandma Brown just patted her head and smiled, but didn’t bother to replace the dirty one. When Freya returned, Grandma Brown handed her the ice cream without mentioning the piece that was missing. At the time, with the Brown family’s wealth, even if they bought a thousand or ten thousand ice creams, it would have been no issue. But she didn’t replace it. At that moment, she clearly realized that Grandma Brown’s feelings for her had already changed. She would never forget the malicious look in Raven’s eyes as she held the dirty ice cream. Similar things had happened with Logan.

Thinking of this, although she no longer cared about Matteo, looking at the kind Grandma Brown and the hypocritical, well-meaning Janice, she smiled slightly and responded to them regarding her and Matteo’s issues: “You all say you truly care about me, and I really want to believe that. But your kind of care—helping Raven to meddle in my marriage—is that what you call concern?”

Chapter 130