Theo was shocked; his heart nearly stopped. He'd already darkened his skin and disguised his features, so how did Gilbert know he resembled his mother?

"Do I look like her?" Theo asked, feeling no guilt. "People often say so. It would be great if it were true. My mother always thinks I'm not handsome enough and worries I won't find a wife." Gilbert immediately reassured him, "You're young. You'll definitely be very handsome. Don't worry about that."

"Thanks," Theo said seriously. "I'll work hard to become a handsome man."

Gilbert laughed, then gasped. "Why do I feel you also resemble Byron?" He added, almost as an aside, "Maybe I'm just getting old."

Theo was speechless. "What? Can you stop looking at me? How can you see that?"

Fortunately, Gilbert soon tired and fell asleep. Theo breathed a sigh of relief, retrieved his tools, and began acupuncture.

Outside, in the lounge, Maeve noticed Will's improved complexion. The medicinal soup was probably working. She wanted to hug her son but feared arousing Byron's suspicion, so she restrained herself.

"Maeve," Byron said from the sofa, "Why are you staring at my son?"

The words "my son" made Maeve's eyelashes flutter. She vividly remembered his rejection of her children, his ruthlessness in trying to get rid of them. Even after their reunion, he hadn't acknowledged Will as her son. If she hadn't discovered it accidentally, she might have remained in the dark forever. Are you taking revenge for my secretly giving birth to him? Are you using this to make me suffer? she thought, forcing herself to calm down. Looking at Will's face, her gaze softened. "Nothing. I just looked at him and thought of the past."

Byron looked up and said coldly, "Like you used to be a mother?"

His sarcasm stung. She sensed he was mocking her incompetence as a mother. With his love for Will, she guessed he blamed her for abandoning him four years ago. But Byron should be the one reflecting on his past mistakes.

"It's been so many years, Mr. McDaniel. You still remember," Maeve retorted casually. "Unlike you, I've long forgotten such a trivial matter."

Byron sneered. "Trivial matter? You heartless woman!"

The atmosphere grew tense. Some things felt like thorns in the flesh. Maeve and Byron's peaceful coexistence rested on avoiding these topics, but the problems remained.

Will looked at his father, then his mother. "Dad, if you want to live a long life, you have to keep a good temper."

Byron's eyebrows rose. "What are you trying to say?"

"You're so fierce. You scared Maeve." Will was reminding him to be polite.

Maeve chuckled. "Will, you're a real gentleman. You really couldn't tell you're only four."

"Are you mocking me?" Byron asked, looking at her sideways. "It doesn't matter. She has a strong heart. She even dared to jump out of the window in the middle of the night to elope with someone. She's not easily frightened."

Maeve remembered her house arrest at Nightfall Manor and Jaylen's helicopter rescue.

"Will, don't learn from your father. Men who badmouth women are usually unlikable. They might die alone."

Maeve met Byron's cold gaze, chin raised defiantly. Hostility filled the air.

"Pfft!" Will laughed.

Maeve and Byron looked at him simultaneously.

"What are you laughing at?" Byron asked.

"Dad, you seem jealous," Will answered honestly.

Byron's jaw tightened. He rubbed his head and muttered, "Nonsense."

Maeve was stunned. Byron's words, the more she thought about it, the more certain she was of his jealousy. He'd even used the word "elope," though she considered it escaping for her life.

Sensing Maeve's gaze, Byron frowned, his handsome face cold. "Don't flatter yourself."

Had she not noticed his slightly flushed ears, she might have thought she was flattering herself. Will even mouthed, "It's true." Byron glared at him warningly.

Maeve was unsure what to feel. Byron's jealousy meant he still cared, that he'd changed his mind, keeping and caring for Will. Did you change because of me? her heart skipped a beat. She retorted, "I'm overthinking. You and Miss Anderson are about to get married. How can you be jealous of me and another man?"

"So what? Am I the only one about to get married?" Byron narrowed his eyes. "Aren't you and that guy getting married soon?"

Even Maeve sensed the jealousy. Her heart raced. "Getting married? Really? I don't even know it."

"You accepted the title of Mrs. Chatterley," Byron said indifferently. "How would I know something you don't?" Four years ago, she'd left with Jaylen; marrying him now wasn't strange.

Maeve was about to respond when the ward door opened.

"It's done. Feed him the medicine later. After a week, the poisonous magic will be gone," Theo said, hands in his pockets.