Chapter 166 Nasty Surprise
Chapter 166 Nasty Surprise
Gwendolyn was already waiting by the door.
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Her voice shot out before I even hit the last step. “Mirabelle! Come in, come in. It’s freezing out here.”
Technically, she was my mother–in–law. Kind of.
I didn’t like her much, but she hadn’t done anything outrageous yet, and I wasn’t about to start a war over a hunch.
Plus, she was probably still traumatized from how much she’d spent the last time we met. 1
“I’ve cleaned Ashton’s old room for you to stay the night.” She beamed at me.
I gave her a vague smile and mumbled something noncommittal, pretending I hadn’t heard.
The staff had strung up a few lights in the sitting room.
There were balloons, cake boxes stacked on the sideboard, and a faint smell of polish and vanilla.
Once everything was set, I texted Ashton: [I’m at the Laurent estate. Come for dinner tonight.]
He called before I even put the phone down.
“Where are you?” His voice was low and tight.
I could hear the drag of his breathing, like he was trying not to snap.
“Gwendolyn invited me,” I said. “She said it’s your birthday. We wanted to-”
“Birthday,” he cut in. He said it slowly, like the word tasted off.
I could picture his face from the silence–set jaw, narrowed eyes, that blank look he used when he was holding something in with both hands.
He really hated birthdays?
I thought he was like me–just didn’t care for them.
I figured if someone remembered, he’d be quietly pleased.
Apparently not.
My chest tightened. I cleared my throat. “What’s wrong?”
He didn’t answer.
The line was dead quiet.
I glanced down to check if the call had ended.
It hadn’t.
Chapter 166 Nasty Surprise
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Finally, a sharp breath hit the speaker, followed by his voice, low and flat. “I’ll be there soon.”
He hung up.
I stood still for a second, phone still in my hand.
Something was off.
That tone wasn’t annoyed.
It was worse.
I headed for the kitchen, but before I reached it, Edouard came down the staircase.
He glanced at the cake box on the side table. “Whose birthday is it?”
He looked around, then stared straight at me. His voice sharpened. “You’re throwing a party for Ashton?”
Gwendolyn came out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a linen towel. “Of course. It’s his birthday. We’ll sit down as a family. You haven’t seen him in ages.”
Edouard stopped midway down the steps. His shoulders stiffened. “Did he agree to this?”
Gwendolyn gave me a cheery glance. “Mirabelle’s here. He’ll come. He’s not a child anymore. It’s just dinner. What’s he going to object to?”
Edouard followed her gaze and locked onto me. His expression dropped. He didn’t bother hiding it.
“Fine. Do what you want,” he muttered. “The two of you sneak off to get married and can’t be bothered to visit. No manners whatsoever. Now you sneak back here and plan an ambush…”
He shook his head.
I kept my mouth shut. I’d planned to greet him politely. That plan died quickly.
I reminded myself he was Ashton’s grandfather.
But Edouard’s reaction had given something away.
Ashton must’ve seriously hated birthdays, to the point his own family tiptoed around it.
Edouard hadn’t asked if he was coming. He’d asked if Ashton had ‘agreed.‘ Like it was a loaded question.
Something bad had happened once. 1
I didn’t know what, but it had left a mark on all of them.
They were twitchy.
I looked at Gwendolyn.
She was still smiling.
Chapter 166 Nasty Surprise
I stared at her a second longer.
That fake sweetness was starting to curdle.
Reginald was here too.
Earlier, he’d been polite enough, offered me tea, asked about my work.
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But the longer I stood there, the more it felt like they’d used me to drag Ashton into something he’d never have agreed to on his own.
Before I could decide whether to confront her or just walk out, the front door burst open.
“I’m home!”
Declan stepped in, yanking off a heavy coat and tossing it at the housekeeper without looking.
Last time I’d seen him, he’d had short black hair.
Now it was bright copper, long on top and shoved back like he’d styled it with his hands and no
mirror.
His eyes landed on me immediately.
“Well, shit, look who it is–Mira the sister–in–law. Didn’t know you were coming. Wait–Ashton’s back today?”
He glanced around. No Ashton.
Then he spotted the cake on the table. His whole face changed.
“No. No. You’re not serious.”
He pointed at the cake. “Tell me you didn’t. You didn’t try to throw him a birthday thing. Are you out of your minds? You want him to go nuclear?”
He looked around like he expected Ashton to appear swinging.
He glared at me. “What is wrong with you? I thought you were the sensible one. Why push it? You think he won’t lose it over this? You think he won’t walk straight into court and file for divorce?”
Damn it, I’d definitely walked into a trap.
“What’s the deal? Why can’t he have a birthday? What happened?”
He narrowed his eyes and stepped in closer. “You seriously don’t know?”
“No.”
He let out a breath, half a sigh, half disbelief.
Just as he opened his mouth to answer, the housekeeper’s voice cut in from the hallway.
“Mr. Ashton is back.”
Chapter 166 Nasty Surprisex
Everyone turned.
Ashton walked in fast, coat still on. Black wool, double–breasted, shoulders stiff.
His expression was flat and hard, jaw set, lips tight.
I’d never seen him look like that before.
It felt colder with him in the room.
No one spoke.
The only sound was his footsteps crossing the polished floor.
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Gwendolyn moved first, a little too quickly. “You’re home. Dinner’s ready, come sit. Let’s eat first.”
She tried to guide him toward the table.
Edouard and Reginald were already seated, hands folded, pretending nothing was wrong.
Declan and I stayed where we were.
Ashton stopped in front of the cake.
He stared at it, motionless.
Then his gaze swept across the room before landing on me.
His eyes didn’t warm. They stayed fixed, unreadable, cold.
My chest tightened.
He got to me before I could speak.
Ashton grabbed my arm, yanked me behind him, then flipped the entire table with one hand.
Chapter 8 Shastoin
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