Chapter 4

Sure enough, Vivian was already at the estate when we arrived.

She sat beside Margaret and Thomas Bennett in the formal living room, looking fragile. Adrian's parents had watched her grow up. They had taken her on family vacations, attended her school events when her own parents were traveling, and kept a room for her at the estate for years.

Adrian's parents had known Vivian since childhood, which explained why she was lounging there like she belonged.

Margaret stood as soon as she saw me.

"Chloe, dear, come sit. You remember Vivian, of course."

"We met last night," Vivian said. "Ms. Hart made quite an impression."

So this was not dinner. It was court, and Vivian had arrived early to choose the jury.

Thomas heard the edge in her voice. "What happened?"

Vivian lowered her eyes.

"I hate to make trouble after being away so long. Last night was supposed to be a celebration, but Chloe brought the baby and used her to come between Adrian and me."

I sat back in an armchair, crossing my legs in silence.

Encouraged by my lack of response, Vivian pressed on.

"She knows how babies are. She waited until Adrian and I were speaking, then let the child make a scene. It felt deliberate. I've known Adrian forever—there's zero reason for her to feel threatened enough to saber-rattle like that on my first night home"

I laughed.

I did not mean to. It escaped.

Vivian turned on me. "See? She thinks this is funny. She has no respect for either of you."

Margaret, however, didn't even glance my way. Her attention stayed fixed on Vivian.

"Did you just call my granddaughter bad luck?"

Vivian stumbled, the silence stretching.

"I didn't mean her personally. I only meant that a crying baby at a formal event-"

"Babies cry," Thomas said. "You cried when you were a baby. Constantly, if I remember correctly."

"That isn't the same."

"Why not?" Margaret asked.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop.

Vivian sat straighter. "I had just returned. Chloe knew how important the evening was. Bringing a toddler who could disrupt everything was inappropriate."

Margaret's expression hardened.

"Our granddaughter goes where her parents go. She is not a disruption."

Thomas leaned forward. "She's the first girl born into this family in three generations. She is a joy, not a curse, not an inconvenience, and certainly not bad luck."

Vivian finally realized she had chosen the wrong argument.

"Uncle Thomas, Aunt Margaret, I'm sorry. I used the wrong words. I would never insult her. I misunderstood Chloe's intentions because she seemed threatened by how close Adrian and I have always been."

"We aren't close," Adrian cut in.

He sat on the sofa with our daughter on his knee. At Vivian's latest claim, he covered the little girl's ears with both hands.

"Don't listen to the strange lady," he told our daughter. "She's confused."

Vivian went pale. "Adrian, we grew up together. Our families were inseparable. Our parents were friends. We attended the same schools. We were childhood sweethearts."

Adrian replied, "If being in the same school makes someone my childhood sweetheart, I have several hundred."

"You know what I mean."

Adrian continued, "I know what you're trying to imply. Stop doing it in front of my daughter. She is eighteen months old. She could remember this and develop an inaccurate understanding of my romantic history."

I pressed my lips together.

Our daughter was trying to eat the cuff of his shirt. Her concerns about his romantic history appeared limited.

Vivian's eyes filled with tears. She looked to Margaret and Thomas.

"Do you really think I meant nothing to this family? Was all the affection you showed me fake?"

Margaret's tight expression softened a fraction. She had a hand in raising Vivian, after all. Old love did not disappear in a single evening.

"No one said it was fake," she began.

Vivian seized the opening.

"Then why is Adrian treating me like an enemy? I made one mistake. Has someone been telling him things about me?"

Her gaze slid toward me.

Impressive. She had traveled through several miles of emotion and still found the road back to blaming me.

I smiled.

"Vivian is right about one thing. She does say unfortunate things. Last night and today, she said them where everyone could hear. When no one was listening, she called my daughter a worthless little expense."

Every face in the room turned toward Vivian.