The wedding ring wasn’t for her, so it was clear who Theodore bought it for. Vanessa felt a stab of jealousy.

Vanessa thought, “Is Theodore planning to go public with Phoebe? No way! I won’t let that happen!”

Vanessa hid the jewelry box. Two days later, Theodore noticed the ring was missing and asked her about it. She brushed him off.

At that moment, the ring was in Vanessa’s hand, but it felt like a knife in her heart. Did Theodore and Phoebe, happily raising a cat together, ever think about her feelings?

Vanessa took out the diamond ring and tried to put it on her finger. It was at least two sizes too small and got stuck at her knuckle.

It was tough to push it further.

Vanessa gritted her teeth. No matter how much it hurt, she was determined to wear the ring. After several tries, her knuckle was swollen. She took off the ring and was about to throw it away. Just then, the caregiver walked in, and Vanessa quickly pulled her hand back.

Seeing the ring, the caregiver asked, “Miss Fitzroy, is something wrong?”

Vanessa lowered her head and said, “I think I’ve gained weight. The ring doesn’t fit anymore. I need to lose weight.”

“Miss Fitzroy, you’re so slim. No need to diet. If the ring doesn’t fit, try some hand cream. It might slide on easier.” “Really?” Vanessa looked at her skeptically.

The caregiver fetched some hand cream. “Give it a try. If it still doesn’t fit, you can exchange it for a larger one. It’d be a shame to leave such an expensive item unused.” The diamond on the ring was dazzling. She’d only seen such diamonds in ads.

Vanessa applied some hand cream, and her finger became smoother. She picked up the ring again. Although it was still tough, at least it didn’t get stuck at her knuckle. The caregiver said, “Miss Fitzroy, this ring is so beautiful and shiny. I’m so envious. Your boyfriend is so good to you, hiding the jewelry box on the sofa. How romantic.” Vanessa stared at the large diamond, its brilliance stinging her eyes. She smiled bitterly. “Yeah.”

The caregiver said, “You should get married soon. I wish you a lifetime of happiness together.”

“Thank you,” Vanessa replied.

After the caregiver left, Vanessa looked at the ring. She took out her phone, snapped a photo, and posted it on her social media, visible only to Phoebe.

Madison had been sending messages for a while, but Vanessa hadn’t replied. When Madison looked back at her messages, she sensed Vanessa might not be in a good mood.

Madison started to retract her messages as she walked out of the elevator.

The messages had already been sent for more than two minutes and were irreversible. Madison pouted and walked briskly to her desk, grabbing her cup to get some water from the break room. “Why is she so happy? Doesn’t she know her world is about to collapse? She’s so oblivious,” one female colleague, who had disliked Madison for a long time, sneered.

“Having an illegitimate brother doesn’t affect her much. If there’s a fight, it’s between those two. Besides, I don’t think the love child can compete with Theodore.”

“That’s true. I just wonder when she’ll find out. Why hasn’t anyone told her?”

“Do you want to get in trouble?”

“No chance. Having a half-brother is trouble. Anyone who spills the beans will have bad luck. It’s wiser to sit back and witness the chaos,” he concluded.

“How about we bet on when she’ll hear the rumors? It’s crazy that on this gossip-filled 17th floor, she hasn’t heard a thing. It’s making me anxious. I want to tell her she’s about to have an illegitimate brother.” “What are you talking about?” Madison returned with her water, having overheard something about a love child. She glared at the person.

The colleague, who had been gloating, now felt intimidated by Madison’s questioning. “Nothing.”

Madison’s sharp gaze swept over the others, who quickly dispersed and pretended to be busy at their desks.

“What love child? Explain it to me.” Madison inquired, sensing a recent disturbance within the company. Her colleagues were gossiping behind her back.

Whenever Madison approached, they would pretend to be busy. Sometimes, she overheard whispers in the elevator, but people would fall silent when they saw her.

But Madison, being inconsiderate and focused on the fallout between Theodore and Phoebe, hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

Now, everyone was silent. They couldn’t let the rumor reach Madison’s ears, or they would lose their jobs.

John came out of his office and saw Madison fuming. He frowned and walked over, asking coldly, “What’s going on?”

Madison turned to glare at him. “You know, don’t you? You all know and kept it from me, right?”

John pursed his lips and glanced at the others, guessing why Madison was angry. He said, “Come to the conference room, and I’ll explain.”

Madison stormed into the conference room. John pointed at the gossiping colleagues and then followed her.

Madison sat boldly on the table in the conference room. When John entered, she suppressed her anger and asked, “What’s going on?”

John said, “Brandon has a love child named Bishop. Everyone knows, except you.”

Madison looked like she had drunk fake alcohol, shouting, “I don’t believe it. You’re spreading rumors.”

“Believe what you want!” John shrugged and turned to leave, but Madison stormed past him like a whirlwind.

“I’m going to ask my dad!” She left that remark and disappeared from John’s sight, leaving him with no guilt.

Phoebe and Theodore took Ollie to get vaccinated. While getting the shot, Theodore took a photo of them with his phone.  noveldrama

After the vaccination, they carried bags of cat food and toys home.

“Ollie, this is our home. You’ll be the cutest one here,” Phoebe said, carrying Ollie inside.

Ollie looked around with curious eyes, clearly intrigued by the new home. Phoebe carried Ollie into the living room and introduced the layout. Theodore watched her busy figure and listened to her talking to Ollie. He realized she actually talked a lot.

When they were together before, the house was almost always silent. If there was any noise, it was either arguing or the sounds of lovemaking. “This is Papa and my room. You can play inside, but don’t go on the bed. Papa is a neat freak and won’t be happy,” Phoebe’s voice came from a distance. Hearing that, Theodore felt both happy and sad.

He thought, “If our son had been born, Phoebe would have taught him so gently, too.”

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