Elodie was caught off guard by Jarrod’s sudden attentiveness.

He’d rarely shown this side before. They hadn’t spent much time together, and Jarrod was hardly the sentimental type.

This new gentleness had to be-well, probably the result of Sylvie’s influence.

With a neutral expression, Elodie took the tissue he offered and turned, intending to leave.

But her foot slipped on the edge of the cushion beneath her, and she twisted her ankle.

“Careful.”

“Careful!”

Two voices overlapped-one calm, one urgent.

Two hands caught her arms, steadying her.

Elodie looked up to find Jarrod on one side, Ivan on the other.

Jarrod’s dark eyes were steady; even his tone was unhurried.

Ivan glanced at Jarrod with a raised brow. “So, Mr. Silverstein does have a soft spot after all.”

The comment made Elodie uncomfortable. He was just poking fun at Jarrod’s usual indifference toward her, nothing more.

She pulled her arm free from both of them and replied coolly, “Thank you.”

Jarrod didn’t bother explaining himself to Ivan. He merely lowered his eyes and said quietly to Elodie, “Be more careful.”

Meanwhile, across the room-

Esmeralda was already snapping a photo of the scene on her phone.

She tugged Alexander aside and whispered, “Didn’t you add Sylvie as a friend?”

“What do you want?” Alexander saw right through her scheming.

“Post this photo for your private group-set it so only Sylvie can see. Give Elodie a little win!” Esmeralda sent him the photo, arms crossed and smirking. “If she doesn’t know her place, we’ll be happy to remind her.”

Alexander clicked his tongue. Esmeralda truly had a talent for getting under people’s skin.

Not that he was any better. Besides he was fiercely loyal to his own.

As for the post, Alexander didn’t restrict it to just Sylvie. He tagged Maurice and Joseph, too—one of them was bound to see it. He was generous like that-if he had dirt, he made sure to share it.

Elodie had no idea what Esmeralda and Alexander were plotting. The ceremony was complicated enough that she had no time for distractions.

***

At the mountain resort-

Sylvie only saw Alexander’s photo because Maurice forwarded it to her.

Maurice found it amusing. “Elodie really can’t sit still, can she? She’s already pulled Jarrod away. Is she doing this to spite you?”

They’d planned a big event at the resort, everything set-except Jarrod had bailed.

Sylvie’s brow furrowed.

She looked at the photo—Jarrod steadying Elodie—and her face gave nothing away. “She’s more calculating than I thought. I can’t pretend to be fragile and helpless like she does.”

So Elodie only looked aloof on the surface. In the end, she still threw herself at Jarrod whenever she got the chance.

Sylvie hated that kind of scheming.

Elodie knew Jarrod had someone now, yet she kept acting like this-no boundaries, no sense of propriety.

“I’ll call Jarrod and tell him to get here as soon as possible,” Maurice said, getting annoyed himself. “Why does he even bother with the Thorne family? Elodie never dares confront him, so why waste time with appearances?”

Sylvie switched off her phone, unwilling to look at that shameless photo any longer.

The gentle curve of her lips faded. “Jarrod doesn’t take Elodie seriously. Still, there’s no telling what tricks she might try to keep him around.”

Maurice scoffed. “Relax. Jarrod knows what he’s doing, or Elodie wouldn’t have spent all these years on the sidelines.”

Sylvie agreed.

“And as for that photo…” Maurice clicked his tongue. “You think Elodie asked Mr. Sterling to post it on purpose?”

If so, that was some next-level scheming.

Sylvie’s calm eyes showed a hint of mockery, her voice soft but dismissive. “Do you think I care?”

She simply refused to stoop to Elodie’s level. As far as she was concerned, if she ever wanted something, Jarrod would always put her first. No amount of Elodie’s plotting would change that.

***

This year, they didn’t plan to visit the cemetery. They held the memorial at home instead.

Her grandmother had gone all out, preparing a full spread for the family—a round table, every seat taken.

Elodie planned to talk to Jarrod about telling her grandmother the truth after the ceremony.

Looking for him, she found Jarrod deep in conversation with Alexander.

“I heard Professor Charles is leading a new research team on flight systems after

the New Year. Are there any spots left for the training program?”

Elodie’s steps faltered.

In that moment, everything became painfully clear.

No wonder Jarrod had agreed to play his part in this little drama-