Free Web NovelChapter 132: Chapter 132: Backed by the Old Master
She wouldn’t let her call her "Mom," wouldn’t let Candy call her "Grandma," and even sent Candy away so she could speak with her alone.
Cecelia Archer didn’t need to be a genius to guess what she was planning.
After so many years away from the Vaughn family, the woman returned the moment Cecelia set foot in the door. It was as if she was terrified Cecelia might actually marry into the family.
’Then again, it made sense.’
’Any matriarch of a wealthy family would feel the same way.’
She had no money, no degree, no family connections, and no influential background. All she had was a child—baggage that even an ordinary, working-class man would find hard to accept, let alone the Vaughns.
Cecelia Archer already knew how this would end and had prepared herself to face it calmly. She knelt to soothe Candy.
"Mommy has something to talk about. Candy, be a good girl and go play with Grandma King for a little while, okay? I’ll come find you outside when we’re done."
Candy hugged her neck, looking uneasy.
"Is everything going to be okay? I have a feeling she’s a little mean. Mommy, who is she?"
It wouldn’t do to call someone mean to their face, so Cecelia Archer quickly tapped her on the nose.
"Don’t talk nonsense. Are you not going to be a good girl for Mommy? Are you not going to listen to me?"
Fine. Candy didn’t want to make her mother angry, so she had no choice but to go outside with Ms. King.
Cecelia Archer sat down respectfully on the sofa opposite her.
"Ma’am, I didn’t know you were coming back. I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to meet you at the airport."
’Hmph. Meet me at the airport? Are we that close?’
Mrs. Vaughn rolled her eyes in disdain.
"Spare me the pleasantries. I didn’t come all this way back from the USA for any other reason. I came back for you."
"Cecelia Archer. I heard you started dating Damien many years ago. And that you secretly had his child behind his back. That little girl... she’s Damien’s biological daughter, isn’t she?"
Cecelia Archer: "..."
’Heard? From whom? The old master?’
’From her tone, can I tell if she believes it or not? Should I say yes, or should I say no?’
’If I say yes, what happens if Damien decides to marry Gwen Morgan one day?’ fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
’But if I say no, how do I explain the current situation between me and Damien?’
"Ma’am, please be direct. What is it you really want to ask me?"
Not knowing how to answer, Cecelia Archer could only use a little conversational trick to deflect the question.
’Dishonest.’
’Just as I thought. She’s not as innocent as she looks. She’s barely said a few sentences and she’s already showing her true colors.’
Mrs. Vaughn snorted inwardly. ’Oh, Damien, Damien. How can you be so blind? How can you not see she’s just a scheming pretender?’
"You know perfectly well what I want to say. Miss Archer, I don’t care how you’ve managed to fool Damien and the old master, but we’re both women. I know exactly what’s going on in that little head of yours, so don’t even think about fooling me. I..."
But Mrs. Vaughn had barely gotten into position, just starting the tirade she had prepared for Cecelia Archer, when the old master returned.
The moment Mrs. Vaughn had walked through the door, Ms. King had called the old master to report her arrival.
His eldest daughter-in-law hadn’t been back in over a decade. The old master was so thrilled that he immediately bid his old friends farewell.
He walked in and saw his daughter-in-law sitting on the sofa from a distance. She was still as young and beautiful as she was all those years ago. Overcome with emotion, his eyes instantly welled up.
"Jessica? You’re back? Why didn’t you give us a heads-up? I would have picked you up. It’s been over ten years... Oh..."
Jessica Bell had always been a very self-centered person.
When she was young, she believed that with her beauty and wealth, she deserved to marry the best of the best. And so, she married the golden boy, Mr. Vaughn.
But her domineering personality led Mr. Vaughn to get entangled in messy affairs with other women just a few years into their marriage.
Unable to accept this, she resigned herself to a marriage that was united in appearance only.
Later, after Mr. Vaughn passed away from an illness, she found herself at a crossroads. Though it was hard to leave Damien, she was even more unwilling to let her own life stagnate and waste her youth. So, she resolutely moved abroad.
She had always lived a carefree life, which was her secret to staying young.
She just never expected the old master to have aged so much.
When she left the Vaughn family, he had been a formidable tycoon, a titan of the business world. Now, his hair was gray and his eyes were cloudy. The sight of his frailty, the look of a hero at the end of his road, left Jessica Bell stunned.
"How did you... Dad..."
’No wonder he didn’t stop Damien from letting this mother and daughter into the house. The old master really has gotten old. He’s gone senile. How could he have let himself get like this!’
Jessica Bell went to him and took his arm, her eyes filled with shock and a pang of heartache as she looked at him.
The old master wasn’t a fool. He gave a self-deprecating laugh.
"It’s been over a decade. I’ve gotten so old you almost don’t recognize me, do you? It can’t be helped. Time waits for no one. But I must say, Jessica, you haven’t changed a bit. Time has been very kind to you. Seeing you now... it’s like I’m seeing..."
Thinking of Damien’s father—his firstborn, his most beloved child—the old master’s eyes welled up once more.
At that moment, Jessica Bell couldn’t bring herself to blame the old master anymore.
He had struggled and striven his entire life. He lost his mother as a child, his wife in middle age, and his son in his later years. He had already suffered more than enough hardship.
As for the ridiculous mess Damien had gotten himself into, she, as his mother, had been absent for years. She hadn’t fulfilled her duty to raise and educate him. She bore an undeniable responsibility for that, so how could she have the audacity to blame the old master?
"Dad, let the past be the past. Don’t dwell on it. I’m just happy to see you still looking so hale and hearty, I really am. I was too selfish. I haven’t been back to see you in more than a decade... You don’t blame me, do you?"
The old master didn’t blame her.
He had a magnanimous heart and never held a grudge.
In fact, he felt deeply sorry for the things Damien’s father had done in his youth.
"We’re family. There’s no talk of blame between us. It’s just good to have you back. How long are you planning to stay this time? Did something happen?"
She had only planned to stay for a few days—just long enough to drive Cecelia Archer away—but seeing the old master like this, she suddenly couldn’t bring herself to tell him the truth.
"Nothing’s the matter. I just came back to see you, and I plan to stay for a while. You won’t get tired of me and try to kick me out, will you?"
"Nonsense." The old master’s sorrow turned to joy, and he gripped her hand excitedly.
"You’re my child, too. We’ve known each other for so many years; surely you know what kind of person I am by now. Stay as long as you like. When you get tired or sick of it and want to leave, then you just go. I won’t say a single word to stop you."
After this heartfelt exchange, Jessica Bell led him by the hand to the sofa.
The old master then looked kindly at Cecelia Archer.
"This is your mother-in-law. I know you and Damien haven’t had a proper wedding yet, but with your child being this old, it’s time you addressed her as such. Have you called her ’Mom’ yet?"
In his presence, Cecelia Archer certainly didn’t dare to upset him. She nodded. "I have."
The old master then turned to Jessica Bell, a wide smile on his face.
"It must feel strange, doesn’t it? You still feel so young, and now you’re suddenly a mother-in-law?"
"To be honest, your own mother-in-law felt the same way when you first joined the family and started calling her ’Mom.’ You get used to it."
"Have you met Candy yet? The little one looks so much like Damien did as a boy. She’s so clever and endearing. Hearing her call you ’Grandma’ is addictive."
"Trust me, stay here for a couple of days, and you’ll fall in love with that child. You’ll get to the point where you’ll miss her if you don’t see her for even a moment."
Jessica Bell: "..."
