The Triplets My Ex Never Knew About

Chapter 49: Chapter 49: Bitten by a Dog on the Lip

The kiss left Estelle’s head spinning. Hearing his voice, she felt as if she were back five years ago.

Back then, she had been so in love with this man, willing to give him her all. Just a few words from him were enough to make her happy for an entire day.

She had always known she had a fiancé, but everyone said he was meant for Noelle Lockwood.

When she first returned to the Lockwood family, she was unloved by her parents. The entire family doted on Noelle Lockwood, and her status as the true heiress of the family was lower than even the servants’.

Then one day, while she was in the courtyard doing a servant’s chores, a man blocked her path.

The man wore a black silk shirt, the sunlight pouring out from behind him. It was the first time since she had come to the Lockwood residence that someone had called out her name.

He asked, "Are you Estelle Lockwood?"

Estelle later learned that this was her nominal fiancé.

While the rest of the Lockwood family called her a "country bumpkin" or a "worthless drain," only Nathaniel Sloan would clearly and deliberately say her full name: Estelle Lockwood.

He was like a ray of light shining into her world. From that moment on, Estelle would have braved anything, even death, to chase after that light. But later...

Estelle snapped back to reality!

’This wasn’t five years ago. I can’t let this sanctimonious bastard deceive me again!’

"I’m not! I’m Yara Lockwood!"

Estelle finally collected herself. She took a deep breath, steeling herself. "Mr. Sloan, you put on such a show of being devoted, yet you can’t even recognize your own wife!"

"Since you’re so suspicious, I’ll say it again, so listen carefully. My name is Yara Lockwood, not Estelle Lockwood!"

"If you’re still suspicious, Mr. Sloan, I suggest you go to the hospital and get your head checked. Developing paranoia at your age... you should really seek treatment sooner rather than later!"

With that, she yanked open the bathroom door and hurried away.

Nathaniel Sloan watched her retreating figure, his eyes holding an inscrutable meaning.

...

Fuming, Estelle stormed out of Nathaniel Sloan’s room and ran straight into someone.

The man, who looked to be in his late twenties, was wearing a white lab coat. He stumbled back a step from the impact, utterly shocked. "You... you..."

’Am I seeing things? This woman is soaking wet, draped in nothing but a bath towel, and coming out of Nathaniel Sloan’s room...?’

’And her lips are red and swollen. It’s obvious what just happened!’

’Wait a minute, Nathaniel Sloan... he...?’

Estelle was completely unaware of the man’s misunderstanding. She glanced at him and suddenly asked, "Are you a doctor?"

The doctor answered instinctively, "Ah, yes. I’m President Sloan’s family doctor. I just got back in the country. How did you..."

Before he could finish, Estelle nodded and said flatly, "Perfect timing. Go check on Nathaniel Sloan’s brain."

Estelle’s tone was calm. "I suspect some water got in his brain while he was showering." frёewebnoѵēl.com

The doctor: "...?"

The doctor was confused, but utterly shaken.

Still reeling, the doctor entered Nathaniel Sloan’s bedroom, only to see Nathaniel emerging from the bathroom.

The doctor gulped. A complex mix of shock, excitement, and admiration flashed in his eyes before he summed it all up in one sentence: "Nathaniel Sloan, you’re a wild man."

’I don’t know who that woman was, but to think they were doing it in the bathroom... I’d never heard that Nathaniel Sloan, Mr. Ice-Cold himself, liked to get it on with women in the shower...’

Nathaniel Sloan shot him a look, cutting off the doctor’s wild train of thought. He put on a bathrobe and asked coolly, "Why are you here?"

The doctor immediately snapped to attention, careful not to let his eyes wander. "Chapman said you were feigning injury to win sympathy. He was worried you’d take it too far, so he asked me to come check on you."

The doctor’s name was Zane Grant. He was a long-time friend of Nathaniel Sloan who had gone abroad to study medicine and had only recently returned.

He tried to hold it in, but couldn’t resist. He leaned forward with great interest, his voice full of cheeky curiosity.

"Who was that woman just now? I caught a glimpse, and she’s gorgeous! Even with all the beautiful women in Crestfall, she’s got to be at the top of the list. Where on earth did you find..."

An icy glare from Nathaniel Sloan cut him off. "You looked at her?"

Zane Grant froze, hastily backing away and waving his hands. "No, no, I didn’t see anything! She was wearing a towel! What’s with that look? I already know she’s your woman. You think I’d try to steal her?"

"Still, I’m surprised you’ve got a new woman. Would Noelle Lockwood approve? Tsk, tsk."

Nathaniel Sloan watched him quietly for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Don’t you think that woman just now looked a lot like someone?"

Zane Grant paused. ’Looked like someone? Like who?’

He quickly put it together. There was only one woman Nathaniel Sloan had ever cared about that much.

"You mean... Estelle Lockwood?"

Nathaniel Sloan’s eyes darkened.

"No way," Zane Grant said, stunned. "Estelle Lockwood died five years ago. Her body was... uh, anyway, it’s impossible, right?"

He had been about to say that Estelle Lockwood’s body had been burned to a crisp in that fire.

Zane Grant had been abroad when Nathaniel Sloan got married. He had only heard that Mrs. Sloan had taken her own life, and he’d rushed back, worried about his friend.

By the time he got back, the Lockwood family had already had Estelle Lockwood’s body cremated. ’She was turned to ash. How could she possibly be alive now?’

Zane Grant had only ever seen photos of Estelle Lockwood. He thought for a moment. The woman from before really did look a lot like her. "I don’t know if I should say this or not..."

"If you think you shouldn’t, then shut up."

Zane hesitated for a moment but decided to say it anyway. "She has a tiny scar at her temple, hidden by her hair. Most people wouldn’t notice, but I could tell right away—it’s a post-operative scar from plastic surgery."

’If the woman had plastic surgery, then no matter how much she looks like Estelle Lockwood... it doesn’t really count, does it?’

When Zane Grant finished, he saw that Nathaniel Sloan hadn’t said a word, so he couldn’t help but add, "Besides, you always said Estelle Lockwood was sweet and gentle. That woman just now was anything but."

’The first thing she did was tell me Nathaniel Sloan had water in his brain, and she was wiping her lips as she walked away, as if he were something vile.’

’Why would Nathaniel think she was Estelle Lockwood...?’

Zane Grant suddenly had a thought. He asked carefully, a note of concern in his voice, "Hey... you don’t actually have water in your brain, do you?"

Nathaniel Sloan: "..."

...

Estelle hurried back to her room, rushed straight into the bathroom, and scrubbed herself clean from head to toe.

’My lips are already split and swollen. There’s no way they’ll be better by tomorrow!’

’But I have to go to Rosalind Garden tomorrow... How am I going to explain this to everyone?’

’Whatever. I’ll just say I got bitten by a dog!’

Estelle forced herself to sleep. Early the next morning, she opened her door after washing up and saw Zachery and Mia coming to find her.

"Mommy, where did you go last night? Mia couldn’t find you..."

Halfway through her sentence, Mia’s eyes suddenly widened. "Mommy, why are your lips so swollen?!"

Estelle Lockwood: "..."

’Speak of the devil.’

She took a deep breath and, sticking to her plan from the night before, said through gritted teeth, "It’s nothing. Mommy got bitten by a dog."

Nathaniel Sloan happened to open his own door at that exact moment, just in time to hear her words.