Chapter 348
Vivian, whom Audrey had encountered earlier at the flower shop, was with them, walking in alongside a woman whose pregnancy was clearly showing
The four of them entered together, chatting and laughing, only to look up and spot Audrey.
“Well, if it isn’t Mrs. Lucia Winifred! What’s the occasion? Everyone seems to be running into everyone today! Mind if we join you?” asked Vivian.
“Not at all, of course not!” Lucia replied eagerly, practically leaping up in welcome
Vivian’s gaze drifted toward Audrey’s belly with polite curiosity. “How far along are you now?”
Audrey smiled but kept her tone neutral. “A few months.”
Sensing Audrey wasn’t keen on discussing it further, Vivian shifted tactfully. She gestured to the woman beside her. “This is my eldest son’s wife, Celeste. Seven months along. Did you find out the gender yet?”
Lucia looked over at Audrey, clearly hoping for an answer.
She had asked before, but Audrey had offered nothing beyond the usual polite deflection, that it didn’t matter, boy or girl.
But Lucia cared deeply. A son meant a foothold and a legacy.
The Winifred fortune was vast, and though things seemed harmonious now between Audrey and Yann, relationships could sour. If one day, another woman came along and bore Yann a son, everything could change.
Audrey could choose to stay silent, sacrificing pride for position.
Or she could fight back, and if it came to that, neither she nor Lucia had the power to win. In that case, she’d likely be pushed out with nothing.
And if that happened, Lucia knew she’d be collateral damage. If Yann took a mistress, he wouldn’t just cut Audrey off. He’d cut Lucia off too.
But a son, her grandson, changed the rules of the game. Whether the marriage held or collapsed, Lucia would remain the child’s maternal grandmother. And if that child inherited, she too would have a stake in the future.
Audrey’s expression remained composed, her smile perfectly measured. Her gaze flicked across the table toward Irene and Sharon. Irene kept her head down, feigning indifference, but her ears were unmistakably alert.
Sharon, on the other hand, stared openly at Audrey’s stomach, her longing written all over her face.
“Haven’t checked,” Audrey replied calmly.
“You should,” Lucia said cheerily, oblivious to the tension in the room.
Even Vivian could sense Audrey’s disinterest, but Lucia, as always, missed the shift.
“I have a friend who owns a private clinic,” she went on. “We could go there. Quiet and professional. I mean, either way it’s fine, of course, but knowing in advance makes planning easier.”
Sharon leaned in. “Oh, Mrs. Lucia Winifred, you’ve got contacts? Do you think I could tag along sometime? I’d really love to know more about the baby.”
“Sure!” Lucia beamed. “But you’re only what, two months? Might be too early to tell just yet. Give it a few weeks and I’ll take you.”
“I don’t mind if we can’t tell the gender,” Sharon said quickly. “I just want to make sure everything’s alright.”
“Alright, then,” Lucia said agreeably. She turned instinctively to Audrey, expecting support, but Audrey’s attention had clearly wandered elsewhere. A vague sense of unease settled over Lucia, though she couldn’t explain exactly why.
Chapter 348
Vivian and Irene had moved on to discuss a charity foundation project, something Lucia had long wanted to be involved in but never quite managed to access. She leaned in now, listening intently, hoping for an opening.
Meanwhile, Audrey found herself craving something cold. She beckoned to a passing server and ordered a scoop of ice cream.
“Ice cream? Can you eat that?” Celeste’s voice was barely audible, uncertain. Clearly, she wasn’t used to speaking without Vivian’s lead. She turned toward her mother–in–law for guidance.
“I’ll pass,” Sharon said with a wave. “It’s freezing out. I’ll just end up with a stomach ache. Gotta be careful these days.”
Vivian raised an eyebrow, but then turned to the server. “I’ll have one.” Then, she said to Celeste, “But don’t overdo it.”
“Thank you, Vivian,” Celeste murmured, giving Audrey a small, polite nod.
“I’ll have one too,” Lucia added brightly.
Moments later, the server returned with three more servings of ice cream.
Vivian took a bite first and then offered it to Celeste.
Sharon, seated nearby, was staring at the dessert in Lucia’s hands with such obvious longing that Lucia began to feel slightly awkward.
After all, she had also been hoping to ease the tension between herself and the Price family.
She said, “Oh, I just remembered I’m not supposed to have too much cold food. Mrs. Sharon Price, if you don’t mind, why don’t you take mine?”
“For me? Oh no, I couldn’t possibly,” Sharon replied, but even as she spoke, her hand had already reached out and accepted the treat.
She opened the lid and found it was her favorite flavor. Delighted, she picked up the spoon and gave Audrey a cheerful smile.
“Well, since Mrs. Lucia Winifred insists it’s fine, then I suppose it must be, Honestly, I wasn’t even planning to eat dessert, but it would be rude to refuse such a thoughtful gesture. I’ll just have a few bites.”
With that, she scooped a spoonful and brought it to her mouth.
Without warning, Audrey sprang to her feet.
Startled by the sudden movement, Sharon, who had been sitting right next to her, looked up in confusion.
Before anyone could react, Audrey reached out, gripped Sharon’s chin, and yanked the spoon from her mouth.
The spoon had gotten caught between Sharon’s teeth, but Audrey didn’t hesitate. She shoved her fingers directly into Sharon’s mouth and forcibly scraped out the bite of ice cream.
The motion was so abrupt and aggressive that for a moment, the entire table fell into stunned silence.
No one could believe what they had just seen, not least because Audrey, visibly pregnant with a pronounced belly, had moved with astonishing speed and precision. Sharon cried out in pain, jolting everyone out of their daze.
Lucia went pale, her heart skipping a beat. She hadn’t expected Audrey to do something so utterly unhinged.
She thought, ‘Is she crazy?! Reaching into someone’s mouth like that? What kind of high–society woman behaves this way? Even regular people don’t‘
“Audrey, stop it!” Lucia cried, rushing forward to pull her back.
Celeste, clearly frightened, spat out her own ice cream and clung to Vivian’s sleeve for comfort.
“Audrey! Are you out of your mind? Stop it right now!” Irene shouted, standing up to intervene.
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Chapter 348
But Audrey slapped her hand away without so much as a glance. Her cold eyes locked on Sharon.
“Oh, stop screaming. I’m doing this for your own good. You’re only a few months pregnant. How can you eat ice cream in the middle of winter?
“It’ll upset your stomach. Celeste and I are far enough along for it to be fine, but you? You’re barely two months in if even that. But sure, let’s pretend you
are.
“If you eat just because you saw us eating and something goes wrong, who’s going to take responsibility for that?”
Sharon, her face flushed with anger, shot back, “You, of course! Your mom is the one who gave it to me!”
“I don’t think so,” Audrey said coldly. “You opened it yourself. You brought it to your mouth. Can’t you control your hands? Or your appetite?”
She picked up Sharon’s half–eaten ice cream and tossed it straight into the trash can beside the table.
Then she turned on Lucia. “You just hand food out to everyone like it’s nothing. If something happens, are you the one who’s going to deal with the consequences?”
Lucia flinched under her sharp tone, her voice dropping to a murmur. “It’s just ice cream… What could possibly happen? There’s no need to make such a scene.”
Sharon clutched Irene’s arm, demanding justice. Irene’s expression darkened as she fixed Audrey with a cold stare.
“Mrs. Winifred, that was completely out of line.”
“Oh, I’m the one out of line?” Audrey retorted. “She wanted ice cream. Didn’t you hear that? Is your family s broke you can’t afford dessert, and now you’re begging from others?”
Irene’s entire body trembled with fury.
To her, Audrey displayed none of the poise or grace expected from someone of her social standing.
She was nothing more than a loud, brash woman acting without the slightest self–restraint.
And given how agile she had just been, Irene began to suspect there was something off about her pregnancy altogether.
She thought, ‘Could she have stuffed a fake belly under her dress? Maybe she hired a surrogate. Wouldn’t surprise me.‘
She hadn’t attended Audrey and Logan’s wedding, but she’d heard stories. Back then, people had said Audrey didn’t even look pregnant.
And now, just a few months later, she was walking around with a belly the size of someone seven or eight months along.
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