Chapter 349
Chapter 349
The more Irene thought about it, the more convinced she became.
Celeste looked unmistakably like a real expectant mother. Irene and Sharon had come across her at the hospital. She was careful with everything while Audrey didn’t seem to care at all.
“Irene, my mouth really hurts,” Sharon said, opening her mouth wide.
It felt like a chunk of flesh had been scraped off. Her tongue brushed against the wound, and the pain shot through her sharply.
“Mrs. Winifred, that ice cream was from your mother. If you’re angry, you should take it out on her. Now you’ve gone and hurt Sharon, and I won’t argue with you about it, but I hope you can control yourself next time.”
“Madam, are you seriously blaming me?” Audrey said with a sweet smile. “If I hadn’t stopped her, your son and his fiancée could’ve lost their baby. Would you be able to live with that? Or… does the baby just not matter to you?”
Audrey’s gaze shifted, slowly sweeping across both Irene and Sharon.
“Have you even had a wedding? Or are you just using the pregnancy to ask for money? Or maybe your family thinks that since she’s already pregnant, there’s no need to treat her well because she’s yours anyway, sooner or later?”
The color drained from both Irene and Sharon’s faces.
Audrey had struck a nerve. Everything she said was true.
The Price family had originally planned to offer a project as a gift to the Hartwells. But now that Sharon was pregnant, they believed the terms could be renegotiated.
From their point of view, Sharon was the one who threw herself at Aaron. If the marriage didn’t happen, it would be the Hartwells who lost face, and therefore, it was only right for the Price family to gain more from the deal.
The Hartwell family, meanwhile, thought Aaron was unreliable. But now that Edmund was about to have a great–grandchild, he would surely take things seriously, and the Hartwells should rightfully claim a bigger share of the benefits.
Despite Irene’s polished words, the truth was that Sharon and Aaron weren’t even married yet.
Their gloomy expressions were so apparent that even Lucia, usually the least perceptive of them all, noticed something was off.
She gasped and covered her mouth. “No way. The Price family wouldn’t really pull something like that, would they? Audrey got married after she got pregnant too, and look how well Yann treats her! He’s never once neglected her. He absolutely dotes on her!”
Vivian shot her a sidelong glance.
Lucia had been trying to rally everyone against Audrey not long ago, and now she was rushing to defend her.
It was becoming clear that in the Winifred family, Audrey was the one who truly held sway.
Vivian understood immediately where she should place her loyalty.
Celeste’s eyes, wide with excitement, were fixed on Audrey.
She felt that Audrey was different from the other wealthy women. There was an inexplicable sense of familiarity between them.
Irene and Sharon, finding an excuse, left in a hurry.
After they were gone, Celeste slid over to Audrey’s side.
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Chapter 349
“Does ice cream really give you diarrhea?” she asked quietly.
Audrey glanced at her, amused by her hopeful expression. “Are you constipated?”
Celeste nodded earnestly.
Audrey pulled up a dietary plan on her phone, one Sylvie had given her earlier. Sylvie had told her that poor nutrition was a common cause of constipation during pregnancy.
“You’re not afraid I’ll blame you if something goes wrong?” Celeste asked, her tone tentative.
Audrey then locked her phone and picked up her spoon.
“I won’t blame you, I swear! I’ll take full responsibility!” Celeste quickly grabbed Audrey’s hand. “I won’t say another word. I’m not like Sharon!”
Vivian chimed in as well, insisting they were nothing like the Price family.
Lucia, once again trying to play the peacemaker, asked Audrey to share some of her experiences.
Audrey thought it over but ultimately declined. She had never interacted with them before and didn’t know what kind of people they really were.
“I know a good nutritionist,” she said. “She can help you tailor your diet based on your needs.”
She passed Sylvie’s number to Celeste, and as it turned out, Sylvie had brought along a student, too.
Celeste was somewhat disappointed that Audrey hadn’t shared her recipe, but she didn’t dwell on it. Instead she started talking about her baby.
She had already done an ultrasound. It was a girl, and she was genuinely pleased.
Vivian had suggested she try for another child once this one was a bit older, and Celeste had readily agreed.
After they had left, Lucia finally asked, “What’s with Sharon? Is she… not all there or something?”
Audrey cast her a glance, as if implying the real fool was right in front of her.
Lucia avoided meeting her gaze. She still thought Audrey had made too big a deal out of a simple tub of ice cream.
A week later, while Lucia was helping decorate a nursery at Hillcrest Gardens, Vivian called Audrey. The phone was on speaker.
“Something happened to Sharon!”
Lucia immediately stopped what she was doing and leaned closer. “Because of the ice cream?”
“No, not that,” Vivian said. “Yesterday, Aaron went with some friends to a hot spring. Sharon didn’t get in. She said it wasn’t safe for pregnant women, so she just sat nearby.
“But someone noticed her lips were turning purple from the cold, and, worried she might catch something, suggested she soak for just a little while.
“She was fine at first. But just as everyone was getting ready to leave, she suddenly clutched her stomach and said it hurt. They rushed her to the hospital, and… there was no fetal heartbeat.
“Now the Hartwell and Price families are demanding answers from the person who convinced her to get into the water.”
A chill ran down Lucia’s spine, though the room wasn’t cold.
She glanced at Audrey, only to be met with a piercing look.
“Why… why are people so fragile these days?” Lucia muttered weakly. “Back when we were pregnant, we were working full–time. No one had any issues!
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“Everyone’s body is different,” Audrey replied calmly, “I just wanted to
let you and Mrs. Winifred know. We’re lucky she didn’t eat that ice cream that day.
“If something had happened, we’d never be able to explain ourselves. Mrs. Winifred, take good care of yourself. When you’re feeling better, let’s go shopping together.”
“Alright, Goodbye.” Audrey hung up.
Lucia stood there, chilled to the bone,
“So… it really was the hot spring?”
“Doesn’t matter what caused it,” Audrey said, getting to her feet. “Being dragged into that kind of mess is disgusting, no matter the reason.”
Lucia couldn’t bear to think about it. If Sharon had eaten that ice cream and something had gone wrong, and if her family had come knocking on Logan’s door, she could very well have ended up divorced.
“Be honest, Audrey,” she called out, trailing behind her. “Did you already suspect something was off when you told her not to eat it?”
Audrey was sipping a bowl of freshly made oatmeal, spoon by spoon, unbothered.
“During my internship, there was a woman at our company who went to a work party. She said the hotel had a weird smell, though no one else noticed.
After the party, she said she felt unwell. The doctors said it was an allergic reaction. I’m not sure about the details, but there was bleeding involved.
“The company ended up paying her half a year’s salary in compensation. Otherwise, her mother–in–law would’ve planted herself in the lobby, wailing and screaming every day.”
Lucia’s eyes
widened in shock. “You never told me that!”
If she’d known about a case like that, she would never have offered food to a pregnant woman so casually.
Audrey wasn’t being paranoid. She was just someone who had learned from experience.
After finishing her oatmeal, she dabbed her mouth with a tissue.
“You blocked me, remember? How was I supposed to tell you anything?”
Lucia froze. She remembered now.
When Audrey went off to college, the school required her to open a bank account. Lucia had taken the opportunity to apply for a credit card linked to it.
She started by spending modestly, but once the credit limit increased, she stopped paying altogether. Audrey’s credit took a nosedive, and she ended up blacklisted.
When Audrey found out, she called in a fury, and they had a fight.
Lucia, fed up, simply blocked her.
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