Octavia froze for a moment, blurting out, "Wait, isn''t my sister-inw second? How could she be "


    She cut herself off abruptly.


    Jarrod''s dark, inscrutable eyes met hers, calm and impassive, yet somehow colder for theirck of emotion. Something in his gaze sent a chill darting down Octavia''s spine, and she shivered involuntarily.


    She quickly pressed her thumb and forefinger together and traced a line across


    her lips.


    That was Jarrod''s silent warning: Don''t say anything reckless. Don''t mention Sylvie in front of Grandma.


    But...


    It dawned on her what Jarrod had just implied.


    "Wait, are you saying Elodie came in first?" Octavia almostughed at the thought. Maybe her brother had just misspoken.


    Jarrod loosened his tie and looked at her. "What did you just call her?"


    Octavia blinked, shrinking back a little. "Sister-inw..."


    No sooner had she spoken than Grandma''s voice rang out behind her. "What about your sister-inw?"


    Octavia turned to see Grandmaing down the stairs and instantly understood -Jarrod had just been trying to save her. If Grandma overheard her calling Elodie by her first name, she''d have gotten an earful.


    Jarrod''s expression was unreadable as he nced at Grandma, but before he could say anything, Octavia leapt up and linked arms with the older woman. "Grandma, did you know my brother''s wife just ranked first in her aerospace engineering grad program? Can you believe it?"


    If Grandma had noticed Octavia mention Sylvie earlier, she didn''t show it. She simply looked at Jarrod and asked, "Elodie''s going to grad school?"


    Jarrod replied in his usual unhurried tone, "Yes. Verdant University just released the results today. She''s at the top of her ss."


    Octavia''s jaw dropped. Was this for real?


    Wasn''t Sylvie supposed to have scored 432 points? How could Elodie possibly have beaten her?


    Grandma''s face lit up with delight. "Elodie''s that brilliant? Why didn''t anyone tell me?"


    Jarrod noted the healthy flush in Grandma''s cheeks-she looked better than she had in ages. He replied evenly, "Well, now you know."


    "Wonderful, wonderful!" Grandma pped her hands and nodded, clearly proud. "This calls for a celebration! We''ll host a party this weekend at the Silverstein estate-invite everyone, call it a graduation celebration for Elodie. We''ll tell people the Silversteins have some good news, let them alle. Privately, it''ll be our way of honoring Elodie''s achievement."


    Octavia was stunned, biting her lip. "Grandma, you know my brother and El-well, they''re keeping their marriage quiet. Isn''t this a bit... much?"


    She couldn''t help but spare a thought for Sylvie.


    As for Elodie... Was she really that impressive? Octavia just couldn''t believe it.


    Grandma tapped her cane with a huff. "What''s wrong with a little excitement? We don''t have to announce anything to the world."


    She turned to Jarrod. "Make it grand. This is a major milestone for Elodie-she deserves to be celebrated. Whoever wants toe, let theme. Make sure you tell Elodie."


    Jarrod met Grandma''s gaze, seeing her mind was made up-she was already nning the whole thing. There was no changing it.


    After a moment''s silence, he simply said, "Alright.”


    Elodie was genuinely surprised when the call came from Grandma.


    "Elodie, darling, everything''s arranged-we''ve booked the Royal Crest Hotel for your celebration. However many guests show up, the Silversteins will host them all. Don''t feel pressured; I won''t force you to make anything public if you''d rather not. I just want to mark the asion, give it some ceremony, and let folks know the Silverstein family has wonderful news! After all, not every family''s granddaughter-inw can achieve what you have!"