M, on the other hand, felt nothing in particr.


    For the past few days, she had been preupied with figuring out how to make another trip to Crimson Gardens to retrieve those documents, especially since things were wrapping up quickly with Miranda.


    It would be troublesome if she couldn''t get the documents before leaving.


    Until Friday, she received another call from Miranda, saying things were almost


    done, and M finally lost her patience; she couldn''t wait any longer.


    That afternoon, as usual, she went to pick up Adrian from school with the bodyguard in tow.


    On their way back, she told Adrian that she had a surprise gift for him as a reward for his excellent grades.


    Adrian was thrilled and eagerly demanded the driver take them back to Crimson Gardens.


    M felt a pang of guilt.


    There was no gift. She had never lied to her child before, but this time she made an exception, and the guilt gnawed at her.


    When they arrived at Crimson Gardens, she escorted Adrian to his room and asked him to wait there. As she turned to leave, the guilt made her pause. She knelt down and gently kissed his forehead, her voice tender.


    "Wait here for Mommy."


    She promised herself she would make it up to him with a real giftter.


    Adrian was both excited and happy. His mom used to shower him with affection, which he found a bit annoying, buttely, she''d been distant, and it made him unhappy. Children are always sensitive to these changes.


    Thinking about it now, he felt reassured-his mom still adored him, prepared a gift for him, and even kissed him.


    In his delight, he nuzzled his little face against M''s cheek.


    "I''ll wait for you, Mommy."


    M paused, an impulse rising within her to tell her child: "Could you please not spend so much time with Giselle? Mommy doesn''t like it."


    But she couldn''t bring herself to say it.


    She had no right to control his preferences, and past experiences had taught her that such interference only leads to rebellion. Besides, Adrian had never chosen her.


    In the Montgomery family, she probably would never be the most important person.


    M smiled, ruffled his hair, and gave him a long, thoughtful look before she turned and walked out of the room, heading toward the study.


    Meanwhile, on the other side of town.


    Giselle was discharged from the hospital.


    Her injuries hadn''t been severe. The cut on her arm wasn''t deep, and she only stayed in the hospital due to a suspected concussion.


    With the medical team Lysander had arranged, it wasn''t a major issue.


    Friday was the final meeting with the Forest Team, and though she wished to spend more time alone with Lysander, this meeting was crucial.


    Afterpleting the discharge paperwork, Giselle changed into a sleek and professional outfit, got into Lysander''s car, and they chatted amiably on the way to the meeting.


    Securing the deal with the Forest Team would not only please Lysander but also elevate the Harvey family, bringing her closer to her goals. With her heart full of anticipation, the car arrived at their destination.


    Leonard got out first to open the door.


    Giselle followed Lysander as they headed towards the opulent restaurant that had been reserved for them.


    Just as Leonard was about to follow, his phone buzzed in his pocket-it was a call from Harper at Crimson Gardens.


    Today was too important to take any secondary calls, but he reconsidered and picked up anyway.


    "What did you say?"


    After listening to Harper, Leonard''s brow furrowed. He wanted to call out to Lysander, but they had already entered the restaurant with Giselle. It wouldn''t be appropriate to interrupt them now.


    Besides, they couldn''t leave at this moment.


    After giving a few brief instructions over the phone, Leonard suppressed the


    nagging unease in his heart and followed them into the private dining room.