That day, Celeste and Matthias workedte before finally leaving
the office.
When Celeste returned to the Rodriguez residence, she spent
some time chatting with Betty. Just as she went upstairs,
several new messages from Jordyn popped up on her phone.
When she opened them, she saw that they were all photos. In
‘the pictures were not only Jordyn but also Trevor, Beck, and
After the photos, Jordyn sent a voice message.
“Mom, I''m out at the hot springs with Dad and the others! What
are you doing, Mom?"
Celeste replied, "I''m about to take a shower. Have fun,
sweetheart.”
After sending that, she set her phone aside and went to shower.
Once she finished, she read for a while and did some research.
By the time she started feeling tired and was getting ready to
sleep, her phone pinged again.
Celeste nced at it and saw another message from Jordyn.
She opened it. It was another photo, taken indoors this time. In
the center of the image were three straw dragonflies.
But besides the dragonflies, the photo also captured a handbag
and a suit jacket.
Both wereid neatly on the bed, side by side. +
Celeste recognized the bag—she had seen Wynn carrying it
before. It was a limited-edition Hermés, priced well into seven
Jordyn probably hadn''t noticed those details and sent another
voice message. "Mom, Dad and Mr. Harper made these
dragonflies for me! Aren''t they pretty?"
Celeste casually replied, ‘Mm, they''re beautiful.”
Jordyn must''ve been in high spirits, because she suddenly called
through voice chat.
Celeste hesitated for a moment, then answered.
"Mom!"
Just as Celeste was about to speak, Trevor''s voice came
through faintly in the background
"Still not showering?"
“Wait a minute, Dad. I want to talk to Mom first."
Trevor chuckled. “Alright.”
Before Jordyn could say more, Wynn''s voice suddenly chimed in,
“Jo? Didn''t you say you were going to shower? Why haven''t you
gone yet?" 5
Maybe because she knew Celeste disliked Wynn, Jordyn
abruptly fell silent. 1
Celeste spoke up then, her tone calm, "It''s gettingte,
sweetheart. You really should go shower now. We''ll talk another
Jordyn''s voice dropped, disappointed but obedient. "Okay..."
Then the call ended.
They had said they''d talk next time, but over the next two days,
Jordyn didn''t call Celeste again. 5
On Saturday night, Zachary happened to be off work
That evening, Celeste went to a restaurant to meet Zachary,
Nadine, and Matthias. She had just arrived when Matthias also
But as they got out of their cars, they spotted the Lockets and
the Shaws too. 1
When Linda saw Celeste, she immediately thought of how
Trevor had missed the divorce decision period yet again
because of "work". 1
It meant that the divorce between Trevor and Celeste still wasn''t
finalized, and it made her mood sour.
With a cold snort, she looped her arm through Lilian''s and said
loudly, "Aunt Lizzy, your wedding anniversary with Uncle Harvey<fn897c> ?????? ???? fι?dnοvel</fn897c>
ising up soon, isn''t it? He''s runningte today because he
went to pick up the custom-made gift he ordered for you. 2
"Lheard it''s worth at least ten million this time! He really loves
you and never forgets to spoil you every year." 2
Celeste''s face remained expressionless. Matthias''s eyes,
however, darkened with restrained anger.
Just then, a car pulled into the lot.
The doors opened, and Trevor and Wynn stepped out. 1
Linda''s face lit up smugly. She raised her voice, practically
calling across the parking lot, "Wynn! Trev! You''re here!” 20<style>
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