Anne stood frozen, her chest rising and falling with shallow, shaky breaths. Tania’s words clung to her skin like frost, chilling her to the bone. Her mind reeled. Lies. They had to be lies. And yet—there was sothing about Tania’s tone, her certainty, that made Anne’s heart twist with doubt.
"No," Anne whispered, shaking her head.
"You don’t believe ?" Tania scoffed, her eyes glinting with wicked amusent. "Go ask Augustine yourself. See what he tells you."
Anne clenched her teeth. She wanted to scream, to cry, but instead, she straightened her back and held her head high.
"I don’t care what twisted stories you spin," she said through gritted teeth. "Whether his family accepts us or not, it doesn’t matter. I don’t need their approval. I and Augustine are enough for each other."
Tania’s smile faded for a mont, the venom in her eyes flickering as she realized Anne wasn’t breaking the way she had hoped.
"Suit yourself," she sneered. "That’s the fate of a family’s illegitimate child—always cast aside, ignored, and treated like dirt."
Anne stood frozen, her heart pounding in her chest. Anger simred beneath her skin as her thoughts raced.
All this ti, she had believed the conflict between Augustine and Denis was simply a matter of inheritance—a bitter fight over money and property. But now, the truth hit her like a punch to her gut: the resentnt wasn’t just about wealth. It was personal. Deep. Rotten at the roots.
The infidelity of Grandpa Dimitri in his marriage—his affair, the child born from it, the sha and secrecy—was hard to digest.
And Augustine, by blood, had been carrying the weight of that mistake and humiliation all his life. Cast aside, denied his rightful place, judged for a sin that wasn’t even his.
Yet, through it all, Augustine had risen. He had carved his own path, earned his success with grit, not privilege. And Anne’s admiration for him only increased. The pain he had endured only made her love him more fiercely.
"Augustine doesn’t need the Beaumont na." Her voice rang out, strong and unwavering, her gaze locking on Tania. "He has already made sothing of himself without it. If you think revealing so tragic past will turn against him, you are wrong. The past doesn’t define us. What matters is the present—and I stand with him."
She stepped forward, her tone low and loaded with warning. "And let give you a word of advice—don’t ss with the Beaumonts. This family isn’t as easy to play as you think. If you keep pushing, you might just find yourself with nothing."
Anne’s glare was piercing, her words leaving a chill in the air as she turned and walked away toward the billing counter.
Behind her, Tania’s smirk faltered. "What did she an by that?" she murmured, unsettled.
Doubt crept into her mind like a shadow. "Does she know? Could she have found out that I’m not...?"
Panic flared in her chest. Her words tumbled—disjointed, incomplete. The color drained from her face.
"No," she whispered, shaking her head. "She is bluffing. She couldn’t possibly know about it."
Then it hit Tania—her mind flashed back to the hospital. Soone had been nearby during her conversation with Enzo that day. They had even checked to see if anyone had overheard but found nothing suspicious at the ti.
But what if it had been Anne? What if she had heard everything?
A cold shiver ran down Tania’s spine.
"I can’t let her blow this up. Even if it wasn’t her, I can’t afford to take chances," she mused. "This is my only shot at securing my place in the Beaumont family. Anne has to go."
Her fingers shook as she pulled out her phone and quickly called Enzo.
The mont he picked up, she didn’t waste ti. "Listen carefully," she said in a sharp whisper. "Anne is becoming a serious threat. I have a strong feeling she has figured out the truth about my fake pregnancy. You need to take care of her. Imdiately."
"Got it. I’ll do sothing," ca Enzo’s reply.
~~~~~~~~~
When Anne got ho, she gently arranged the fresh flowers in a vase and set them right in the center of the dining table. A soft smile tugged at her lips.
"He is going to love these," she murmured with quiet certainty.
Anne placed the grocery bags on the kitchen counter, then headed to her bedroom. With a small sigh, she dropped onto the settee by the window, letting the bags fall from her hands. Her fingers reached for her phone, almost instinctively, hoping for a ssage from Augustine.
There it was—a missed call and a text.
"When did he call?" she mumbled, quickly unlocking the screen and tapping on the ssage.
’Are you okay? You didn’t pick up the phone when I called you.’
A warm smile spread across her face as she pictured the slight crease of worry on his forehead. Without wasting a second, she hit the call button and waited.
"Hello?" ca his voice, low and a touch stern. "You finally found the ti to call back."
"I didn’t hear it ring," she said, her tone gentle with remorse. "I went to et Audrey, then stopped by the supermarket, and I just got ho."
He sighed in relief, hearing her cheerful voice. When the guard told him that Tania had been spotted with her, arguing with her, he grew worried and called her to check on her. But Anne’s carefree tone lifted the heaviness in his chest.
She seed fine.
"How are you doing?" Augustine still asked, wanting to make sure she was truly okay.
"I’m more than fine—actually, I’m thrilled!" Anne responded with a cheerful gleam in her eyes. "Last ti’s dinner was a total ss, but tonight will be different. I promise. Just co ho early."
Augustine’s lips curved into a wider smile, recalling how she had hinted earlier about having a surprise for him. "I wish I could," he said, a note of regret slipping into his tone. "I’ve got a video conference with the head office overseas. It might run late."
Anne’s smile faltered slightly. She had hoped he’d be ho early so they could spend the evening together. After giving it a lot of thought, she had decided tonight was the night—she was ready to take this relationship to the next level. But now, with his work in the way, her excitent began to wane.
"Are you disappointed?" Augustine’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts.
"No," she replied quickly, shaking her head and gathering herself. She didn’t want to guilt him or make him choose between her and his responsibilities. With a soft, encouraging smile, she added, "Take your ti. There is no rush. Just don’t forget... your wife is waiting for you."
Those words sent a ripple through him. His heartbeat quickened. "Say the word," he murmured. "Just say you want to co back right now, and I’ll drop everything to be with you."
"Ah—no, no, don’t do that," she exclaid quickly, cutting him off. "You just said the eting was with the head office. You can’t bla it on . I don’t want you to get into trouble."
"I’m the boss. I can—"
"Alright, that’s enough," she interrupted him without really listening to him. "I need to start making dinner. Bye now."
And with that, she hung up, still smiling, her heart fluttering with anticipation despite the delay.
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