After a long silence, Austin slowly opened his eyes. A glint of cold calculation flashed within them. "How did you know?"
His tone was calm, yet it carried a suffocating weight that made Grace's heart hammer against her ribs.
"I was worried about Mrs. Farley. I thought—"
"Next time you overstep, just leave."
Austin didn't wait for an explanation. He ended the call.
By then, the car had rolled to a stop. The driver exited swiftly to hold the door open.
The manor, perched halfway up the mountain, was already teeming with guests. The sprawling estate was packed with Harbor City's elite—heirs in bespoke suits and socialites in couture gowns. The moment Austin stepped into view, the atmosphere shifted. He drew gazes like a magnet.
The butler hurried to the poolside and whispered to a man currently frolicking in the water with a beauty. The man immediately climbed out, wrapped a towel around his waist, and headed upstairs.
"Why show up now? Being late isn't your style."
Austin ignored the jab. He hit send on a text message he had been drafting before finally speaking. "Where is he?"
The man grinned, closing the distance between them. "What's the rush? Since you're here, have a drink. He can't run away."
Austin glanced at him. He said nothing, but his gaze was heavy enough to strip the humor from the air.
Unsettled by the scrutiny, the man raised his hands in surrender. "Fine. I'll have someone bring him over later. But aren't there any decent composers in Seaview City? You had to come all the way here? And for a third-rate hack drowning in gambling debt, no less."
Austin idly spun his phone between his fingers, eyes lowered, expression flat.
"Maybe."
The man frowned, then his face lit up with a sudden thought. He leaned in again. "Oh, right. My mom made a decree—she's inviting you to dinner tomorrow. There's a surprise."
One look at the man's fawning expression told Austin exactly what kind of "surprise" was in store. "Not convenient."
The man blinked. "What do you mean, 'not convenient'? Mom said you've rejected her invite multiple times. She's losing face in front of her social circle. You have to go this time. Just once."
Austin lifted his gaze. "I have a family now. Thank Auntie for her kindness, but no."
"..."
The man sprang up as if struck by lightning. "Since when?"
"Six hours ago."
"..."
Deathly silence filled the room.
Seconds later, a notification chime broke the deadlock. Austin glanced at his screen. It was a photo of a man and a woman embracing in the heavy rain.
Grace's message followed: Sir, I just didn't want you to be deceived.
The rain blurred the faces in the photo, but the clothes the woman wore were all too familiar.
Austin's jaw tightened. He typed a reply.
You're fired.
"Cousin, what are you looking at? A photo of my new cousin-in-law? Let me see!" The man lunged forward, his face alight with gossip.
Austin locked his phone and pocketed it, his aura darkening instantly. "If I were you, I wouldn't be celebrating."
The man paused, reading the room. He threw his head back and let out a dramatic howl. "Oh no! Looks like I need to flee the country for a few days. Hey, Cousin, how about I go with you to Seaview City? It's the perfect time to meet the new Mrs. Farley."
Austin looked him up and down, his gaze resting on the man's hair—a garish gradient of white fading into purple and red.
"Your new cousin-in-law might not want to see you."
At that exact moment, a certain new cousin-in-law sneezed.
Eva rubbed her nose, bewildered. She looked down at the text message from an unfamiliar number on her phone: Already landed in Harbor City.
She read the five words over and over. Suddenly, Austin's parting words echoed in her mind.
She hesitated, then set the phone down on the table.
She didn't know how to reply. She didn't know what to say.
Dinner had passed, and the rain that had raged all day finally ceased.
A gentle evening breeze, heavy with moisture, drifted through the air. Eva curled up on the terrace sofa, gazing at the pitch-black sky. She picked up a beer and took a slow sip.
Reflections of the past few days played on a loop in her mind.
The phone screen on the table lit up again.
It was news regarding the investigation she had asked a friend to conduct.
After replying to that message, she remembered the unread text from her husband. She opened the chat interface again. Staring at his brief update, she typed a simple response.
Okay.
Less than ten seconds later, her phone began to ring. It was him.
