Buying My Forever Wife novel Chapter 432

A sharp, suffocating pang seized Ivy's chest as she stared blankly at Alaric.

"Who... who is she?"

Alaric shot her a sideways glance, his blood still boiling over the incident with Tristan, leaving him with zero desire to humor her.

But he gave her the blunt truth anyway. "Stella's mother."

Without another word, he strode past her into the sprawling estate.

Hearing those words, Ivy's entire body went rigid, rooting her to the spot as her mind short-circuited.

Stella's mother.

Mr. Foster's ex-wife.

So this was the woman who had brought Stella into the world with Mr. Foster.

She had actually come back.

Ivy's head spun with a dizzying realization—if Stella's real mother had returned, did that mean she was about to be discarded?

Standing frozen in the driveway, a visceral, burning ache tore through her heart.

Sylvia, of course, hadn't missed the intimate pet name Ivy used for Alaric.

She was completely thrown off balance—had Alaric actually gotten married?

But the girl standing in front of her looked painfully young.

Despite struggling to digest this brutal reality, Sylvia quickly masked her jealousy and stepped forward to introduce herself.

"Hello, I'm Sylvia Shaw, the child's mother. And you are?"

Ivy finally snapped out of her daze and looked at the woman.

To be perfectly honest, Sylvia looked entirely ordinary.

She lacked the refined elegance, stunning curves, and commanding presence of the wealthy socialites Ivy had imagined.

Still, she knew better than to judge a book by its cover.

After all, this was the woman Mr. Foster had chosen to have a child with.

Swallowing down her suffocating insecurities, Ivy offered a polite, friendly handshake.

"Hi, I'm Ivy Sawyer."

Sylvia pressed further, "Are you Mrs. Foster?"

Ivy didn't dare confirm it, terrified that overstepping would only fuel Mr. Foster's anger.

Instead, she stepped aside and gestured gracefully. "Please, come in."

"Thank you."

Failing to get a straight answer, Sylvia brushed past her and walked into the house.

"This is your mother."

Sylvia locked eyes with the child, instantly dropping into a performance of utter devastation as she crouched down and let the tears flow.

"Stella, it's me. I'm your mommy."

Hearing that, Stella recoiled in terror, burying her face into Alaric's chest.

"No! Daddy, I don't want her!"

She peeked out just long enough to shout at Sylvia,

"Go away! I don't want you to be my mommy. I already have a mommy!"

Sylvia let out a theatrical sob, reaching out to grab the child's arm.

"Stella, I'm the one who gave birth to you. I carried you for nine months! I'm so sorry it took me this long to come see you."

She lunged forward, trying to force the little girl into a hug.

Stella violently swatted her hands away, bolting straight for the dining room where Ivy was standing.

"Mommy! I don't want her, I don't want her!"

Ivy immediately dropped into a crouch, catching the hysterical girl and soothing her gently.

"Shh, Stella, don't cry. That really is your biological mother. She just came to visit you."