Dumped Then Claimed By A Billionaire (Nerissa and Owen) novel Chapter 14

Chapter 14 A Top-Tier Blue Blood Family

Every shift in Ivy’s eyes was clearly caught by Nerissa.

Nerissa gave a slight nod in response.

She was a simple person by nature.

If someone treated her well, she returned the kindness. If someone held hostility toward her, she had no intention of opening her heart.

Clearly, Ivy’s animosity was obvious, so Nerissa naturally kept her distance.

Winifred turned to Ivy. “Ivy, go grab some of the specialties we brought back from our trip to Torliand last month. Let your grandfather and Nerissa have a taste.”

“Okay, Mom,” Ivy replied, turning and heading toward her room.

Dylan personally handed the freshly brewed coffee to Nerissa. After exchanging a few polite pleasantries, he asked casually, as if the thought had just occurred to him, “Nerissa, why didn’t you come with Owen today?

“Come to think of it, ever since you got married, Owen hasn’t visited our home even once.”

Winifred looked at Nerissa with obvious anticipation as well. “That’s right, Nerissa. When you have time, bring Owen over to visit us.”

Owen was the newest dark horse in Aosthorne’s financial circle.

Given their family’s current social standing, he was someone they would never have had access to.

But things were different now.

Owen was Nerissa’s husband, which meant their family’s status had risen right along with hers.

Nerissa lowered her gaze slightly.

‘No wonder this family suddenly became so warm toward Hunter after seeing me, she thought. Now it makes sense,’ she wondered.

Hunter was just about to say something when Nerissa lifted her eyes and spoke with calm sincerity. “Dylan, Winifred, Owen, and I got divorced.”

The air instantly fell silent.

More than ten seconds passed before Winifred finally reacted. She stared at Nerissa in disbelief. “Nerissa, you’re not joking with us, are you? Everything was fine. How did it end in a divorce?”

Dylan looked at her as well. “Nerissa, you have to be kidding, right?”

“I’m not joking,” Nerissa replied flatly. “We really divorced. All the paperwork has already been completed.”

Her expression was so indifferent that it was as if she were talking about what to eat for breakfast the next morning.

Winifred swallowed hard and turned to look at Hunter. Hunter nodded, confirming that everything Nerissa had said was true.

At that moment, Ivy walked over carrying a bag of snacks and happened to overhear the conversation. The twisted look that had been on her face earlier was now replaced with a radiant smile.

‘Divorced. That’s great, she thought.

She had known it all along. A handsome, wealthy blue-blood man like Owen would never truly want someone as useless as Nerissa.

If the situation had allowed it, Ivy would have laughed out loud.

Winifred and Dylan’s expressions turned gloomy in an instant.

None of them could have imagined that Nerissa would actually get divorced.

‘Was she out of her mind? The Calloway family is a blue-blood family, a class ordinary people can never enter, no matter how hard they struggle for an entire lifetime, they wondered.

Winifred had originally planned to curry favor with Nerissa, hoping that one day Nerissa would introduce Ivy to a rich heir. After all, Ivy was a stunning beauty.

Successfully unlocked!

If Nerissa could marry into a blue-blooded family then by cenly cold as well.

But Nerissa had divorced.

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Chapter 14 A Top Tier Blue Blood Family

‘Nerissa is divorced. Who’s going to introduce Ivy to a rich heir now?’ Winifred thought, ‘How is she supposed to marry into a blue-blood family?’

The dream of marrying her daughter into a blue-blooded family had been shattered.

The more Winifred thought about it, the angrier she became. She glared at Nerissa and snapped, “Why didn’t you discuss something this serious with us before getting divorced?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Winifred stood up and grabbed Nerissa’s hand. “Come on. You’re coming with me right now to apologize to the Calloway family and ask Owen to forgive you.”

“The divorce was my own decision,” Nerissa said coldly as she shook Winifred’s hand off. “Why would I need to discuss it with you?”

She did not appear to use much force, yet Winifred stumbled backward from the motion, nearly losing her balance and falling to the ground.

Hunter stood up at once and moved in front of Nerissa, shielding her with his body. “Winifred, you’ve gone too far.”

Winifred was so furious that her head began to ache.

At a time like this, Hunter was still stepping in and making things worse

The tension in the room continued to rise.

Seeing the situation escalating, Dylan spoke up at the right moment. “Winifred, Dad, both of you need to calm down.”

After that, Dylan turned to Nerissa, his tone noticeably softer. “Nerissa, you should calm down, too. You can’t really blame Winifred for being this upset. Divorce isn’t a small matter.

“At the very least, you should have informed the family. Besides, it doesn’t sound good for a young woman to carry the label of a second marriage. Talk to me, Nerissa. Why did you divorce Owen?”

“Owen has a mistress,” Nerissa said succinctly.

‘She wanted a divorce just because of that?’ Dylan wondered.

Dylan felt a surge of anger rising in his chest, but he forced it down and spoke as evenly as he could. “Nerissa, in today’s society, even ordinary men fool around outside all the time, let alone men from prominent families.

“Someone as wealthy as Owen keeping a few women on the side is completely normal. There’s no cat in this world that doesn’t steal a taste.

For someone of your background, being able to marry into a blue-blooded family was already an extraordinary honor. How can you be so ungrateful? And on top of that, you insist on divorcing Owen?”

In Dylan’s eyes, Nerissa was making a mountain out of a molehill.

She was ruining his daughter’s future.

If he could, Dylan would have dragged Nerissa straight to Owen right then and there and made her bow and beg for forgiveness.

‘So what if Owen has a woman on the side? What’s there to make such a fuss about?’ he wanted to say. “Dylan, do you even hear what you’re saying?” Hunter cut in angrily, his voice stern. “Do you have any sense of right and wrong left? Since Owen was the one who betrayed the marriage, I fully support Nerissa’s decision to divorce him.

“The Jamison family may be small and insignificant compared to the Calloway family, but we live with integrity. We will never lower ourselves to associate with people who crawl and scheme for their own gain.”

Hunter then pointed at Winifred. “And you, Winifred. Put yourself in her shoes. If Dylan were the one who cheated today, would you still be this calm? Isn’t it true that pain doesn’t matter to you until the knife is plunged into your own flesh?” Hunter was not a man known for his temper, nor did he often lose his cool in front of Dylan and Winifred. His sudden outburst stunned Dylan and Winifred into silence. They stood there, frozen, not daring to say a word.

It was a long moment before Dylan finally recovered and looked at Hunter. “Dad, that’s not what I meant.” “Then what did you mean?” Hunter let out a sigh. “Dylan, a person can be poor, but they cannot lack backbone.

“Our family may not have the prestige of the Calloway family right now, but I believe that as long as we work hard and keep pushing forward, one day we will surpass the Calloway family.”

Winifred snorted coldly, “Hunter, you’re oversimplifying this. Do you have any idea how hard it is for ordinary people to cross class boundaries and change their social standing?

“Forget it. You wouldn’t understand anyway.”

2/4

Chapter 14 A Top Tier Blue Blood Family

Winifred wondered, ‘The Calloway family’s a blue blood family, yet what about us? On what basis could we ever surpass the Calloway family?

‘Relying on Nerissa, that slum-born village girl who can’t do anything? Not in this lifetime, not in the next, not even in the one after that would Nerissa ever surpass the Calloway family.”

Thinking about the fact that Nerissa was already divorced, Winifred pinched the bridge of her nose, her head throbbing

“There’s nothing difficult about it,” Nerissa said calmly at that moment.

“What did you say?” Winifred and Dylan both failed to grasp what she meant.

Nerissa simply looked at the couple and spoke firmly. “I said, surpassing the Calloway family isn’t difficult.

For Nerissa, it was not even a challenge.

Winifred let out a scornful laugh.

Even Ivy, standing off to the side, could not hide the mockery in her eyes.

Ivy wondered, ‘Does Nerissa even know what she’s talking about? Ivy thought. Does she really think she’s impressive just because she once got lucky and married into a blue-blood family?

‘She’s nothing more than a discarded woman now. As she is today, forget marrying into a blue-blood family, she’d be lucky to marry an ordinary man at all.

‘What decent man would want a divorced woman? And yet she’s still dreaming about surpassing the Calloway family. How ridiculous.’

“I believe in Nerissa,” Hunter said, his eyes locking onto her with unwavering confidence. “If we work hard, there’s no doubt we’ll surpass the Calloway family one day.”

Even Dylan couldn’t help but roll his eyes, a bit helplessly. He wasn’t in the mood to say much, but pressed on, “Dad, when you came over, you said you wanted to discuss something with us. What is it?”

Dylan’s tone was noticeably colder than before.

Hunter’s anger eased as he got down to business. “Here’s the deal. Nerissa and Owen are officially divorced now, but she’s still young. She has to keep studying.

“The only way forward is to take the SATS and get into a good college to secure a promising future. I talked to the teachers at Yiorlian School, and with the right connections, Nerissa can get in as an exception.

“You guys know some of the teachers there pretty well, right? So I want you to help me arrange that.”

Hunter paused briefly. “Your place is closer to the school anyway, and since Ivy is a senior this year, if Nerissa lives with you, they can go to school together. The two of them can look out for each other.”

Winifred cut Hunter off, disbelief clear in her voice. “Wait, what exactly do you mean? You want her to live with us and go to school with Ivy?”

“Yes.” Hunter nodded. “After all, this house was a gift from Griffin to Nerissa, If it weren’t for Nerissa, do you think Griffin would have given you guys a house?”

Half a year ago, when Nerissa and Owen registered their marriage license, Griffin, as a gesture of goodwill, bought a spacious duplex for Dylan and Winifred. It was meant to repay Hunter for raising Nerissa.

The house had eight rooms over two floors plus a large garden.

Its location was excellent, a proper school district just a few hundred meters from the high school.

If Nerissa moved in, it wouldn’t only make getting to school easy, but there’d be plenty of room, so it wouldn’t feel cramped. Until then, Dylan and Winifred had been living in a rundown old place in Aosthorne, struggling financially.

Winifred’s anger flared up as she wondered, ‘Live in my house? Who does he think he is? Hunter has got some nerve. There’ s no way I’ll let Nerissa move in.’

‘Sure, the house was Griffin’s gift to Nerissa, but so what? Griffin’s dead now, and the document’s in my and Dylan’s names. Since the house is legally ours, Nerissa has no claim.

‘Now she wants to come and fight us over the house? Not a chance.’

Hunter noticed the hesitation flickering in Nerissa’s eyes. “Winifred, don’t worry. Nerissa’s a good kid.

“Once she gets into college and makes something of herself, she won’t forget your kindness. She’ll take good care of you. – both.”

‘Get into a good college? Make something of herself? Nerissa?’ Winifred thought, incredulous. ‘She’d be lucky to even pass.’

3/4

Chapter 14 A Top-Tier Blue Blood Family

His words only made Winifred roll her eyes.

“Hunter, aren’t you working as a janitor in the neighborhood now? If that’s not enough, why not get Nerissa a job at the property management front desk?

“She could make one grand a month just helping out, instead of sitting at home daydreaming about impossible things,” Winifred said bluntly, looking directly at Nerissa. “Honestly, I don’t see her as the studying type.”

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