Dumped Then Claimed By A Billionaire (Nerissa and Owen) novel Chapter 64

Chapter 64

Chapter 64

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Hearing her mom’s words, Anna had no choice but to swallow her anger for now. She picked up the bowl of soup and said, “I’ll go take this to Grandma.”

“Go ahead,” Luna nodded.

Soon, Anna arrived at Tiffany’s bedroom with the soup.

Tiffany was propped up against the headboard.

She didn’t look well at all.

She was clutching a photo in her hand.

It was a photo of baby Ariel when she was one-month old.

The baby in the photo had fair skin, chubby cheeks, and bright eyes. She was so cute.

Tiffany stared at the photo, her eyes red and brimming with tears. “Arie, you’ve really broken my heart…”

Seeing Tiffany lost in her longing for Ariel again, Anna frowned slightly.

‘Seriously, is she ever going to get over this?’ Anna thought to herself.

‘Every single day, she’s crying over that same photo.

‘Doesn’t she realize how much bad luck that brings?’

‘She’s probably jinxed all my good luck with all that crying.’

Even though she was irritated inside, Anna kept it hidden behind a warm, cheerful smile. She walked over to the bed, her tone soft and caring, and said, “Grandma, are you missing Arie again?”

Tiffany wiped away her tears, her voice raspy with emotion. “Arie’s birthday is just three days away. I wonder how she’s been doing these days. That poor girl… she must’ve gone through so much all these years.”

There were just some things she couldn’t let herself dwell on.

Because once she did, she just couldn’t stop crying.

Her granddaughter was only three months old when she disappeared.

Three months old! What could a baby possibly know at that age?

‘Why?’ Tiffany wondered.

‘Why does God have to be so cruel to my Arie?’ she thought, her heart twisting with pain.

Seeing Tiffany like this, Anna blinked her scheming eyes.

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‘Ariel was only three months old when she disappeared. She’s probably nothing but bones by now, Anna thought coldly.

‘In a place like that, even an adult wouldn’t have made it out alive, let alone a three-month-old baby,’ she thought with a cold sneer.

‘Why was Grandma Tiffany so biased?’ Anna thought bitterly.

‘Maybe this is just karma coming back for her,’ she sneered.

‘Serves her right if her family line ends with her,’ Anna thought coldly.

‘She had it coming, never seeing Ariel again, Anna sneered.

Anna quietly set the soup aside, pulled out a tissue, and gently dabbed away Tiffany’s tears. Keeping up her act as a caring, thoughtful granddaughter, she spoke softly, “Grandma, please don’t cry. If Arie knew you were crying over her every day, she’d blame herself so much.”

She went on, her tone gentle, “What matters most right now is that you look after yourself. Only if you stay healthy will you be able to see Arie come home and the whole family together again.”

Anna’s words really struck a chord with Tiffany, touching her right in the heart.

She just wanted her family to be whole again, with her son, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter all together.

Anna handed the bowl of soup to Tiffany. “Grandma, you haven’t really eaten anything all day. Some soup will help you feel better. You need to take care of yourself. Only if you stay healthy can you wait for Arie to come home and the two of you be together again.”

Tiffany hadn’t felt like eating at all. But after hearing Anna’s words, she suddenly found herself with an appetite.

That was it.

‘Anna’s right. Only if I stay healthy will I be able to wait for Arie to come home and be reunited with her, she told herself.

Thinking of this, she took the bowl and began to eat, slowly savoring each spoonful.

After finishing the bowl, she looked up at Anna, her eyes red and swollen. “Anna, I’m really lucky you’ve been here with me all these years, always being there for me and looking after me. If it weren’t for you, I honestly don’t know what I would’ve done.”

After her son and his family had their tragedies, her daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter Anna became her only source of comfort and hope.

She often thought to herself, ‘If Lane had been my only child, I wouldn’t have survived all this.’

Anna smiled warmly and said, “Grandma, I’m your granddaughter. Taking care of you is just what I’m supposed to do.”

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Anna sneered secretly.

:..

‘Grandma talks a good game, Anna thought, her smile never slipping.

‘But does she really mean it?’ Anna wondered, bitterness rising.

“She likes Ariel way better than me, Anna thought, her resentment deepening.

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Tiffany knew it’d been Anna by her side all these years, always looking after her and being the one to care for her. But even so, she still kept all the best and most precious things for Ariel.

To Tiffany, she probably meant nothing.

If the Sullivan family wasn’t desperate for an heir, there was no way she’d even be in the running to take over.

Just thinking about it made her chest tight.

The bitterness was so strong that it was almost suffocating.

The next day.

It was the day Nerissa was supposed to go with Lennox for his check-up.

Luke showed up bright and early to give Nerissa a ride.

Lennox was upstairs, busy with a video call.

Riley and Hannah were waiting downstairs for Nerissa.

Riley glanced at Hannah, looking confused. “Mom, why aren’t you wearing that purple silk dress The one tailored for you?”

To welcome Nerissa, Hannah had two silk dresses specially made.

One was purple.

The other was the white one Hannah was wearing right now.

Even though the white one was made from the finest fabric and the craftsmanship was top-tier, it still wasn’t on the same level as the purple one crafted by hand.

Hannah replied, “Oh, that one? I’m saving it for the day I finally get to meet my dear daughter-in-law face to face.”

Honestly, Hannah was feeling pretty annoyed about the whole thing. The folks in the Stratford family were all just dead weight, and not a single one of them was useful. She’d told the butler to track down her dear daughter-in-law a month ago, and there still wasn’t even a whisper of news.

Riley asked with a curious grin, “I really want to know what that girl looks like. You’re so obsessed with her. It’s

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like you’re totally smitten.”

“You just wouldn’t understand. To me, she’s the most beautiful girl on earth,” Hannah replied.

Riley scoffed, “Please, no matter how pretty she is, Nerissa’s still the prettiest, hands down.”

Hannah’s face darkened and she shot back, “I’m telling you, your Nerissa can’t hold a candle to my daughter-in-law. She’s the most gorgeous woman on the planet!”

“Nerissa’s the prettiest, period!” Riley insisted.

“My daughter-in-law is the most beautiful in the entire universe!” Hannah fired back.

dear

The two of them got so heated over who was prettier that and they were this close to wrestling each other right there.

*****

Half an hour later, Luke pulled up outside the Jamison family’s old apartment building. He got out of the car, pulled out his phone, and shot Nerissa a quick WhatsApp message.

It was broad daylight.

The neighborhood was just a run-down old apartment complex, not the kind of place with fancy cars around. And with Luke being so good-looking, the moment he stepped out of the car, he instantly caught everyone’s attention.

Ivy was tagging along with Winifred to visit some relatives.

Winifred’s older sister, Susan Holloway, lived in this building too.

Suddenly, Ivy’s eyes widened as she spotted a luxury car. She grabbed Winifred’s arm, practically squealing, “Mom, look! That’s a Rolls-Royce Phantom! Who would’ve thought there’d be someone this loaded living in Aunt Susan’s building?”

Ivy had only ever seen cars like that on TV.

She had never imagined she’d actually see one up close in real life.

But the real showstopper was the young man by the car. He was so young and ridiculously handsome, like he’d just walked out of a fashion magazine.

Ivy was at that age where romance was everything, and her mind started spinning with wild fantasies when she saw Luke.

‘If I could marry a man like him, my life would be perfect,’ she thought, her heart skipping a beat.

Winifred turned around too, her eyes glued to the Rolls-Royce Phantom, greed practically shining in her gaze. “Aosthorne’s crawling with rich folks, Ivy. You’re every bit as pretty as Nerissa. If she could land a wealthy husband on her first marriage, you can totally do it too. You’ve got to put that country bumpkin in her place.”

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Ivy nodded eagerly. “Don’t worry, Mom. Just watch, I’ll totally beat that country girl Nerissa!”

Just then, a slim silhouette emerged from the apartment building.

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The girl was wearing a white shirt and a pair of blue jeans. She dressed simply with no makeup on. But she was stunningly beautiful.

Ivy’s eyes widened. “Mom, look! It’s Nerissa! The owner of that luxury car is waiting for her!”

At this moment,

Ivy was burning with jealousy.

She thought it was so unfair.

‘Why is Nerissa so lucky?’ she thought.

Nerrisa had just split with Owen, and now she was hooking up with another rich man!

If a man could roll up in a Rolls-Royce Phantom, his family was certainly way more high-profile than the Calloways.

The more Ivy thought about it, the more jealous and frustrated she got.

She was sure she was better than Nerissa in every way. But why was Nerissa always the one who got all the luck?

Winifred narrowed her eyes. “Ivy, you must be seeing things. Rich men aren’t idiots. They’d never go for some damaged goods who’s already been divorced.”

She added, “And that country girl lives with that old geezer in Building 3! Take a look, this is Building 5. There’s no way the girl coming out of Building 5 is that country bumpkin.”

Ivy let out a sigh of relief.

‘Yeah, that’s it,’ she reassured herself.

‘I must’ve been mistaken,’ she thought, forcing herself to believe it.

‘No doubt about it. I definitely got it wrong,’ she told herself, clinging to that thought.

‘Nerissa’s just a divorced woman. No rich man would ever go for her,’ Ivy scoffed.

Besides, this was Building 5.

Nerissa didn’t even live here!

As the mother and daughter were chatting, they suddenly ran into Hunter, out sweeping the sidewalk in his signature yellow work vest.

Even though Nerissa had told him to take it easy and stop working, Hunter was the type who just couldn’t sit

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still. He never put on airs or acted like he was above anyone else. Every single day, he’d throw on that yellow vest and get to work, sweeping up the neighborhood just like always.

When Hunter spotted Ivy, his whole face lit up with joy. He gave her a big, friendly wave and called out, “Ivy!”

In Hunter’s eyes, even if he and Dylan weren’t on speaking terms anymore, Ivy was still his granddaughter. Whatever went down between the adults, the kids shouldn’t have to get caught up in all that mess.

Hunter was expecting Ivy to greet him warmly. But instead, she gave him a cold look and snapped, “You must be mistaken! I’m not your granddaughter!”

Hunter was taken aback for a second, but then his face broke into a warm smile. “Ivy, it’s me, your grandpa! Why don’t you come home with me? I will whip up something delicious for you.”

‘Food? Like I’d want anything from him,’ Ivy sneered to herself.

‘Who’d ever care about what that old man cooks?’ she thought, her face twisted in contempt.

Ivy shot him a look of pure disgust and quickly backed away, terrified someone might see her talking to a street sweeper, especially since a bunch of her classmates lived in this building. “Stop acting like we’re family. My name’s Ivy Holloway, and my grandpa is Max Holloway, not a cleaner like you!”

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21:06 Wed, Jan 21