From Wife to Aunt: His Worst Nightmare novel Chapter 46

"Of course!" Mom assured me.

She then reminded me, "Remember to bring Steve along next Wednesday. The whole family should have a meal together."

I felt a little uneasy and asked quickly, "Mom, you didn't tell Isabel that I'd be there too, did you?"

Mom chuckled. "Weren't you the one who told me not to say anything? I kept it a secret."

"That's good." I let out a sigh of relief. "Then Steve and I will definitely come next Wednesday."

After ending the call with my adoptive mother, the hospital where my biological mother was staying called again, urging payment for her treatment.

The annual cost of her treatment was astronomical. In the past, it had been covered by the Yaxley family.

Later, after I married Steve, he had offered to take responsibility for my mother's medical expenses.

Back then, he always wanted to be one step ahead of me, covering all grounds for my sake.

But now, he was out traveling and having fun with Isabel, forgetting every promise he'd once made to me.

I held my phone, staring at the screen for a long time, before finally making up my mind to call him.

It was Isabel who answered the call. "Ms. Yaxley, do you need something? Steve is playing with Dorothy right now. He can't answer the phone."

She sounded courteous yet condescending, as if I were the homewrecker harassing their happy little family.

I said coldly, "Let him take the call."

She repeated herself, "Sorry, Steve really isn't available right now. He's on a roller coaster with Dorothy. If you have something to say, you can tell me, and I'll pass the message along."

I simply couldn't bring myself to ask for money from Steve through his mistress.

Then I heard Isabel say into the phone, "Simone, it's Zara."

I hadn't expected Isabel and Simone's relationship to have progressed this far. The way Isabel addressed Simone was so natural and intimate.

I told her where my jewelry box was and asked her to take all the jewelry Steve had given me over the years to a secondhand luxury shop and sell it.

Juliet was shocked when she heard that. "Sell your jewelry? Why?"

I replied calmly, "If I can't keep the man, what's the point of keeping the jewelry? Help me sell it and use the money to pay for my mother's treatment. At least this money can last until I divorce Steve and get what's rightfully mine."

Juliet didn't quite agree with me. "If you're short on money, you can ask me. You don't have to sink so low as to sell your jewelry."

"Emergency help isn't meant to support poverty forever. I can't keep asking you for money, can I? I don't think I'm miserable. I rarely wear those pieces anyway.

"Steve never takes me to public events, and I hardly ever attend banquets or gatherings. So just sell them. I really don't need them anymore," I said.

Because I insisted, Juliet could only nod and go back to the Griffin villa to retrieve my jewelry.

Among them was a purple sapphire necklace—an engagement token Steve had given me when he proposed.

Juliet took a photo of it and asked, "This one… are you selling it, too?"