His Hidden Family My Ruined Marriage (Liana) novel Chapter 131

Chapter 131 I Have to Marry Elian

“He’s already gone,” Jett replied, his voice hollow, as if half his life force had drained away.

Anya stopped short, confused. “This early?”

“Anya, I think Elian knows. About us.”

Jett finally forced the words out.

“That’s impossible.”

“That night at the bar-he probably saw something. You know how close he is to Elian.”

Jett’s hand curled into a tight fist.

Anya felt a dizzying wave of darkness for a second, but then shook her head fiercely. “No way. If he knew, you wouldn’t still be having drinks and chatting with him.”

“But-”

“No ‘buts”.”

Anya hung up abruptly.

Helena was getting a glass of wine before bed when she saw Anya standing frozen on the stairs. She walked over, scrutinizing her daughter. “What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Anya sank weakly onto the step, her eyes utterly vacant.

Helena was alarmed. “Has something happened? Say something!”

“Mom, I have to marry Elian.”

“Is that all?” Helena asked, but her daughter’s expression told her it wasn’t.

Getting Elian to marry Anya was a long-term goal, not something that should make her look like she’d just received a death sentence.

“There was a small accident, but it’s not serious,” Anya said quickly, forcing composure back

into her voice.

Yeah. Not serious.

It’s just sleeping with another man.

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Chapter 131 I Have to Marry Ellan

No big deal.

I can deny it-fix it up.

There are plenty of doctors who can help, discreetly.

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“As long as the sky isn’t falling, nothing is truly serious,” Helena agreed, wrapping an arm around her daughter’s shoulders, her mind already working. “I heard your dad might be going to the Locke Manor tomorrow. You should go with him.”

“Why is Dad going there?”

“I’m not sure. But it’s definitely about Liana. That’s why you must find a way to convince him to take you along,” Helena instructed.

“Okay,” Anya agreed.

Helena, however, felt a pang of unease. She couldn’t read Lawrence’s intentions.

She’d asked, but he’d given nothing away.

His inner world was a fortress, walls up even against her.

Yes. Even against her.

Only one thing he’d said offered a sliver of comfort: “Liana hates me. We need to be careful of that girl’s revenge.”

Liana didn’t return to her little apartment that night.

Knowing Elian wasn’t coming back, she found it hard to refuse when the elders insisted she

stay.

After dinner, Rosalind and Linda kept her in the living room for coffee and conversation. Soon, Liana began to feel uneasy.

“Dear, you lost your ring, didn’t you?” Rosalind asked suddenly, her eyes welling up as she looked at Liana’s bare finger, which still bore a pale band of lighter skin.

“No, I didn’t lose it. I took it off to wash my hands and put it in my pocket,” Liana said, not wanting to upset Rosalind.

She retrieved the simple platinum band and showed her.

Rosalind’s eyes immediately grew misty. She took the ring and slowly slid it back onto Liana’s

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Chapter 131 I Have to Marry Elian

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finger. “You’ve gotten too thin. It used to fit perfectly. Promise me you won’t take it off so easily, okay?”

Linda watched quietly from the side, noting the reluctance in Liana’s eyes but saying nothing. She glanced at her phone.

It was past ten.

Is that boy really not coming home?

“Grandma, you always say you think of me as your own granddaughter. But if Elian and I really divorce, will you still see me that way?”

Liana mimicked her, putting on a pitiful, delicate tone.

“Oh, honey, of course you’re my granddaughter! I just want you to be my granddaughter-in-law even more,” Rosalind said, and as she spoke, her hand drifted unconsciously to rest on Liana’s lower abdomen. “I even dreamed again last night that you were expecting.”

Liana instinctively sucked in her breath, her expression flashing with panic.

Linda watched curiously, then seemed to have an idea. “You two are being much too gloomy! I think the three of us ladies need a drink to lighten the mood. How about we talk about something happy?”

“Good idea. Liana’s tummy looks flat, but it feels lovely and soft,” Rosalind replied to Linda, but her gaze stayed fixed on Liana’s midsection, her hand still resting there.

“Grandma, I just had dinner! And you made me eat so much,” Liana said, her face flushing, her voice taking on an even more exaggerated, petulant whine.

“Could it be water retention?” Linda mused as she signaled for someone to bring wine, her tone deceptively casual and concerned.

“Come on, Linda—if you and Grandma keep staring at my stomach and saying things like that, I’m seriously going to be scared to eat.”

Liana’s speech stumbled a little.

She was so nervous she could barely sit still.

Playing the coy, spoiled girl wasn’t her forte, and her flushed face made her look more like she was mortified by their teasing.

“A little belly is nothing to worry about. It protects the… um the womb. No need to be shy, and certainly no need to diet, understand?”

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