Please Come Back, My Love novel Chapter 58

Chapter 58

Elena: POV

The silence that followed was deafening.

I stood there, three feet from Julian’s family, watching Evelyn Sterling’s cool gaze sweep over me like I was an afterthought. A piece of furniture someone had forgotten to move.

*Elena,” she said again, her voice carrying that particular tone wealthy women perfected-polite enough to pass for civility, cold enough to cut. “I didn’t realize you’d be here.”

Of course you didn’t. Because I’m nothing. A ghost in your son’s life.

I forced a smile, the kind I’d practiced a thousand times in mirrors. Sweet. Unassuming. The perfect mask for a girl who knew her place.

“Mrs. Sterling, I managed. “It’s wonderful to see you again. I hope your flight was comfortable.”

Evelyn’s lips curved-not quite a smile, more like the expression you’d give a well-trained dog who’d performed a trick adequately. “How sweet of you to ask.

She turned immediately back to Victoria, as if I’d already been dismissed from her mental register. ‘Darling, you simply must tell me about that Paris collection you were working on. I heard it was stunning.”

Victoria’s face lit up. “Oh, was incredible! The fabric sourcing alone took months, but the creative freedom was worth it. You know how important authentic vision is in design.”

I bit the inside of my cheek hard enough to taste copper.

Dylan Sterling stepped forward then, extending his hand with the practiced ease of a man who’d negotiated billion-dollar deals. “Elena. Good to see you.”

“Mr. Sterling,” I replied, matching his grip. “Welcome back.”

“Thank you.” He released my hand and immediately turned to Julian. “We should discuss the European expansion over dinner. I have some concerns about the Milan office.

And just like that, I was invisible again.

Julian’s hand found my waist-possessive, anchoring-but his attention was already on his father. “We can go over the numbers tonight.”

“Oh, of course!” Victoria’s laugh was musical, perfectly pitched. “We had the most divine bouillabaisse there.

We. They’d been there together. While I’d been in New York, alone in that cold penthouse, wondering if my husband would come home.

I felt Julian’s fingers tighten slightly on my waist. A warning? Or did he even notice the way his mother had just shut me out?

“Elena doesn’t really understand French cuisine,” Evelyn continued, not even glancing my way. “Such refined palates take years to develop. Isn’t that right, dear?”

The “dear” landed like a slap.

“Actually, I-” I tried again, my smile feeling more like a grimace now.

“Oh, Victoria, before I forget-” Evelyn reached into her designer handbag, pulling out a small velvet box. “I found these in a little boutique in Nice. They made me think of you immediately.”

She opened the box to reveal a pair of diamond earrings-delicate, elegant, probably worth more than everything in my closet combined.