Three Years Later, He Came Back Begging novel Chapter 229

Shirley stayed quiet, only just now realizing that there were a few gift boxes at his feet, snow piling up on top of each one.

“When did you get here?” she asked, a frown forming on her face. “You don’t have to apologize. It’s enough that things are settled. Besides, ‘sorry’ isn’t what we need right now. If you and your family really meant it, you’d let the people who deserve to go to jail actually go, instead of always covering for them.”

Lawrence’s lips parted, like he wanted to explain that they weren’t sheltering anyone, but everything was stuck in a deadlock. His mom had sent Hannah to Quentin’s for treatment, but she’d tried to take her own life again and refused to cooperate with anyone. Even the police couldn’t really do anything about it in a situation like this.

Still, he wasn’t covering for Hannah—neither were his parents.

“Shirley, I’m sorry,” Lawrence said, his voice thick, almost groggy. He swayed a little where he stood. “I swear, I’ll do whatever I can to give you and Bachelor a real answer.”

Shirley saw how miserable he looked and lost her drive to argue. Honestly, everything had already gone beyond what she’d expected. No one was saying a word about it online anymore. Out in the real world, neighbors, relatives, friends, even her coworkers and students—everyone she bumped into—stood with her, tearing into Hannah for how cruel she’d been.

Shirley didn’t need the entire world to understand that her daughter would never be someone’s mistress. All she wanted was to get Bonnie the justice she deserved.

After that, she hoped Bonnie could have a peaceful, ordinary life. That was enough.

Shirley’s eyes landed on Lawrence’s face, red with cold. Once upon a time, this thin, tired man with hollow eyes had been her class monitor for three years. For over a year, he was the “future son-in-law” she’d actually liked.

Things had gone so far that the resentment and anger she once nursed started to disappear as she and her daughter slowly patched things up.

Getting older, going through so much, had changed Shirley’s outlook a lot. She still remembered when Bonnie and Lawrence first started dating, how much her daughter’s mood improved, how it showed on her face every day.

Looking back, Shirley had to agree—Lawrence was right. When Bonnie wasn’t weighed down by pressure, or when someone else helped carry some of it, she really did seem so much happier.

It was a different kind of happiness than she’d ever shown as their daughter, or as part of the White family.

Back then, Shirley had started to notice her own flaws. She’d always been a strong-willed mom, always in control, a habit that came with years as a teacher in charge. She just didn’t know how to be the type of mom Odette was—calm, patient, able to keep her cool when things got tough.

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