Watching You Burn In Regret novel Chapter 281

Diana paused, mid-sip, and looked up at her husband with a puzzled expression. "You usually don't care about these things. Why bring it up all of a sudden?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Did Willa Sullivan come to see you?"

Diana pressed on, "Garry, you're not a fool. You know a woman like Willa is not someone we can welcome into this family. If you let her marry into the Powers family, this house will be in utter chaos. We'll never have a moment's peace."

Garry knew she was right.

The problem was, Willa had something on him—a detail he had no intention of sharing with his wife. The thought of being manipulated by a woman half his age made him clench his jaw in frustration. He took a long, sharp drag from his cigarette.

He blew out a smoke ring before speaking again. "No, Willa didn't come to me. It just occurred to me that Sheridan isn't getting any younger. And since Willa is carrying his child… that child is a Powers, after all. It's our blood."

"Besides," he added dismissively, "it's not like Seren Bradley is any better. Can you name a single daughter-in-law who hasn't brought some drama with her?"

Diana's brow furrowed, her voice rising in disbelief. "For the three years Sheridan's leg was injured, Willa couldn't be bothered to care for him. She packed her bags for Meridia, lying to us that it was for some professional training. Who knows what she was really doing there? Seren, on the other hand, stayed by Sheridan's side through it all, never leaving him. The two of them are nothing alike. Nothing!"

"And Sheridan told me that baby only exists because Willa drugged him! A child conceived from God knows what kind of concoctions—it could be born with defects for all we know! Garry, listen to me. We cannot accept Willa as a daughter-in-law, and we certainly cannot accept that child."

"What's the difference?" Garry retorted impatiently. "A woman is a woman. As long as she can give us a Powers heir, that's all that matters. As for the baby, with modern medicine, we can run tests to see if there are any issues. You women are always overthinking things, worrying about every little detail."

Diana's gaze swept over him. Garry turned his head, taking another drag from his cigarette, his expression obscured by the swirling smoke. Something felt deeply wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Though she was vehemently against the idea, Diana knew her husband. Garry was the head of the family, an old-fashioned chauvinist at his core, and arguing with him further would be pointless. With a sigh of resignation, she set her glass down on the coffee table, deciding to drop the subject.

"Did you see Willa there? Or did she try to contact Mr. Powers at all?"

The assistant sounded confused. "No, ma'am."

Getting nowhere, Diana hung up. Her gut told her Willa was behind this, but with no proof, she wasn't about to give up. Diana was a sharp woman; she knew letting someone like Willa into their family would be inviting a disaster, and she refused to let that happen without a fight.

She still had Willa's number saved from three years ago, when she and Sheridan were dating. Finding the contact, Diana dialed.

The call connected almost immediately.

"Willa," Diana began, her voice cold and hard, "I don't know what tricks or manipulation you used to get Mr. Powers to agree to let you into this family, but let me give you a piece of advice. You weren't willing to take care of Sheridan three years ago when you ran off to Meridia, so don't you dare come crawling back now with these shameless delusions of grandeur."