What She Overheard in Her Own Marriage novel Chapter 57

Wearing an elegant apricot suit, her long hair pinned up gracefully, Noelle walked into the living room with a polite smile, greeting the Sanders family elders one by one.

Elaine looked at her with warm affection, but Grandmother just let out a stern, dismissive hmph.

Playing the part of the perfect, obedient daughter-in-law, Noelle quickly sat beside Elaine and kept her eyes lowered, remaining completely silent.

Finnian's defense of her last time had wrapped her in an invisible layer of armor within the family.

Kaia drove over, bringing Brynlee with her. The little girl had her hair in a cute ponytail and wore an adorable pastel pink dress. The moment she walked in, she greeted all the elders politely.

Grandmother pulled Brynlee onto her lap, stroking her small hands and looking at her precious face. It would be a lie to say the old woman wasn't disappointed—had the child been a male heir, her joy would have been complete.

Kaia walked in and greeted the elders, completely ignoring Noelle.

Noelle, however, played the picture of grace. "Kaia, didn't Finnian come with you guys?"

"I don't know where he is." Kaia was telling the truth. She never bothered to ask about Finnian's whereabouts.

At that moment, Brynlee lifted the smartwatch hanging around her neck. "I'm going to call Dad and ask him!"

The little girl dialed the number, and soon Finnian's gentle voice came through the speaker. "Brynlee, are you at Grandmother's house?"

"Dad, why aren't you here yet? If you don't get here soon, I'm going to start missing you," Brynlee pouted into the watch.

"Dad is almost there!"

Just as he spoke, a black Bentley pulled up to the entrance, and Finnian's tall, strikingly handsome figure stepped through the door.

"Dad!" Brynlee launched herself out of Grandmother's lap and practically glued herself to Finnian.

Finnian bent down, scooped her up, and gave her little hand a squeeze.

Noelle's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Brynlee is so attached to you. You really are an amazing father."

"Good." Josephine's face betrayed no emotion. "That's excellent news. The remedies passed down from our ancestors are treasures. You need to keep a close eye on this."

After a moment of silence, Kaia replied, "I'm actually in the process of handing over all my current projects. I won't be involved in the follow-up work."

Noelle's grip on her wine glass tightened instinctively as she shot a panicked glance at Josephine.

Finnian's gaze locked onto Kaia's face for two solid seconds.

It seemed Kaia's withdrawal from Aethelstan's core projects had not yet been reported to Josephine.

The atmosphere at the dinner table plunged below freezing.

"What did you just say?" Josephine slammed her chopsticks down, her sharp, weathered eyes drilling into Kaia. "You're no longer overseeing your own projects?"

"That's correct, Grandmother," Kaia answered, her posture flawless and her voice steady. "Due to a shift in corporate strategy, the traditional medicine research division is being restructured. It's now under the total control of the new R&D Director, Dr. Gordon Hayes. All my projects, including the Serenity Elixir, are being handed over according to protocol."