Encore of the Avenging Muse (Sylvia and Rupert) novel Chapter 703

Mrs. Yardley nodded, slinging the diaper bag over her shoulder and taking the baby to the restroom.

Sylvia looked at the other three women and offered a polite, cautious smile. "Investing is a massive commitment. I think it requires careful consideration. My mom isn't exactly a financial expert either. How about we have her invite Ms. Jenkins over another day to explain the details properly?"

"That sounds reasonable."

Both Sylvia and Naomi let out a synchronized breath of relief.

When Mrs. Yardley returned with the freshly changed baby, she tried to steer the conversation back to the investment multiple times, but Sylvia masterfully deflected each attempt.

The afternoon tea ultimately disbanded on a sour note.

On the ride home.

Naomi ground her teeth in frustration. "I considered her a dear friend, which is why I trusted her about the investment profits. What was she thinking, blurting it out like that?"

"Mom, people change. You've seen Mrs. Yardley's situation. If her husband actually treated her right, she wouldn't have spent over a decade torturing herself with doctors just to have a son."

"Sigh..." Naomi let out a heavy, exhausted breath.

Sylvia looked at her closely. "Mom, what's going on with the fertility treatments?"

Naomi gently cupped Sylvia's cheek. "Mr. Sanford is from Sea Town. Once you marry him, you'll be moving away. The thought of this house being so empty... it got to me. When Mrs. Yardley told me about this brilliant new holistic doctor, I figured I had nothing to lose. I thought of it as a way to heal my body."

"I'll go with you," Sylvia said, squeezing her hand firmly.

Everyone harbored silent regrets, and Naomi was no exception.

Earlier, when she had stared at Mrs. Yardley's baby, her eyes had distinctly watered.

She was undoubtedly thinking about the baby she had lost all those years ago.

Because of that, Sylvia refused to talk her out of it.

Naomi nodded, then suddenly remembered the previous confrontation. "Why would Rupert give his daughter a nickname like that? Stella... does it hold some kind of special meaning?"

Sylvia stiffened, a bitter taste flooding her throat.

It did.

It was because Stella had possessed the same breathtaking eyes as her father.

But in this lifetime, Stella would never be hers again.

Swallowing hard, she laced her words with lingering resentment toward Rupert. "I don't know. That's their child."

Missing the dark undercurrent, Naomi ventured a guess. "They were away on that island honeymoon for a while. Do you think Reese is... already pregnant?"

Sylvia's fingers clamped together. Averting her gaze, she stared blankly out the car window, silently swallowing an agonizing wave of despair.

...

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