Chapter 3 Victoria, I'm Sorry

Victoria frowned slightly, looking a bit unhappy.

She never liked family gatherings to begin with, and now it happened to be her grandfather's birthday.

Michael could clearly sense that Victoria wasn't in a good mood. He could only scratch his head and look helplessly at Caspian, who had been silent the whole time.

Caspian glanced at Victoria and said flatly, "I didn't bring a gift either."

Michael really didn't know what to do now. Actually, this wasn't really his fault—it was mainly because Victoria and Caspian had such a strong presence that, besides driving, he couldn't think of anything else.

"Forget it, forget it. I'll go check out the gift shop at the entrance. You two wait here for me."

Michael said this to himself and walked off on his own.

Victoria really wanted to tell Michael that it wasn't necessary.

Even without special preparation, she had gifts to give.

With Michael gone, only Victoria and Caspian were left, and the atmosphere became slightly awkward.

Both were extremely cold people, and neither had any intention of speaking first.

The next second, an abrupt voice broke the delicate balance.

"Victoria? You actually followed us here?"

Emily walked over arm-in-arm with Wayne, looking aggressive and staring at Victoria with complete disdain.

'Victoria must have secretly followed us here, wanting to beg Wayne to get back together behind my back!' Emily thought.

When Victoria saw Emily, she just felt annoyed.

"Earlier at the hospital, when Mom and Dad offered you money, you didn't want it. So you came here to find Wayne. Didn't you say you didn't like Wayne?"

Emily held Wayne's arm, looking at Victoria with seemingly innocent eyes.

"Victoria, if you still can't let go of Wayne, I can..."

"Victoria, I'm really sorry about what happened before, but I really like Emily. Can you please let us be together?"

Wayne looked at Emily's wronged expression and immediately felt terrible. He quickly spoke up for the woman he loved.

Victoria looked at Wayne in front of her, and for a moment, she really didn't know what to say.

She actually didn't like Wayne that much. The reason she dated him was just to help herself get better, to make sure she could communicate normally.

"Okay."

Victoria agreed simply and directly.

This simple answer left everyone a bit stunned.

This wasn't what they expected at all.

Victoria had just been kicked out by the Smith family and was about to return to her parents in a small town—could she really bear to give up Wayne?

"Victoria, you really are heartless."

Actually, just a second ago, Wayne was thinking that if Victoria showed jealousy over him, he might change his mind.

But now, seeing Victoria's completely indifferent attitude, Wayne knew she had never really cared about him.

"Victoria, you don't have to pretend to be strong. Wayne actually still cares about you." Emily lowered her eyes, looking timid.

Actually, she was afraid she might laugh out loud.

Victoria killed the conversation with a single, flat "Okay."

Just then, Michael came back carrying bags of all sizes. "Victoria, are they you know?"

"Don't know them."

Victoria's face was blank. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah, we can go now."

Michael felt the atmosphere was a bit strange, but didn't ask more questions. He quickly led them inside.

"Wayne, who's that man with Victoria?"

Emily noticed Wayne staring at Victoria's retreating figure and felt anxious. She deliberately pointed out Victoria's unfaithfulness.

Wayne's eyes darkened. "Don't know him."

"She's really something, isn't she? She has you caring about her, and other people caring about her, too. You were always worried about her before, but now that she has someone else, you can finally relax, right?"

Emily gently tugged at Wayne's arm.

Hearing this, Wayne felt angry again.

He could cheat, but how dare she?

"Enough, stop talking."

Wayne was irritated, and his tone became harsh.

Emily's eyes reddened. "Wayne?"

"From now on, I only want you." Wayne patted Emily's hand, his eyes full of tenderness.

Emily was secretly delighted, but still put on an innocent act. "Wayne, I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have done this. I hurt Victoria, but I can't control myself. I really like you too much. I just want to be with you."

Wayne's fragile ego finally found comfort here, and he smiled. "I know. Alright, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's go home."

With that, the two of them entered Villa No. 2 in the back row.

Michael felt something was off. "Victoria, are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

Victoria shot a warning glance at Caspian beside her.

Running into her ex-boyfriend and sister showing off in a place like this was embarrassing enough—she had no intention of talking about it.

Caspian found it quite interesting, though.

He hadn't expected Victoria to have an ex-boyfriend.

Nor had he expected that someone like Victoria would have her boyfriend stolen from her.

The two tacitly agreed not to bring it up again.

Soon, the three of them entered Villa No. 1. Standing at the door, Victoria's eyes flickered, and her hands quietly clenched.

Caspian quickly noticed her small gesture and stepped forward, patting her shoulder.

Now, Victoria went from nervous to annoyed.

Why did it feel like he'd been trying to get her attention the whole way? What was he patting her for?

Michael pushed open the door and led Victoria straight into the living room. "Grandpa, Victoria's back."

Victoria followed behind and looked into the living room. About a dozen people were sitting there. Hearing the sound at the door, everyone's eyes turned toward them in unison.

Victoria scanned the room briefly, her gaze landing on the oldest man among them. 

The old man had white hair and sat in a wheelchair—clearly someone who had suffered from illness for a long time, though his spirits seemed decent.

"Victoria, my Victoria!"

Daniel Windsor's eyes immediately reddened when he saw Victoria, and he waved her over.

Victoria hesitated as she stepped forward, not knowing what to say.

Before Victoria could speak, Daniel grabbed her wrist tightly. "Good, my Victoria. You've finally come back. I've been looking for you so hard all these years! My Victoria has grown up!"