Chapter 232
Isolde’s hand paused. The brush caught slightly on a tangle.
She thought of the Lancaster estate — the sprawling lawns, the suffocating rules, the cold stares of Grayson’s mother.
“No, baby,” Isolde said, resuming the brushing, her voice steady. “Today it’s just us. We’re going to celebrate on our own.”
Her phone vibrated on the coffee table. She reached for it. A message from Harper.
Don’t look at it. But I know you will.
Beneath the text was a link to Instagram.
Isolde’s stomach gave a slow, uncomfortable roll. She tapped the link. The app opened directly to Belle Escobar’s latest Story.
The photo was taken in the sunroom of the Lancaster estate. The light was perfect, catching the dust motes drifting through the air. Belle sat on a plush chaise lounge, holding a massive bouquet of pink peonies. She looked radiant, her makeup flawless.
Resting on the table beside the flowers was a handmade card. The handwriting was messy, written in thick blue crayon.
To the best Mommy in the world. Love, K.
𝗜𝘯𝘵e𝘯se 𝘳o𝗺a𝗇𝖼е 𝘰𝗻 𝗴а𝗹n𝗈𝗏еl𝘴.c𝗈𝗆
Isolde’s fingers turned cold. The phone felt heavy in her palm.
Kaiden had lived under her roof for five years. He had once called her Mommy freely, in the innocent years before Belle’s return. Since then, the word had been weaponized — reserved exclusively for the woman who now claimed his father.
Belle had typed a caption beneath the photo: My little man knows how to spoil me. #BlessedMothersDay
But that wasn’t the worst part.
In the bottom right corner of the frame, resting casually on the arm of the chaise lounge, was a man’s hand. Isolde recognized the sharp line of the knuckles. She recognized the platinum Patek Philippe watch strapped to the wrist.
It was Grayson.
Isolde closed her eyes. A wave of pure nausea rose in the back of her throat.
She knew Grayson’s meticulous control over his public image. For him to allow such a blatant display — so soon after the whispers about the bracelet — felt less like an oversight and more like a calculated provocation. Perhaps Belle had taken the photo and posted it without his full approval, seizing the moment to solidify her claim. Or perhaps it was a deliberate move to publicly sever all ties. A final, brutal cut.
She opened the browser. The gossip sites were already running with it.
The New Matriarch? Grayson Lancaster Spends Mother’s Day with Belle Escobar.
The comment sections were a war zone.
Who is K? Is that the adopted kid?
Guess the rumors are true. Belle was always the real love.
Poor Isolde. Five years as a glorified nanny.
Isolde locked the screen and tossed the phone face-down on the cushion.
They weren’t even hiding it anymore. They were flaunting the family they had built on the ruins of her life.
The shrill ring of the landline cut through the quiet apartment.
.