Chapter 435
The room descended into a stifling gridlock. Even the usually outspoken Jeniffer didn’t dare breathe a word.
Finally, Leah stepped forward. “Lance, you have it all wrong. Your grandfather never intended anything like that.
He already views Camilla as family. He was the one who told me to give her the bracelet tonight. None of us would ever dream of tearing a mother away from her child. Jasper is family, and so is Camilla. That is never going to change p>
Growing up, Leah had been the one who took care of Lance the most. He trusted her more than anyone else in this room, and her calming words slowly began to cool his blinding rage.
Leah turned her stern gaze on Darwin and Oscar. “Dad. Oscar. The damage is done. Stop deflecting. Why did you hide this from Lance? What exactly were you planning p>
Darwin and Oscar exchanged a guilty look.
Oscar in particular looked thoroughly embarrassed, struggling to formulate a sentence.
To have his own son view him with such intense suspicion made Oscar painfully aware of just how fractured their relationship had become.
Darwin finally bit the bullet, his voice gruff. “I was an idiot in the past, and I ended up scaring Jasper. I just wanted to build a relationship with him first.
I admit, I didn’t like Camilla before. But my opinion of her has changed.
And it’s not just because of Jasper. I was blind and deaf before, and I never actually took the time to know her. But I have accepted her as my granddaughter-in-law p>
With Darwin laying his pride on the line, Oscar stiffly followed suit. “I feel the same way p>
Noticing Lance’s still-skeptical glare, Darwin pulled Carney into the line of fire. “If you don’t believe me, ask Carney! Didn’t I ask you to consult the stars for an auspicious wedding date weeks ago? I genuinely wanted you and Camilla to finalize things so we could actually be a family.
Accusing me of trying to steal your child and cast her aside… you really think the absolute worst of me p>
Lance finally understood. Darwin’s initial secrecy really was just a desperate, clumsy attempt to bond with Jasper first without interference.
But even knowing they weren’t plotting a custody battle, Lance’s expression remained icy.
Darwin cautiously eyed his grandson. “So… why are you still sitting here? Shouldn’t you be rushing off to win Camilla back?
I know she’s furious right now, but you’ve always been relentless. If you could steal her away from another man, surely you can fix this, right?
When you get right down to it, this whole mess is your fault anyway. You’re the one who kept the truth from her. Go fix your mistake p>
It was a classic Darwin move—shamelessly redirecting the blame to Lance and washing his own hands of the collateral damage.
Lance merely shot him a withering, unimpressed look. Darwin offered a sheepish smile and quickly looked at the wall, desperately avoiding eye contact.
Lance finally stood up and strode out the door.
Only when his figure disappeared from sight did Darwin let out a massive sigh of relief.
Leah, having watched the entire display, sighed deeply. “Dad, you went entirely too far.
No matter what your intentions were, Lance had a right to know he’s Jasper’s father. If you had just told him earlier, he could have explained it to Camilla himself, and none of this would have blown up like this p>
“I know, I know, I made a mistake! I already figured out how to fix it. I’ll transfer five percent of my shares to Camilla as an apology. Will that settle it?” Darwin grumbled.
Despite his status, Darwin didn’t actually cling to his patriarchal ego. When he knew he was in the wrong, his guilt was blatantly obvious. Even when a younger family member scolded him, he took it without snapping back.
Seeing that Darwin was willing to put actual money where his mouth was, Leah decided to drop the lecture, though she still looked entirely exasperated.
Oscar chimed in with his own peace offering. “I’ll give her three percent of my shares, too p>
From the corner, Jeniffer quietly muttered, “You’re all throwing out shares so generously, but that’s assuming Camilla even wants to step foot in this house ever again p>
“Right, right, right!” Darwin panicked, snapping his head toward Carney. “You’re supposed to be clairvoyant! Do a reading right now! Tell me if Lance and Camilla’s marriage is going to survive this p>
While the Charles household devolved into pure chaos, Camilla arrived back at Laguna Shores with Elise and Jasper.
Because she had planned to spend the holiday at the Charles estate, she had given all the staff the night off. The massive house was dead silent, the only sound being the echo of their footsteps.
Stepping back into the familiar, safe environment, Elise finally broke the silence. “Camilla, what on earth is going on? How is Jasper Lance’s son? When did you two even get together? Do you seriously have absolutely no memory of it p>
Memory?
Camilla knew perfectly well that the night she had conceived Jasper was meticulously orchestrated by Barnard. To this day, the details were a black void. Barnard had undoubtedly drugged her.
She had only ever been intimate with a man that one single time in her entire life.
Which meant the man in the dark that night… had undeniably been Lance.