Chapter 393

Octavia couldn’t shake the guilt she felt toward her daughter. She’d already made up her mind about what she owed Cindy.

Meanwhile, Cindy’s heart was heavy. Wasn’t it supposed to be fair? Two children meant splitting things evenly, right? Shouldn’t each of them get half of the company shares?

She looked at her mom. “So how much of the company does Lance have? Are you going to give shares to his future wife too p>

That question clearly caught Octavia off guard. “Well, that depends on who Lance marries p>

If Lance went along with their wishes and married someone from a good family, and her dad brought shares for the dowry, the James family would be happy to match it. But if Lance picked someone ordinary, then there was no way she’d get any shares from them. Who knew what those girls really wanted from marrying him anyway?

Octavia leaned in a little. “Cindy, you have to help your mom keep an eye out. Don’t just let anyone get close to your brother p>

She lowered her voice. “Remember Molly? Do you know why she tried to get close to you p>

Cindy hesitated. Of course, she knew-Molly had been dying to meet Lance. But seeing the look in her mom’s eyes, she just shook her head. “Didn’t she just want to be friends p>

Octavia let out a cold little laugh. “Friends? She was hoping to be your sister-in-law p>

“She’s not getting anywhere near this family, believe me. You have to watch out for those gold diggers. There are girls out there just looking for an easy life p>

Cindy’s eyes widened. “But p>

“No buts, Cindy. You’re still so young. Growing up in the country made you a bit too trusting.” Octavia sounded stern, but there was worry in her voice too. “People can be terrible sometimes p>

“I just want you to learn to see people for who they really are p>

Cindy knew better than to argue. Her mom hated when anyone disagreed with her. So she nodded. “Okay, Mom p>

“And you should be careful when you make friends, too p>

Cindy looked thoughtful. She didn’t say anything else, and Octavia let the subject drop. But the question about the company shares lingered in her mind. This wasn’t the first time Cindy had brought it up Wa Wa someone putting ideas in her head, trying to push her to fight Lance for a place in the business?

If Cindy had real ability, her father Latham might even consider letting her work in the company. But Cindy didn’t stand out that much—she’d never been trained for it. Latham would never agree.

He was the old-fashioned type. In his mind, the company had to go to the son. The daughter would get a small piece, just enough to live comfortably on the dividends, and that was it.

Octavia, though, wanted to get more for her daughter. But Lance was her son too. She had to think about his future. One day Cindy would marry someone else. If she was too naive and handed over her shares, it’d be a threat to Lance’s position.

After thinking it all through, Octavia decided she’d talk to Latham when they got home, try to convince him to buy Gindy a ll as a wedding gift ahead of time. If the Byron family saw a gift like that, they’d have nothing to complain about when

Cindy got married.

Octavia smiled at her daughter. “Come on, Cindy. Let’s go to the supermarket. I want to get you some snacks while I’m here p>

Cindy perked up right away. She changed into something more comfortable and followed her mom out the door. She never liked staying in her school uniform after classes anyway, especially since the weekend was about to start.

But as soon as they got downstairs, they bumped right into Claire and Sophia—who seemed to have settled in and never wanted to leave.

Claire hadn’t expected the apartment from the White family to be right next door to Lance’s. The minute they walked out, they ran into each other.

What were the odds?

“Octavia,” Claire said, greeting her first.

Every time Octavia heard her name like that, she felt a pang in her chest. Claire using her first name was a loud reminder that she was never going to “fall in line p>

“Claire, do you live around here too p>

Claire just shook her head. “Let me

just say, you really ought to be careful with that twenty million.

vi

still have to pay for college and tuitions no joke. There’s only Kalf a

year of high school left. Renting a

ns like a

place here honestly seems

waste p>