Chapter 744

Chapter 744:
At first, he assumed Nina was simply busy and couldn’t take the calls. But then came the news. Stella. A Carter.
Jazlyn nearly collapsed when she heard. That wretched woman had been a Carter all along? Everyone in Choria knew of the Carters. Even while based abroad, their influence rivaled the Briggs—and their reach stretched far wider. The daughter-in-law she had scorned and dismissed as worthless was not only a renowned researcher but also the Carter family’s long-lost daughter.
Her heart ached with regret. How could she have let Stella go? She clawed at her hair, her voice breaking. “Oh my God—the Carter family! Marc, do you understand? If you hadn’t been blinded by that temptress… if you hadn’t divorced Stella, we’d be tied to them now. Do you know what kind of power that would’ve given us?”
Her wails filled the room, thick with despair.
The allure of staggering profits caused Jazlyn to conveniently forget the way she had once sneered at Stella for being “unworthy” of her son. Now, all she could think about was pressuring Marc to win Stella back.
“Marc, you have to get her back!” Jazlyn pleaded, clutching his arm, her eyes sparkling with greedy visions of the luxurious life she’d once enjoyed.
Since Marc and Stella’s divorce, her glamorous lifestyle had spiraled downhill. She hadn’t stepped foot in a spa for months. Every time she asked Marc for money, he would complain about being broke, leaving her unable to keep up with the high-society women.
If this continued, she’d be too humiliated to even show her face in Choria.
“She must still have a soft spot for you,” Jazlyn insisted, her voice sharp with desperation. “You were married for years! Sure, her status has changed, but women never forget the past. Beg for her forgiveness, show her you’ve changed, and she’ll come running back!”
In Jazlyn’s eyes, Marc could do no wrong. Even after everything, she still believed a little charm would bring Stella back into his arms—and, by extension, bring her back into Jazlyn’s life as the perfect daughter-in-law.
Marc’s face twisted with a mix of shock and regret. If he hadn’t cheated back then… would things have turned out differently?
Stella’s status as the Carter family’s daughter carried a weight far beyond anything Marc could ever accomplish on his own. Winning her back wouldn’t just revive the Walsh family—it could catapult them to heights they had never dreamed of.
𝔐𝔬𝔯𝔢 𝔲𝔭𝔡𝔞𝔱𝔢𝔰 𝔦𝔫
“Mom…” Marc’s voice was low and heavy. “Her status is different now.”
His expression darkened as William’s name surfaced in his mind.
“And?” Jazlyn’s eyes gleamed as inspiration struck. She slapped her palm against her thigh dramatically. “Right! Your grandpa adores you, and the doctors say he doesn’t have long. Stella’s softhearted—loyal to a fault. If you tell her his last wish is to see you two reunited, she wouldn’t dare say no. What woman could turn down a dying old man’s request?”
Morals had never been a barrier for Jazlyn.
If manipulation brought results, she would use it without hesitation.
Marc’s eyes brightened, a dangerous spark flickering to life.
Stella had always listened to Truett. If he stepped in, this could work.
And sure enough, news of Truett Walsh’s failing health reached Stella quickly. Marc wasted no time. He waited outside Stella’s research institute, intercepting her with a pleading look. “Stella, I know you hate me,” he began, “but Grandpa always loved you. He’s sick… and he wants to see you. You wouldn’t refuse him his last wish, would you?”
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