Chapter 526

Charlotte just stared, not saying a word.
Anthony was quiet too.
Matthew, same.
Even the maids were at a loss for words.
Everyone’s eyes were glued to the floor, where a burnt, cold chicken wing lay abandoned. Not even the dog wanted it. The silence dragged on, making things even more awkward.
Lavinia had spent an entire hour in the kitchen, only to end up with chicken wings so bad the dog turned its nose up. It didn’t really hurt, but the embarrassment was next-level.
She just kept looking at the chicken wing, shock written all over her pretty face. Her eyes went a little red. “Is it really that bad?” she asked, voice small.
Matthew saw her expression and hurried over, wrapping her gently in his arms. He kissed her forehead, whispering, “No, not at all. They look great.”
“Really? You actually like them?” Lavinia pouted, pressing her face into his chest.
“Of course I do,” Matthew said, rubbing her shoulder and doing his best to comfort her.
“Oh.” Lavinia managed a crooked smile, then pushed the whole plate of chicken wings in front of him. With a perfectly straight face, she said, “Then you can have them all.”
Matthew’s smile froze as he stared at the pile of burnt wings. He hadn’t expected his little white lie to come back and bite him so fast.
At dinner, Patricia sat at the head of the table. Lavinia and Charlotte were on either side of her, with Anthony and Matthew next to them. It was obvious who ranked where in the family.
Patricia had decided not to invite Dorothy, not wanting to risk any drama for Charlotte. The meal actually went by pretty smoothly.
During the meal, Patricia and Lavinia kept dropping hints that Anthony shouldn’t distract Lottie from her studies, especially with exams coming up.
Anthony agreed easily, undoing the top button of his shirt with practiced grace. The motion revealed his collarbone-and more importantly, a very obvious mark just below it.
He always acted like such a gentleman, but Charlotte definitely didn’t. Every time… she left her mark.
Charlotte just kept quiet.
After dinner, she lounged in the car, playing a game on her phone. Anthony stood by the door with her backpack, talking quietly with Patricia.
“What’s Lottie’s connection to the Gates family?” Patricia asked, keeping her voice low and serious. She’d started to suspect something was up after hearing about the Gates family going after the Carters.
Anthony glanced back at Charlotte in the car, his eyes softening. “Lottie is Robert’s granddaughter,” he said gently.
“Granddaughter?” Patricia’s eyes went wide. She’d thought of every possible connection, but not this.
“You mean… Lottie is Nora’s daughter? The granddaughter Robert’s been searching for all these years?”
“That’s right,” Anthony nodded.
Patricia just sat there, stunned. Years ago, Nora was the pride of Cabinda a genius at everything, picked for a secret research lab before she was even out of her teens. But when she was seventeen, Something happened on a mission and she disappeared. No one knew if she was alive or dead.
And now, it turned out she’d left behind a daughter, one just as smart and beautiful as she was.
“I stayed away from the Main family before because Lottie’s dad wasn’t good to her,” Patricia said after a moment, her tone gentle but firm. “But now she has other family. She deserves the respect she’s owed
There was no way she’d let Lottie get hurt again.
“The Gates family has their reasons,” Anthony explained patiently. “Lottie’s still a student If people find out who. She really is shell get a lot of attention she doesn’t need. Besides, she’s still young. There’s no rush to talk about all this.”
Of course, that didn’t mean he wasn’t already planning their wedding in his head, ready to make it official the moment she was ready Anthonys lips curved in a soft smile, his eyes full of affection as he looked back at Charlotte.