A Night of Desire

Chapter 424 - 417: Pleasing the Future Mother-in-Law

She deliberately stressed the words "life-saving benefactor," making Cedric Grant’s heart skip a beat. It took him a long moment to find his voice. Looking at Jean Jarvis, he said, "Don’t forget, this was your idea in the first place. If I don’t get anything good out of this, then neither will you!"

"But you’re the one who went through with it!"

"You!" Cedric Grant was so angry his hands were shaking. He struggled to calm himself and softened his tone. "Jean, we’re husband and wife. We’re family. After all these years together, do we really have to make things this ugly?"

Seeing him back down, Jean Jarvis’s mood also softened. "Cedric, of course I don’t want that. But to you, personal gain is what matters most. To me, my daughter is what matters most! I can’t let her be wronged in the slightest."

After a pause, she tried to negotiate with him. "Cedric, about the marriage alliance with the Quinn Family... it doesn’t have to be Clara Grant. Why don’t you figure out a way to arrange a marriage between Chloe and Miles? Wouldn’t that be the same thing?

"Don’t forget, you’re Theodore Quinn’s savior now! You must have some say with him, right?"

Cedric Grant let out a sarcastic laugh, though it was hard to tell if he was mocking himself or her. "Hah. You think it’s that easy? Even if I am his savior, it’s not like he has to obey my every command. And another thing—you know perfectly well that Miles can’t stand Chloe.

"If he had even a shred of interest in Chloe, this would be a lot easier. We have this opportunity with Seth Quinn liking Clara Grant, and you want us to just ignore it? Are we idiots?"

"The point is, Seth Quinn doesn’t like Clara Grant anymore!" Jean Jarvis refused to yield. "A man would have to be a fool to marry a woman with her background!"

Cedric Grant sighed. "Forget it. Let’s not argue about this anymore. We’ll just let things play out."

Jean Jarvis looked at him and said nothing more. ’As long as he stops trying to help Clara Grant,’ she thought, ’I won’t push him any further.’

...

「At the Shelby residence.」

After breakfast, Evan Shelby said thoughtfully to Autumn Shelby, "Autumn, didn’t you say Sienna Hale has been treating you well and has basically forgiven you? You should strike while the iron is hot and visit her more often. She’s Seth Quinn’s mother, after all. If she takes your side, Seth probably won’t be able to completely ignore her opinion."

Yvette Zimmerman quickly chimed in, "Yes, that’s right! If you can win over your future mother-in-law, the battle is half-won. Besides, Sienna Hale has always been fond of you, and now she’s forgiven you. If she puts in a good word for you with Theodore Quinn during some pillow talk, it’s only a matter of time before he forgives you, too. Once they’ve both forgiven you, you and Seth Quinn will be back together before you know it."

This was exactly what Autumn Shelby had been planning, so she smiled and agreed. "Okay, I’ll go call her right now."

With that, she went upstairs.

Cherie Rhodes watched her go, then glanced at the beaming smiles on Evan Shelby and Yvette Zimmerman’s faces. ’No wonder they seemed so cheerful yesterday,’ she thought. ’So things are finally looking up for Autumn and Seth Quinn?’

’If they’re about to reconcile, then what about Clara?’

She didn’t dwell on it, though, and said to Yvette Zimmerman with a smile, "Yvette, so Autumn and Seth Quinn are getting back together? That’s wonderful news, congratulations."

To her surprise, Yvette Zimmerman’s smile vanished. She shot Cherie a nasty glare and said cuttingly, "Congratulations? I wouldn’t dare accept them."

With that, she also went upstairs.

Cherie Rhodes was completely bewildered. She had no idea how she had offended Yvette this time. She turned to Evan Shelby, her voice tinged with grievance, "Evan, what’s wrong with her? Did I do something to upset her again?"

Normally, Evan Shelby would have comforted her gently. This time, however, he just gave her a look and said, "I’m heading to the office," before turning and walking out.