Chapter 295 The Unspoken Judgments of Gifting
Susanna felt the vibe in the hall shift and looked up to see Aaron heading her way.
Her smile wavered as she remembered spotting him with another chick at the restaurant earlier, and she quickly looked away.
Six good-looking dudes were lounging on the sofa, all giving Aaron the stink eye.
Aaron walked up to Maria. "Grandma, most of the guests are here."
"They all showed up? Awesome! Why don't you guys grab some grub first? I'll join you in a bit," Maria replied.
Susanna got up and glanced at her brothers. "Let's roll."
The six guys stood up one by one, shooting Aaron some serious death glares. Aaron stood there, taking the heat from all six of them.
Taylor, standing nearby, couldn't help but wipe the sweat off her forehead. 'Man, the tension between the Jones brothers and Aaron is off the charts!' hethought.
The hall quickly went quiet again.
Maria looked at Aaron and spoke calmly, "I threw this shindig for you. What's your game plan?"
Aaron frowned. "Didn't think her brothers would show up."
He figured only Susanna would be at the party.
Maria took a sip of water and said casually, "I told Susanna to bring her brothers."
"Why?"
"Because they're Susanna's family. If you wanna get back in her good graces, you gotta pass her family's test," Maria said, setting down her glass. "But it looks like her brothers have a serious grudge against you."
Aaron's lips tightened; Maria's words just confirmed what he already knew.
"Aaron, if you really wanna win Susanna back, you gotta apologize for real and put in the work. If Susanna heads back to Novaria and her family sets her up with some other guy, you can kiss your chance goodbye," Maria added.
Aaron's face twisted a bit. "I'm just worried her brothers will mess things up."
"Of course they will. Susanna went through hell for three years after marrying into this family and then got divorced. They won't let it slide. You didn't appreciate her for three years; whose fault is that?" Maria firmly defended Susanna.
Aaron felt like he was choking on her words, struggling to breathe.
Maria cut to the chase, "No need for all this talk. What did you bring for today?"
"I got a set of jewelry from her favorite brand," Aaron replied.
"That's not gonna cut it. The jewelry Susanna's rocking today is pretty special. The limited edition stuff you got might not be enough," Maria said, then looked at Taylor. "Taylor, grab the box I prepped."
Aaron's face changed when he saw the jewelry in the box. "Grandma, this is your stuff. I can't take it."
"You think it's for you? It's for you to give to Susanna. A pricier gift shows the Abbott family's serious about apologizing. You think winning back a wife is cheap?"
Aaron looked at the jewelry in the box. "But it's different. Susanna's not into material things; she won't want it."
"Aaron, you deserve to be single. Susanna's now the heir to the Jones family; she doesn't need anything. Listen to me. If you don't want me to take a hit, then win Susanna back," Maria said firmly.
Getting Maria's point, Aaron reached for the jewelry box. "Don't worry, Grandma. I'll win her back."
"That's good. Go ahead." Maria's face softened, relief washing over her. She was glad Aaron finally got how deep his feelings ran.
Holding the jewelry box, Aaron looked up at Maria. "Grandma, Vivian's here."
Maria's expression turned icy. "What's she doing here?"
"She heard about your surgery and wanted to check on you."
"I'm not dead yet; I don't need visitors," Maria snapped before standing up and storming out of the room.
Knowing how stubborn Maria could be, Aaron turned to Taylor. "Swap out the jewelry and tell Vivian it's best if she stays away from the banquet for now."
Taylor quickly took the box and nodded. “ Got it. "
As he headed to where the other gifts were stored, he saw Elaine leading Vivian that way.
"Mr. Abbott says it's best if you don't attend the banquet right now," Taylor told Vivian.
Vivian's face fell. "Why? Is it because Mrs. Maria Abbott doesn't want to see me?"
Taylor didn't stick around to explain and left after delivering the message.
Elaine quickly tried to smooth things over. "Vivian, don't take it personally. Mrs. Maria Abbott is just moody. If she really didn't want to see you, she'd have kicked you out already."
Vivian forced a smile. "I even brought a gift for her."
"She'll appreciate the thought. Oh, and did you know Aaron picked out this jewelry for you?" Elaine said, pointing to the familiar box Taylor had just put down. It was the latest limited edition from DivineDynasty. Elaine had tipped off Aaron, and he had bought it. Who else could it be for if not Vivian?
Vivian's eyes lit up when she saw the jewelry. She reached out and took it from the box.
Outside on the lush lawn at the banquet, Susanna made a beeline for the dessert area after joining her brothers. Being pregnant, she couldn't risk going hungry and knew she needed to eat a bit more.
She unexpectedly bumped into Lvy and Sienna at the dessert table. Awkward tension filled the air as these two rivals came face to face.
Seeing Susanna, Lvy and Sienna's expressions shifted before they quickly turned and made a hasty exit, wary of any drama.
Balancing her dessert, Susanna found the situation both funny and annoying. Despite the tension, she had no desire to stir up trouble for Lvy and Sienna.
"Susanna, you seem pretty pleased with yourself today."
Susanna recognized the perfume and knew who it was. She glanced back at Elaine. "Your face screams 'jealousy.' But no matter how envious you are, you don't have six handsome brothers."
Elaine gritted her teeth. "Susanna, don't be so smug. Why didn't you get that limited edition jewelry you wanted?"
Susanna's smile faded. "Because that jewelry was too basic. Aviana got me something way more valuable."
Elaine noticed the luxurious jewelry around Susanna's neck. She sneered, "So what? Aaron still gave that jewelry to Vivian. It shows she's more important to him than you!"
"With this cheap jewelry, Aaron can give it to anyone he likes," Susanna shot back with a playful smirk. Just then, her eyes met Aaron's, who had appeared behind her.
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