Chapter 416 Grace and Hunter at Odds
On the way back, Riley had already messaged Shane, updating him on the situation.
So Hence, when they arrived at the Koch family mansion, Shane was waiting for them in the grand hallway of the east wing.
Grace, Ariel, and Jeremy were also there, lounging around.
Everyone else had headed to the office.
At the sight of Patricia walking in with her suitcase, Shane suddenly felt a sourness in his nose and a tightness in his chest, a slight discomfort washing over him.
Grace was quick to apologize, "Patricia, I'm sorry," Grace said.. "I'm so glad you're back. Let's let bygones be bygones, shall we?"
Ariel chimed in, the peacemaker, chimed in,. "Look, Patricia, Grace really gets it now. Forgive her, just this once. If there's a next time, she won't just lose your forgiveness; she'll lose mine too."
Patricia smiled, neither offering forgiveness nor withholding it.
That's when Shane spoke up.
"Patricia, you're back!," Shane said. "I owe you an apology,. fForgive this old man's poor behavior. Let's let bygones be bygones, okay?"
Patricia, who held no grudge, replied with a smile,. "I never held grudges against you, granddadGrandpa. It's water under the bridge. Let's not bring it up again."
Her kindness and magnanimity only deepened Shane's sense of guilt.
"You'll stay in your old room, upstairs in my east wing," he said.
"Sure!"
," Patricia noddedsaid, her smile unwavering.
She had just finished unpacking when Hunter arrived, luggage in tow.
As he aimed to be the perfect host, Shane suggested that they share a room, but Patricia strongly objected.
"My mom always said that it's respectful not to share a bedroom with your spouse when you're a guest in someone else's home."
While it served as a pretext, it was also a genuine lesson from her mother.
Shane was stunned, gazing at Patricia as if seeing her for the first time.
"Your mother told you that?" he asked, a flicker of recognition crossing his face.
It echoed the words his late wife used to teach their children.
The Koch family was an old guard clan with roots deep in AmericanCountry Y soil, yet some of their customs were vestiges of timeless traditions.
Like the belief that married couples should sleep separately when they are guests, lest they jinx bring bad luck to the host's wealth.
Patricia nodded.
"Although my mom passed when I was very young, she taught me many things."
Shane mused,. "These are old traditions, nearly forgotten. I'm surprised your mother knew them."
Patricia let out a laugh, "Yeah!. " My mom'sShe was pretty traditional;, old-fashioned, but I think it's kind of nice."
Shane nodded and gave her shoulder an appreciative pat.
"Well, in that case, I won't press you. I'm staying on the first floor, and we've gotwe also have a study room there too. Let's have Hunter take the second floor!. If you don't want to be too far from him, you could also stay on the third floor, there are; three rooms are available."
"I'm okay with that," Patricia expressed her happinessquickly said, happy to keep her distance from Hunter, quickly responding, "I'm okay with that! . "Since I promised big brother Jerry Riley that when I'm back, I'm going toI will focus all my energy on jewelry design."
Shane nodded approvingly,. "That's the spirit,. wWomen should have their own careers and not just orbit around family."
Grace, uponUpon learning that Hunter had also moved in as well,, Grace became restless and agitated.
She paced back and forth in her room.
After much hesitation, she sent a message to Hunter.
"Grace: [Why did you move into the Koch residence?"?]
Unfortunately, her message was met with silence; Hunter didn't bother to respond.
Unable to help herself, she sent another one.
"Grace: [Are you doing this on purpose?"?]
To keep an eye on her and, to remind her that if she dared touch Patricia, he could at anytime pull her from her privileged position as the Koch family's darling daughtergirl at any time?
Still, there was no reply.
The lack of response only heightened her anxiety.
The fear of being threatened loomed over her, causing multiple sleepless nights.
Her mental state deteriorated more and more.
She began having nightmares. She dreamed that Hunter exposed her real identity, that she was kicked out of the Koch family's homeresidence, and that she lost the wealth and prestige she had fought so hard to earn.
Even Martin would no longer wanted her.
Alone and clueless about where to go, she'd roamed the streets like a beggar.
"No..."!" Grace startled awake from another nightmare, sitting. She stood up, with beads of sweat covering her face,, panting and panted heavily.
She wiped the sweat off her forehead.
This couldn't go on.
She had to figure out a way to get rid of Hunter fast.
And to and make his threats harmless once and for all.
Meanwhile, oOnce Patricia got settled in, she immediately dove into intense studying.
Every day, aside from studying jewelry design, Patricia she would spend the remainder of her time cooped up in her room, poring over the award-winning pieces from past jewelry design competitions.
Later, Ms. BenBernice witnessed a few examss flunked.
While Patricia kept dominating with her work,. Despite Grace's long study, her designs still came out dated and utterly lacking in flair, despite her long study, utterly lacking in flair. Jeremy, on the other hand, could barely get his pen on the paper.
Despite Grace's long study, her designs still came out dated, utterly lacking in flair.
Jeremy could barely get his pen on the paper.
Ms. Ben'sBernice's opinion of Patricia grew increasingly admiring.
After every exam, she'd spend ages discussing the pieces with Riley before offering her professional insights. Shane's esteem for Patricia grew as well.
Shane's esteem for Riley grew and grew.
Grace watched this all unfold, seething silently, nearly grinding her teeth in frustration.
Evening.
EveryoneIn the evening, everyone gathered in the dining room for dinner.
"WhileAs Riley was leisurely enjoyinged his meal, he said totold Patricia, "Ms. BeBernicen showed me your work today. Although the details need some tweaking, she's overall very pleased overall."
Patricia just smiled, saying nothing.
Riley went on,. "She's been teaching for decades and has never praised someone so highly. You're the first. She has great hopes for you; make sure you don't let her down."
Patricia nodded,. "I'll do my best!"."
The more she learned, the more her interest in jewelry design grew.
She had studied medicine purely to cure Randy and hadn't known discovered what her own dreams were; her sole desire was to see Randy healthy and normal. Now, it seemed, she had found her true passion.
Now, it seemed, she had found her true passion.
Shane, with concern, said, "Don't stress yourself out too much," Shane said.. "You're young and new to the field. Failure is normal; nobody succeeds on their first try."
Patricia smiled,. "I understand!. Thank you for caring, Grandpa."
Brooke, who had been silent, swept her gaze between Patricia and Grace and said, with intentional mischief, "Dad, it's obvious you're really so fond of Patricia,. Someone one might think she's your granddaughter!"."
"Shane, lacking those convoluted intuitions, simply stated, "I do wish I had that blessing, but alas, she isn't!"."
He meant nothing more by it.I
It was just an innocent fondness for Patricia; he meant nothing more by it.
But to Grace, the words took on a different significance.
Her fingers tensed up, gripping the her fork so tightly it almost bent.
Just then, sShe felt a chill gaze settle on her, and glancing in that direction, she saw Hunter staring at her incessantly. His gaze was like a lurking viper's.
It was like the gaze of a viper lurking in the darkness.
Menacing and venomous.
It gave her the creeps.
Goosebumps crawled over Grace's skin, and she instinctively leaned towards Martin for comfort, only to find for him to subtly dodging her.
lean away. She was so furious she felt like she might explode.
No, this wouldn't do.
She needed to find a way to get rid of Hunter, and fast.
She couldn't keep living under his threat.
As long as Hunter was around, there was no way she could conveniently target Patricia.
Suddenly, aA plan popped into her head, and she instantly relaxed considerably, her mood lifting. Grace quickly lowered her gaze to hide the excitement in her eyes.
Chapter417
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