Chapter 3

For over twenty years, I'd been the one upholding this family's rules, memorizing hundreds of herbal recipes, and staying up until two in the morning to balance the books.

Olivia showed up, wearing Grandma Annie's bracelet, linking arms with my husband. She said sorry, and everyone thought I should let it go.

Edward walked over to me and lowered his voice. "Let's head inside. We need to keep Grandma in good spirits tonight. I'll explain it when we get home."

"Are you sure you want to bring her inside?" I asked, looking up at him.

He fell silent for a moment.

Olivia bit her lip, her eyes misty. "Edward, maybe I should go. I don't want to come between you and Charlotte. But the art show has to finalize a partner tomorrow, and I'm counting on the Rivers family's support."

Edward squeezed her shoulder. "Stay."

He looked at me. "Charlotte, don't embarrass me in front of everyone."

I nodded. "Fine."

I turned and walked inside.

The dinner was set up in the main hall of Rivers Manor. Three rows of mahogany tables stretched across the room, and the walls were decorated with the herbal dietary teachings written by Grandma Annie.

Grandma sat at the head of the table, her gray hair perfectly styled. When she spotted me, she waved me over.

I walked over, and she took my hand. "Why do you look so pale?"

"I'm a bit tired from the drive," I replied.

Her eyes slid past me, settling on Edward and Olivia.

She frowned, but didn't say anything.

Once the dinner started, Olivia was seated at a side table, but she knew how to put on a show.

When the first soup was served, she walked up to Grandma with a small bowl in hand.

"Mrs. Rivers, Edward said you used to love ginkgo and lily soup. I've been working on some ginkgo paintings for the Rivers Heritage Exhibition, so I wanted to get your thoughts."

The silver bells on her wrist tinkled softly.

Grandma's expression grew colder as she stared at the bell bracelet.

Margaret quickly put on a smile. "Grace, Olivia was being thoughtful. Not many young people these days appreciate the old stuff."

Olivia handed the sketch to Grandma.

On the paper, she had reimagined the ginkgo motif from Grandma Annie's manuscript as a hand gently cradling a baby.

Everyone at the table gushed about how meaningful and touching it was.

Edward leaned in, his voice barely above a whisper. "This would be perfect for the new product launch."

I stared down at the soup in my bowl and asked, "Have you ever tasted this soup?"

"What?" He was confused.

"It's ginkgo and lily soup," I continued.

He frowned. "Why are you bringing this up now?"

"Grandma's number one rule is that pregnant women shouldn't touch ginkgo. The kitchen knows better than to serve me this."

I pushed the bowl forward. "But look, there's ginkgo in mine."

Edward's expression darkened.

The table went quiet for a moment.

Olivia was the first to get teary-eyed. "Charlotte, you're not seriously blaming me, are you? I'm a painter. I have no idea what happens in the kitchen."

Margaret shot me a look of disapproval. "Charlotte, don't bring bad vibes to your grandma's birthday. The kitchen's crazy busy. It's normal if they mess up a bowl."

I ignored her and called the butler over. "Seal this bowl up and get it checked."

Edward placed his hand over mine, trying to stop me. "Charlotte, let's not blow this out of proportion."

I looked at his hand. "Let go."

He didn't let go. "You've already turned everything into drama today. First you got mad about Olivia wearing those bells, then her sketch, and now you're acting like someone's out to get you over a bowl of soup.

"Can you stop using your pregnancy as a reason for everyone to cater to you?"

Every eye at the table was on me. Some looked sympathetic, some were irritated, and the rest were waiting for Grandma to weigh in.

Grandma's fingers gripped her cane so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

I slowly pulled my hand away. "Edward, do you think I'm using the pregnancy as an excuse to act out?"

He pressed his lips together. "I wish you'd act with a little more dignity."

Olivia stood nearby and spoke softly, "Edward, don't be like that. Maybe Charlotte's not feeling well."

With that, she made me out to be the dramatic pregnant wife.

Henry raised his glass and smiled coldly. "Charlotte, everyone knows you're after the position of CEO, but you can't drag a guest into a scandal right in front of Grandma. If our family ends up in your hands, who'd want to partner with us?"

Margaret jumped in right away, "As I said, pregnancy can take a toll on you. Maybe you should hold off on it for now. Edward's been keeping the Rivers Group thriving these past few years, and everyone knows it."

Someone else echoed, "Yeah, Mr. Bennett is reliable and gets along with people. The Rivers Group doesn't need more folks stuck in the old ways. We need someone who can bring us into the spotlight."

As I listened to them talk, it finally clicked why Edward had the nerve to bring Olivia here tonight.

This wasn't him being soft-hearted. He was testing me.

He wanted to see how much fight I had left now that I was pregnant, if Grandma would back down for the sake of the baby, and whether the rest of the family would use him to shove me off the position.

Grandma finally broke her silence. "Edward, speak."

Edward stood up and said respectfully, "Grace, I don't mean to overstep. The pregnancy's been hard on Charlotte. I've been handling a lot of things for her, such as the Spring Launch, the Wellness Retreat expansion, and the collaboration with Olivia's art exhibition.

"Since everyone's here tonight, I want to ask you to let Charlotte focus on her pregnancy and let me take over as CEO for a year."

The main hall fell dead silent.

Olivia kept her eyes down, but the corners of her mouth twitched ever so slightly.

I lowered my head and gently touched my belly, feeling the baby give me another little kick.

Edward continued, "I'll protect the Rivers Group for her, and I'll make sure she and the baby are well taken care of."

He sounded like the perfect husband.

If Olivia wasn't right there beside him, flaunting Grandma Annie's silver bells, if that bowl of soup wasn't sitting in front of me, if his temporary access log wasn't still saved on my phone, I might've bought it.

Grandma turned her gaze to me. "Charlotte, what do you say?"