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Felicia received a call the minute she left the Lowen residence. The caller was her younger cousin,
Nicolette Ashton. Why is she calling me today? She doesn't talk to me much in the first place.
She ignored it, and the call eventually auto-declined. To her surprise, Nicolette called again.
Felicia answered it reluctantly, “Yes, Nic. What's up?”
Nicolette was the youngest daughter of Felicia's second uncle, Leroy Ashton. She adored Gwendolyn
and stuck to the latter like glue.
Consequently, Felicia disliked Nicolette. It did not help that Nicolette often referred to her as “the
mistress' child.”
“Fels, it's my birthday today. Why aren't you here? Where's my present?”
So she's angling for a present. Felicia furrowed her brows in annoyance before replying flatly, “How old
are you? Kids can't celebrate their birthdays. Did Grandpa allow you to hold a party?”
Michael believed in the virtue of frugality. As such, younger members of the Ashton family were not
allowed to hold birthday parties. Felicia herself had never had a birthday party, though she was already
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇttwenty-three.
The thought filled Felicia with indignance. The socialites frequently gossiped about her, claiming that
Michael disliked her.
Felicia's protests fell on deaf ears because these socialites had attended a party held by Gwendolyn for
her eighteenth birthday.
Nicolette merely insisted, “I'm eighteen, Fels. I'm an adult now. Anyway, be here as soon as possible!”
With that, she hung up, and Felicia cursed out loud, “This brat! I can't believe she hung up on me.
Where are her manners?”
Then she received an address from Nicolette.
Meanwhile, Gwendolyn sat beside Nicolette at the latter's party. Six years had passed, but her relatives
hardly changed at all.
Her aunts wore blinding amounts of jewelry, while her uncles, rather unfortunately, developed beer
bellies and thinning hair. Otherwise, they mostly looked the same.
Nicolette had always been close to Gwendolyn, and she made Gwendolyn promise to attend her
eighteenth birthday party.
“You should eat more, Gwen. Look at how thin you are!” Nicolette prattled as she filled Gwendolyn's
bowl with food.
Nicolette's mother, Francine, smiled. She mock-chastised her daughter, “What do you know, Nic? Your
cousin's trying to maintain a figure. You're still young. We can't eat as much as you without worrying
about our weight.”
With that said, Francine began filling her daughter's bowl with food. In truth, Gwendolyn was not eating
less to watch her figure.
She lost her appetite after witnessing Lucas' rejection of Lucy's pleas. Lucy even went on her knees! I
can't forget how sad she looked. I need to think of a way to help her.
From opposite Gwendolyn, Candace eyed her stepdaughter unhappily.
Candace's rage ballooned when she recalled the beating she had taken the other day.
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Pettily, Candace asked, “Why didn't you bring your triplets over today, Gwen? They should try the
dishes here. The taste is exquisite.”
Nicolette's birthday party took place at Amaranthine, a restaurant with a long history in Avenport.
Rumor had it that royal cooks founded the restaurant, and its excellent culinary offerings kept it in
business for centuries.
Accordingly, Amaranthine's food came with a high price tag. Each dish easily cost hundreds.
Silence descended upon the table at Candace's question. Gwendolyn's triplets were a taboo topic in
the Ashton family; her illegitimate pregnancy had infuriated Michael to no end.
Michael went from pampering Gwendolyn to shunning her from the family. He would not accept
Gwendolyn back into the family despite her attendance at Nicolette's party. He evidently saw the triplets
as a stain on the Ashton family's good name.
The Ashton family's patriarch was a proud man. Candace's frequent mentions of Gwendolyn's children
screwed up the latter's chances of returning to the family.
Gwendolyn merely replied, “The kids are too rowdy. I wouldn't want them to disturb the aunts and
uncles with their chatter.”
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