Chapter 146: Chapter 146: I Never Acknowledged Her as My Sister-in-Law
Kenneth’s hand, hovering in mid-air, clenched into a fist. He rose and leaned against his chair, his gaze as sharp and cold as a sword. ’So, they already know.’ He had noticed the oppressive atmosphere in the room from the very beginning. Lianne Vance, who would normally come up and hug him, was unusually calm today. ’This isn’t the Mom I know. And as for Ethan, he always smiles when he sees me, but not today.’
"Since you’ve come to see me, you must already know," Kenneth said, staring straight ahead, his voice devoid of emotion. A cold man treats everything with extreme indifference, even his own family.
A worried expression crossed Lianne Vance’s face. She shot up from the sofa and grabbed Kenneth’s arm, looking at him with pleading eyes. "Kenneth, please don’t joke about this. How could this happen to Summer? She was fine."
"Mom, if you really thought this was a joke, you wouldn’t have avoided my eyes when I walked in." Disappointed, Lianne Vance let go of Kenneth. ’Yes, I’m just deceiving myself.’ How she wished this was all a joke. If Dominic Thorne hadn’t told them, would Kenneth have hidden it from them forever?
"Brother! Is this how you protect Summer? I am so disappointed in you!" Ethan Yates’s brow furrowed, his dark eyes radiating a chilling cold.
Kenneth straightened up to meet his gaze, his powerful presence undiminished. "I can save her. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to worry. Don’t you trust me?"
"That’s right. If I’d known things would turn out like this, I never should have run away. I went to study abroad and pushed her onto you. For the first few years after you got married, I was always paying attention to her. Think about it! What kind of life did she lead in those years? Do you think you’ve done right by her?" Ethan took a step back, a wave of relief washing over him as he finally voiced the words he had kept hidden for so many years.
Kenneth froze. ’I never realized Ethan had those kinds of feelings for Summer. I just thought he saw her as a good friend. But I should have noticed it long ago... the way he looked at her. How could I have been so oblivious?’
’If I had known how Ethan felt back when I married Summer, I would have called off the wedding and let them be together. But now... No, no, Summer loves *me*. But how have I treated her? I ignored her completely after we got married, barely ever returning to our shared "home."’
His thoughts were a tangled mess. Time seemed to slow, as if frozen.
"Mom," Kenneth said, turning stiffly to face the slightly uncomfortable Lianne Vance. "Did you... know about this, too?"
"Kenneth, we’ve actually known all along, but Summer has only ever had eyes for you. She..."
"That’s enough! Just go!" Kenneth cut Lianne Vance off, ordering them to leave.
"Brother, I have never once acknowledged Summer Lancaster as my sister-in-law!" With that one ambiguous parting shot, Ethan left. The words threw Kenneth’s mind into even greater turmoil. ’Why was I so foolish back then?’ He excelled in every other area of his life, but when it came to matters of the heart, he had always been clueless. Besides, his mind had been completely occupied with Thea Shaw at the time, so he’d paid little attention to what was happening between them.
Agitated, he pulled out his phone and dialed Dominic Thorne’s number.
"Boss, what’s up?" Dominic Thorne answered. He was in his car, on his way to see Melody Donovan.
"Where are you?" Kenneth’s weary voice came through the phone. The last time Dominic Thorne could remember Kenneth sounding this dejected was when he learned that Thea Shaw had left.
