A Night of Desire

Evan Shelby considered this and had to agree, letting out a sigh. He had two daughters and no son. Years ago, he had taken in Sierra Sutton, intending for him to be like an adopted son. If Sierra had shown promise, he would have married Sarah off to him.

But as it turned out, Sierra only had eyes for Autumn. Over a year ago, the two of them slept together. Autumn got pregnant, forcing her to break off her engagement to Seth Quinn and flee to the U.S.A.

Sigh. If Sierra had just been more ambitious, made something of himself, and broken into Novaria’s high society—if he could stand on equal footing with Seth Quinn—then Evan wouldn’t have to be going to such lengths to marry Autumn into the Quinn Family.

Luckily, they had taken precautions right after the incident to ensure no one would suspect that anything had happened between Sierra Sutton and Autumn.

Yvette Zimmerman, however, was silent for a long while before she asked Autumn Shelby worriedly, "Autumn, are you sure... you’ll still be able to have children?"

"Mom, what’s that supposed to mean? Are you saying you *hope* I can’t have children anymore?" Autumn’s temper flared at the question.

Yvette Zimmerman knew that even though Autumn’s depression had improved, she still became agitated at any mention of pregnancy or children.

She quickly tried to soothe her. "Of course, that’s not what I meant. The doctor back then, didn’t he say..."

"What the doctor said back then, what the doctor said back then! I don’t care what he said! What matters is that the doctors in the U.S.A. told me I can get pregnant again. I can!"

"That’s good, that’s good." Yvette Zimmerman nodded again and again. "Autumn, don’t get so worked up. Calm down."

Evan Shelby, however, shot to his feet. He glared at Autumn Shelby and barked, "What are you throwing a fit for? If you hadn’t been so shameless back then with Sierra... I’m telling you, if you don’t get Sierra under control, don’t you come crying to me if even one little thing goes wrong!"

With that, he turned and stormed upstairs.

"Evan, where are you going? Dinner’s ready!" Yvette Zimmerman called after him.

Evan didn’t even turn his head. "Eat? I’ve lost my appetite!"

Autumn Shelby bit her lip, stomped her foot, then turned and stormed out the door.

Yvette Zimmerman turned and saw her go. She wanted to call her back, but Autumn was already out the door.

Yvette Zimmerman slumped onto the sofa in defeat. A perfectly good dinner was ruined.

...

「The Quinn Residence」

After dinner, Seth Quinn, Clara Grant, and Miles Quinn left the main residence to head back to their own separate houses on the estate.

The night air wasn’t as hot as it had been during the day. With all the trees planted around the Quinn estate, the gentle breeze felt wonderfully comfortable.

The moment Clara Grant stepped out the main residence’s doors, she tilted her head back to face the wind, closed her eyes, and sighed softly. ’So nice.’

Seth Quinn turned to look at her, giving her small hand a gentle squeeze. He chuckled. "Feels nice, doesn’t it?"

Clara Grant turned her head to look at him, smiling as she nodded.

"Shall we walk back, then?" Seth asked with another smile.

Clara was confused. "If we don’t walk, what’s the alternative? Driving?"

Seth Quinn chuckled. He was about to say something, but before he could, Miles Quinn pulled his car up and stopped in front of them.

"Seth, Clara, you want a ride? Or are you taking your own car?"

Clara Grant looked up at Miles Quinn in the car and felt a flash of embarrassment. ’Oh,’ she thought, ’so people really do drive back!’

Seth Quinn shook his head. "You can go on ahead. Clara and I are going to walk, take a little stroll."

Miles Quinn understood. He grinned and waved. "Alright, I’ll leave you two to your romantic stroll. I’m heading out."

Once Miles Quinn’s car had disappeared beneath a streetlight up ahead, Clara Grant clicked her tongue in amazement. She looked at Seth and said, "Is your family’s estate really that huge? You need a car just to get from one house to another?"