The Man Who Never Looked Away novel Chapter 21

The Harper Manor was situated at the tip of the river island, with the rest of the island dedicated to luxury real estate developed by their family.

Garnett parked the car, took a few steps forward, then suddenly stopped and glanced back.

Lavinia followed him at a polite distance, making no attempt to rush up and grab his hand like she used to. Her expression was placid, her eyes devoid of their usual light.

Frowning, he reached out to her. "Let's go."

She hesitated for a moment before stepping forward and letting him take her hand.

He glanced at her fingers. "Your hands are so small. They aren't meant to hold a scalpel."

"I ranked first in my class," she replied flatly.

"You really want to be a doctor?" Garnett gave a faint smile. "It's a grueling, underpaid life. Isn't your current setup much better?"

Lavinia's brow furrowed, swallowing the retort on the tip of her tongue.

Maeve, Judith's trusted confidante, was waiting by the entrance and hurried over the moment she spotted them. "Judith heard you were coming, Ma'am, and asked me to wait right here."

"Where is she?" Lavinia slipped her hand out of his grasp.

"She's demanding those butter shortbreads you make, practically running the kitchen staff ragged trying to prep the ingredients."

Lavinia quickened her pace as she headed inside.

In the kitchen, the septuagenarian Judith Gilmore was busy directing the staff.

Her eyes lit up when she saw her granddaughter-in-law. "Lavinia, come here! I just don't trust them to get it right."

Smiling, the younger woman walked over and rolled up her sleeves to wash her hands.

Standing across the counter, Judith kept urging her grandson, "Garnett, hurry up and take a video. I need to post this in my group chat so all the ladies can see how incredibly capable my granddaughter-in-law is."

Helpless, he pulled out his phone.

On the screen, Lavinia had her head bowed as she kneaded the dough, her hands coated in butter. A small smudge of flour rested on her cheek, completely unnoticed by her.

She chatted with his grandmother while she worked, her eyes curving into bright, warm smiles.

Holding the phone, he suddenly felt a soft, inexplicable warmth swell in his chest.

The couple exchanged a fleeting glance.

Garnett laughed smoothly. "Grandma, Lavinia is practically still a kid herself."

Judith sighed. "I encouraged you two to move out because I didn't want Lavinia having to deal with your stepmother's attitude. I thought I'd get to hold a great-grandchild soon, and my old bones don't have that many years left to wait."

Lavinia's fingers nervously gripped the fabric of her skirt.

There was absolutely no way she was having a baby with him. She desperately reminded herself to hold on for just a few more days; the moment she secured her uncle's medication, she was filing for divorce.

He looked at his grandmother's saddened expression, then glanced at his wife.

"Don't worry," he said, taking the elderly woman's hand. "We'll make it happen as soon as possible."

Judith wiped the corner of her eye. "You better keep your word."

Keeping her head bowed, Lavinia simply couldn't stomach another second of this.

"My drink is getting a bit bland, I'll go to the kitchen to grab something fresh," she said, rising from her seat and slipping out.