I Quit Being a Stepmother (Cypress Gem) novel Chapter 147

Chapter 147

Arielle ran out of the room, leaning against the wall as she vomited until her eyes turned bloodshot.

Carter hurried after her and asked a server for some tissues and warm water. He said to Arielle, ” Here, have some.”

Arielle’s temper flared. She pushed the things away and exclaimed, “I don’t want to! Dad, why do you have friends like these?”

“What?”

Behind them, Adrian said loudly, “Ms. Moss insisted on making me and Arielle try some wine even though we told her that kids can’t drink alcohol. But that woman forced us to try, too. She even said that Mom spoiled us and we’d be naughty children if we didn’t drink!”

Carter was taken aback. He wondered if “that woman” was Lauren.

“Did Lauren tell you guys to drink wine?” he asked in disbelief.

Lauren hurried out of the room. “That’s not what it’s like, Carter. The kids wanted to know what Sharon and I were having, and Sharon told them it was wine. There’s nothing wrong with children having a sip or two. I just didn’t expect them to react so dramatically.”

“Exactly. Think about it, Carter. All of us have secretly sipped some alcohol as kids, haven’t we? These two are just spoiled rotten by your wife. They’re as fragile as can be. That won’t do!” Sharon

chimed in.

Carter hadn’t had anything to drink, and he wasn’t drunk. He stood up and looked at Lauren stoically. “If you don’t know what children can and can’t have, you should just keep your nose out of their matters.”

A sliver of wariness and distance had taken root in his heart after Lauren had tried to frame Arielle

and Adrian. And so, this time, he didn’t fall for her lame excuse.

“Mom?” Just then, Arielle spotted Rhea, who was about to enter an elevator at the end of the hallway. Her crisp and clear voice rang out loudly in the hallway.

Rhea turned around at the sound. “Arielle? Adrian?”

The children grew excited when they saw her and ran to her, throwing themselves into her embrace. They wrapped their arms around her waist.

“Mom, you’re here, too!” Arielle was delighted.

However, Rhea instantly saw that the young girl was unwell. She crouched and asked, “What happened to you? Why are your eyes and face so red?”

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Chapter 147

+25 BONUS

Rhea wasn’t alone. After wrapping things up at home, Valerie had asked her best girlfriends out for a drink at the bar. She, Liora, Kate, Carolyn, and Evelyn stood in a row beside Rhea, making an impressive sight.

Adrian looked up, recognizing Kate and the others. He said, “Hi, pretty ladies.”

“Hi, sweetie,” Kate and the others responded gently.

Valerie glanced at Liora, seemingly asking whether Arielle and Adrian were Rhea’s stepchildren.

This was Liora’s first time seeing the kids. She nodded almost imperceptibly, having a feeling that Valerie was right. Arielle and Adrian looked well–mannered–that already made them much better than their birth parents. It was true that the way children turned out depended on who raised them.

Just then, Lauren, Sharon, Zoe, and two of Sharon’s friends from Draventh came closer. One side had six women, and the other had five. Both groups sized each other up.

The women with Lauren all had guarded, jealous eyes. On the other hand, Liora and the others merely glanced at them briefly before looking away. They were composed and carried themselves with the poise that came with an elite upbringing.

“Come with me,” Lauren said, moving to take the children away.

However, Rhea stopped her. She asked Arielle, “Did you have alcohol?”

Arielle nodded. She pointed at Lauren and said, “She and her friends forced me and Adrian to do it. I feel horrible, Mom. My mouth is burning, and my throat hurts.”

Rhea’s expression darkened. Her gaze swept toward Carter, and she looked at him as if he were an idiot. He sensed that and blurted, “I wasn’t there!”

Sharon stepped forward, looking displeased. “Miss, as an outsider, you shouldn’t meddle in someone else’s family matters. Please return the children to their mother. If you love kids so much, go have your own.‘

That was incredibly rude. The looks in Rhea’s girlfriends‘ eyes instantly shifted, but they didn’t act rashly,

Rhea stood up, giving Sharon a sidelong glance. “If I’m an outsider, then who are you?”

Lauren stepped forward to shield Sharon. She said righteously, “She’s my friend. It’s fine if you don’t respect me, Rhea, but please respect my friend.”