Swapping a Broken Heart for a New Start novel Chapter 766

“You really have to teach her a lesson!”

Dennis Williams couldn’t help but chuckle at his sister. “It’s late—why aren’t you home? What are you still doing here?”

Audrey Williams, putting on her best obedient face, replied, “I was on my way out, but realized I left something behind. So, after dinner, I came back to get it…”

She dragged a chair over and plopped down across from him at his desk, picking up the earlier conversation without missing a beat.

“So, back to the point—do you need me to step in and deal with Lavinia Roberts?”

Dennis leaned back, utterly unhurried. “No need. Aaron’s already on it.”

The moment she heard that, the anger Audrey had been carrying around all evening melted away. Other people might not know what Aaron was capable of, but she certainly did. He always looked friendly enough, but he could be absolutely ruthless when it came to getting things done. If he was handling Lavinia Roberts, there was no way she was getting off easy.

Satisfied, Audrey grinned. “Good—settle it quickly, okay? Mom and Dad are still waiting to have dinner with Camila’s parents.”

Dennis raised an eyebrow. “How do Uncle Douglas and Aunt Charlotte know about that?”

Audrey lifted her chin, proud as could be. “Obviously, I told them! When you went to pick up Camila from the airport, you ran into me leaving work. Once I heard what was going on, I went straight home and filled them in.”

She leaned in, lowering her voice conspiratorially, “I even reminded them to get gifts ready!”

She looked at him expectantly, waiting for praise, and Dennis couldn’t help but laugh. “Well done! I knew spoiling you wasn’t a waste. Once I set the date, I’ll let Uncle Douglas and Aunt Charlotte know.”

“Great!”

Audrey was visibly excited.

The siblings chatted for a while longer before Dennis noticed how late it had gotten and decided to drive Lillian home himself.

The next morning, Camila Davis had barely gotten up when her mentor called.

He wanted her to come with him for a visit—apparently, he was going to see an old friend.

Hamlin’s face lit up at the sight of her, and even managed a touch of color. “Camila! My goodness, it’s been years. You’ve grown up so beautifully. I always said you’d be a heartbreaker one day. Mrs. Smith, just think—if I’d managed to steal her away as my daughter all those years ago, how wonderful would that have been…”

But Hamlin had barely finished when a fit of coughing wracked his body. He pressed a hand to his chest, struggling for breath.

Dahlia rushed to his side, patting his back with a worried frown. “Don’t get so worked up. Keep your voice down—the doctor said you need to rest.”

Eric Morris’s expression turned grave as he looked at Camila. “Let’s sit down.”

Camila quickly fetched a glass of water for Hamlin. Dahlia’s gaze softened as she accepted it. “Thank you, Camila.”

It took a while for Hamlin to recover. Camila, ever observant, noticed a red stain on the handkerchief he pressed to his lips—blood.

Eric noticed as well, his shock evident. “What’s going on?”

Dahlia sighed and didn’t bother with pleasantries. “Eric, we’ve known each other for years—there’s no point beating around the bush. We invited you here today because we need your help. A few months ago, Hamlin was fine, but then out of nowhere, he started coughing. At first we thought it was just a cold. But no matter how many medicines or injections, no matter how many specialists we saw, nothing helped. We even tried every home remedy we could find—still, it only got worse. Last week, he even started coughing up blood.”