The Billionaire Ex-Wife and the Beggar He Became novel Chapter 400

Winona sighed. "Well… do you want to join us for the buffet on the 88th floor?"

"Would you have me?" Yves asked, his voice mock-pitiful.

"I would! I'll have Dad Prescott!" Zane, whose hearing had become remarkably sharp since getting his cochlear implant, shouted from across the room.

"Alright then, Dad Prescott will be there to pick you up shortly."

After hanging up, the family waited for Yves. But before he arrived, Winona's phone rang again. It was Zachary Shaw.

"Mr. Shaw, Happy New Year," she said respectfully. "Is there something I can do for you?"

Zachary was old enough to be her father. She had already called him the previous evening to wish him a happy new year, and she hadn't wanted to disturb his family celebrations by calling again today. She was surprised he was calling her.

"Nona," Zachary said warmly, "my two sons are both abroad this year, so it's just me and my wife here. She was hoping to invite you and your family over for lunch. She's even got a gift for your little boy."

Winona was deeply touched.

"Mr. Shaw, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to invite you and your wife to join us for the buffet at the Global Finance Tower. Yves will be there, and we could bring Wesley and Lawyer Lynn too, if that's alright?" she asked.

"Really, Nona? You'd do that for me?"

"Mr. Shaw," Winona said, her voice filled with emotion, "if you hadn't been the first to believe in me, Yves never would have invested in my project. We would have spent our whole lives misunderstanding and resenting each other. You are my benefactor."

"Helga Perkins," Winona said, her voice firm, "you can rest assured, even if Teague and Henrietta are my biological parents, I will never acknowledge them. If I do, may I be struck by lightning, torn to pieces, and run over by a car…"

"Don't say such things!" her grandmother cried, covering Winona's mouth with her hand. "Don't you dare curse yourself."

Winona smiled at her. "I just want you to know, I will never, ever have anything to do with the Shepherd family."

"Alright, my girl. Never," her grandmother said, patting her back comfortingly.

They waited for about an hour before Yves called to say he was downstairs. Winona gathered Mia, her grandmother, and Zane, who were all dressed in their holiday best. But as she opened the front door, she recoiled in shock, instinctively shielding her family behind her.

"You… what are you doing here?" she demanded, her voice sharp and cold. "Leave now, or I'm calling the police!"