Chapter 975:

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Galen approached more quietly, though curiosity flickered unmistakably in his gaze. Allard ruffled his hair fondly and nudged another box toward him. Inside lay a complete Lego Star Wars set, the kind that could challenge even grown-ups. Galen’s cool, composed facade melted instantly. His eyes sparkled with a rare, bright light as he held up a tiny piece toward Allard, his voice tinged with childish wonder. “Together?”

“All right,” Allard said warmly, settling onto the carpet beside them. “We’ll build it together.”

They dug in, the room filled with laughter, soft chatter, and the satisfying clink of Lego pieces clicking into place.

From the second-floor landing, Austin watched the scene unfold below. His handsome face twisted, a storm brewing behind his eyes. He turned to Brinley, jealousy lacing his voice. “Fine, he likes you. But now he’s being so good to the kids… is he trying to take all three of you away from me?”

Brinley shot him a look before rolling her eyes, amused by his unfounded suspicion. “You’re so ridiculous! Allard doesn’t like me, he just admires me. And haven’t I done enough for him? It’s only natural he treats my kids well.”

Austin clenched his jaw. “But he’s not good to me. Why not?”

Allard spent the entire day at Hillcrest Villa playing with both children. Only when dusk pressed gently against the windows did he finally check the time and prepare to leave.

Before stepping out, he sought Brinley. He found her in her study, reviewing reports, and quickly filled her in on Shaw Fragrances’ recent operations.

“Everything is running smoothly,” he concluded, setting down his notes. “The financial report for next quarter looks very promising.”

“Thank you for your hard work,” Brinley nodded. Just as she was about to outline her ambitious plans for expanding Shaw Fragrances into other cities, a tall shadow filled the doorway. Austin. Wordlessly, he stepped forward and scooped Brinley into his arms, right in front of Allard.

𝗥e𝘤o𝗺𝘮end ga𝗅𝗇o𝘃𝘦𝘭ѕ.𝗰о𝘮 𝘵𝗼 𝘺o𝘶𝗿 𝖿𝗋𝘪еո𝖽𝘴

“Austin! What are you doing?! We’re still in the middle of a meeting!” Brinley exclaimed, half shocked.

“The discussion just concluded,” Austin said calmly, already turning toward the staircase. He didn’t spare Allard a glance as he carried her off.

Allard, watching them vanish around the corner, sighed and shook his head with an amused chuckle. Some things, he mused, were just beyond his control.

That night, Austin demonstrated, in his own unapologetic way, who was the most important person in Brinley’s life. He pinned Brinley beneath him, his voice a low murmur in her ear. “Brinley… if you even think about work or try to sneak back into the study, I’ll make sure you can’t leave this bed for a week.”

Brinley’s initial shock melted into a mixture of irritation and amusement. She knew him well enough to take his threat seriously. Rather than waste her days enduring his endless “complaints” about her workload and late nights, she finally conceded: perhaps it was time to step back from the relentless grind entirely and simply savor her life.

So she made her decision. Her ambition to pursue another great endeavor could wait.

The next morning, she called a high-level meeting. Shaw Fragrances’ day-to-day operations would now be in the capable hands of Allard and a select team of executives she had personally nurtured.

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