Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
‘Look, I’m not trying to initiate anything.
But this charade… if we keep this up, people might start to believe it.
And that would open up a whole new vista.’
Clayton’s lips curved into a wry smile.
‘Cody has to go back to Ferelden soon.
Should be within the week.’
Leila let out a sigh she hadn’t realized she was holding back.
‘Good,’ she said, feeling relief wash over her.
The last thing she expected to see at this party was a familiar face.
‘Jeanette?’ called Leila, excitement in her voice as she saw the small figure in the distance.
For a moment, Jeanette’s body tensed, her head slowly turning to confirm that it was indeed Leila standing nearby.
Her expression wavered before she gave a soft smile and said, ‘Miss Pretty.’
Leila reached over, gently stroking Jeanette’s head.
‘Are you here alone again, where’s your sister?’
Jeanette’s smile grew brighter, though a small sadness remained in her eyes.
‘My sister is busy today.
She told me to play alone, but no one really wants to play with me.’
Most of the people gathered there were from well-to-do families.
It seemed Jeanette’s plain clothes didn’t go unnoticed, and the others had kept their distance.
Leila felt a pang of regret, wishing she had brought her own three children.
If they had been there, their company would have made Jeanette feel much more at ease as they played with her.
At the thought, Leila voiced it out loud.
Jeanette’s eyes widened, clearly surprised that Leila still remembered something she had mentioned earlier.
Jeanette smiled shyly.
‘Oh, it’s okay.
I don’t really need anyone with me.
Don’t worry.’
Leila gently took Jeanette’s hand.
‘Why don’t you stay with us for now? If you see your sister, you can go with her.
I’ll explain everything on your behalf if she gets upset, okay?’
With so many people around, Leila felt uncomfortable leaving Jeanette, a little girl, alone in the crowd.
It seemed that Jeanette’s sister didn’t mind at all.
Jeanette’s expression changed, becoming more complicated.
She quickly removed her hand from Leila’s and shook her head.
‘It’s not necessary.
I’ll be fine on my own.’
As Jeanette prepared to leave, she suddenly saw Clayton standing next to Leila.
She couldn’t help but ask:
‘Miss Pretty, is he your boyfriend?’
Leila hesitated.
For a moment, she couldn’t find the right words as she searched for the right answer.
Clayton offered her a soft smile.
‘Little girl, you’re too young to be asking those kinds of questions.
Go on, go play.’
Even at such a tender age, Jeanette knew that not denying it was almost like acceptance.
However, she remembered that Leila was Landon’s wife, a detail she had only discovered when she got there.
This revelation added layers of complexity to Jeanette’s gaze as she studied Leila.
Could it be true that Leila was cheating on them, as her sister had said? That beneath her kind exterior, she wasn’t all she was cracked up to be?
Feeling a pang of sadness, Jeanette lowered her head and turned away.
Clayton watched Jeanette’s retreating figure, a complex expression crossing his face.
‘I can’t shake the feeling that the girl recognizes me.’
Leila laughed.
‘You’re overthinking things.
She and her sister are attending an event like this for the first time.
They don’t even know my name.’
Clayton found it hard to put the strange feeling in his heart into words, but he still felt the need to remind Leila.
‘Something about the look in that girl’s eyes strikes me as odd.
You should keep your distance.’
Leila’s brow furrowed at his words.
‘Don’t be so hard on the kids.’
Realising he’d upset her, Clayton quickly softened his tone.
‘I was just being overly cautious.
I won’t say anything like that again.’