Chapter 76
Sienna's pov
Agnes let out a long sigh, the kind that came from somewhere deep.
“Sienna, how could I blame you?” Her voice stayed soft, but it didn’t shake. “Losing the baby took a toll on you. I’m worried about you more than anything.”
Then she added, “From now on, don’t hide things from me, because when you don’t tell me, I worry even more.”
But I wasn’t afraid of blame.
Agnes was over seventy, her face traced with fine wrinkles, her body a little weaker each day, yet the way she looked at me never changed. Warm. Protective. Like I still belonged somewhere. These days, she was the only one who looked at me like that.
“Grandma,” I said, holding my voice steady, “no matter what Elena says, please don’t get upset, okay? I won’t hide anything from you again, I promise. Just… don’t get angry. You scared me to death last time.”
Agnes knew about the last emergency.
She parted her lips slightly, understanding flickering across her face.
I knew my request was unfair. Who could promise to never get angry, especially when someone came just to provoke you?
Even I couldn’t do it.
Agnes patted my head gently, and her faint smile slipped away. “Sienna, one day I won’t be here forever. Instead of worrying about me, you need to take better care of yourself.”
My eyes widened, and the anxiety I’d been forcing down rose fast, choking.
“No, Grandma,” I blurted. “You’ll live a long, healthy life.”
Fear made my thoughts stutter. For a moment, I even forgot the obvious truth.
Everyone dies eventually. And at her age, how much time did we really have?
Agnes tapped my forehead, light but firm. “What are you thinking? Everyone gets old. That’s life.”
So that was what she meant. Not a goodbye. Not a warning. Just the truth.
I breathed out, but the unease stayed, heavy in my chest.
Talking about death always did that.
“Then I’ll spend more time with you,” I said quietly.
But I didn’t see joy in her eyes, only calm acceptance, like she’d already made peace with what I couldn’t face.
“Let it be,” Julian said beside me, as if he could ease the weight with a few words. “Everyone has their own path. You’ve done very well.”
Unfortunately, it didn’t help.
And then the last person I wanted to see appeared.
“Julian, Sienna, Grandma, Ms. Reed,” Elena said from the doorway, bright and sweet. “Everyone’s here. How lively.”
I stood too fast, pain tugging low in my abdomen, and blocked the doorway.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Visiting Grandma,” she said, all wide eyes and innocence. “I know she doesn’t like me, but we’re family.”
She looked wronged, like I’d done something to her just by existing. “An elder is sick. How could I not come? Besides, Sienna, you just had a miscarriage, so you can’t take care of Grandma right now. It’s okay. Leave it to me…”
“Elena,” I snapped, “you think I’ll let you pull the same stunt twice?”
My voice came out sharper than I intended, but I couldn’t stop it.
“You’re like a fly,” I said, “nobody wants you around, and you still keep buzzing back.”
I wanted to shove her out of the room, but my body wouldn’t cooperate. She stood there, steady as a wall, not moving an inch.
She tilted her head, puzzled on purpose. “What are you talking about? I’m genuinely here to take care of Grandma. She’s family too. What trick could I possibly be playing?”
‘Stay calm.’
‘Don’t let her win.’
Because I knew exactly what she was doing. She’d said miscarriage out loud in a hallway full of strangers. She wanted it to travel. She wanted it to stick.
Then hands settled on my shoulders.
I didn’t have to turn to know it was Julian. His cologne hit first, clean and faint, but my nerves still sparked.
“Back off,” I said immediately. “I don’t need your help right now.”
Julian being close only gave Elena ammo, the same way it had when Harrison saw him near me. It looked like protection. It read like betrayal.
Julian lowered his hands but didn’t step away.
“Ms. Whitmore,” he said evenly, “Agnes doesn’t want you here. If you truly care about her, you should leave.”
I remembered his promise, yet doubt still tightened my throat—was he standing with me for my sake, or because it suited him to stand against Harrison?
Elena noticed the attention gathering outside the room, and she played to it.
She lowered her head, brows pinching as if she was fighting back tears, and her voice turned soft with sadness.
“So Grandma hates me so much she won’t even see me,” she murmured. “I guess in her eyes, I’m the one who ruined Sienna’s family. I shouldn’t have been born.”
It was too staged to feel real, and everyone in New Haven already knew what Elena was: the other woman who still hadn’t secured her place.
“Good,” I said coldly. “Then leave. Don’t disturb Grandma’s rest.”
This wasn’t the place to fight. I reached for the door.
But Elena’s voice sharpened at the last second, sweet on the surface and sharp underneath.
“But Sienna,” she said, “since you already have Julian with you, can you let Harrison go?”
My head snapped back, disbelief flashing hot, and I caught the quick flicker of triumph in her eyes before she smoothed it away.
So this was the trap.
“You and Julian are together now,” she said louder. “Do you still need to hold onto the title of Mrs. Blackwood?”
The hallway buzzed instantly.
A few sentences, and she’d flipped the story until I looked like the one cheating.
“When Harrison comes back and signs the papers,” I said, forcing my voice steady, “we’ll be divorced, so stop rushing it. The title of Mrs. Blackwood is something I don’t want. If you’re desperate enough to grab someone else’s trash, Elena, that’s your choice.”
Her face went pale, her eyes glassy with tears, but I didn’t look away from her to comfort her.
I turned back toward the room.
Julian suddenly yanked me behind him, hard enough that my head nearly hit the doorframe.
“Sienna!” Luna lunged in and caught my arm, steadying me before I could stumble.
Then a furious voice cut through the noise.
“Sienna Price!” Catherine’s words hit like a slap. “I even told Harrison to treat you well. I even said you could raise Adrian. And you dare cheat? Fine. I bet the baby wasn’t even Harrison’s. It’s good you lost it!”
My blood went cold.
Catherine was here.
Julian stepped in front of me at once, blocking her, and Catherine pointed at me with a trembling hand, trying again and again to get around him.
“Mrs. Blackwood,” Julian said, controlled and firm, “Sienna didn’t cheat. But if we’re talking about cheating, Mr. Blackwood did it first, so what right does the Blackwood family have to accuse her?”
Julian didn’t move, not an inch, and I stared at Catherine’s furious face, stunned by the timing.
During my pregnancy, she’d acted like I didn’t exist. Now, one week after my miscarriage, she’d come to humiliate me in public.
“This is our family matter,” Catherine snapped, breathing hard. “We don’t need an outsider interfering!”
Then she looked at Julian standing in front of me, and her rage twisted into certainty.
“You’re defending her?” she spat. “So you two have been involved all along! Julian Vane, if you keep blocking me, I’ll hit you too!”
A few lines, and my guilt was decided for me.
My mind turned to noise, everything blurring at the edges, the hallway suddenly too loud and too close.
Julian held the line. Luna stayed at my side.
And me? Was I really going to let Catherine strike him over something that wasn’t even true?
Catherine’s hand lifted, palm cutting through the air.
I didn’t think. I moved.
I stepped in front of Julian and shouted, “There’s nothing between us!”