Chapter 846 Isn't It the Same Between Us?

Chapter 846 Isn't It the Same Between Us?

"She let it go?" Olivia frowned, disbelief flickering in her eyes. "But everything Stella did in the past was enough to make anyone grind their teeth in anger. With Isabella's personality, how could she possibly just let it slide?"

To Olivia, Isabella was hardly the sort to forgive without limits.

But Atticus's next words hit her like a sudden light switching on.

"Because Isabella's love for Michael runs deeper than any of us have ever seen. If she wants a future with him, she has to let go of the past."

Atticus had understood this long before anyone else. "It is not just about Stella as a mother-in-law. It is also about everything she and Michael went through before. If those memories are allowed to linger between them, they will always be a crack in their relationship."

He added, "She chose to keep walking with Michael. That means she will never let those old wounds stand in her way again."

Olivia finally understood. The realization washed over her.

So that was it.

No wonder, just moments ago, when she had brought up Stella's past actions, Isabella had simply smiled them away.

It was not that she did not care. It was that she had already made peace with it.

Rather than drowning in the undertow of old memories, she had chosen to step out of the current and into a new life.

The thought made Olivia feel lighter, as if a weight had slipped from her shoulders.

Of course. If the person who had been hurt most had already moved on, what was the point of her dragging those memories back into the light?

Atticus rose and drew her into his arms, his voice low and steady. "Don't blame yourself for this. You're not the only one who felt that way. In this family, who hasn't resisted until the very last moment before giving in?"

There was a quiet resignation in his tone, almost spilling over.

If Isabella hadn't been so unshakably certain about Michael, none of them—especially the uncles—would have allowed her to be with a man who had once hurt her.

Even if those events could later be explained away as misunderstandings, the pain she endured at the time had been real.

They would rather she find a man like Emilio, someone who could give her a calm, safe, and happy life, than risk her being hurt again.

But life rarely unfolded the way you planned.

Olivia looked up and caught the faraway look in Atticus's eyes. She blinked and said softly, "But love has never been reasonable, has it? We are proof of that."

"What?" Atticus looked at her, puzzled.

Olivia's cheeks warmed. "You don't understand Isabella and Michael? Well, think about us. To outsiders, aren't we just as incomprehensible?"

When he still looked uncertain, she lowered her voice, almost a whisper. "If every love could be understood from the start, we wouldn't have lost ten years."

Her words hit him hard.

Atticus glanced down at her, seeing the hesitation in her eyes, and in that moment, he understood everything—and felt the weight of her quiet devotion over the years.

Why hadn't he tried to understand her back then? Why had he brushed off her feelings as a childish crush, an inconvenience to be ignored?

For more than a decade, she had waited in the same place. If he had only turned around, he would have seen how openly she held her heart out to him.

Just as she said—if he had not been blind to it, they would never have lost those years.

"Olivia, I—"

His voice was rough, but before he could finish, his phone rang.

Thomas.

Atticus's brow furrowed. The timing could not have been worse.

Olivia, oblivious to his thoughts, glanced at the screen. "Thomas is calling. Aren't you going to answer?"

It was probably something about the party outside. He had been gone for a while.

She could not understand why he hesitated, staring at the phone.

Atticus looked from the screen to Olivia's face, then sighed and swiped to answer.

The words he had not managed to say—he decided they would remain unspoken, a promise kept quietly in his heart.

Olivia had already moved on from that time in her life. There was no point in dragging it back into the present.

What mattered now was making sure she never had to doubt his devotion again.

He would repay what he owed her, twice over.

"Atticus, the party's starting," Thomas's voice came through, loud over the background noise. "Where did you and Olivia disappear to? You two are representing the Wilson Family tonight. You still have to go up and give Michelle her blessing."

The noise of the crowd spilled through the phone, but Atticus's gaze stayed fixed on Olivia's animated face.

He thought of something she had said earlier at the Wilson Villa when she had Michelle in her arms—and his heart softened.

Maybe, someday, they would have a child of their own.

Would that child look more like her, or like him?

If it was a girl, he secretly hoped she would take after Olivia. His own temperament was too cold, too sharp—not something a child should inherit.

Sensing his eyes on her, Olivia glanced up, puzzled, and mouthed silently, "What?"

He smiled faintly and shook his head.

"Got it," he told Thomas. "We're on our way."

The moment he hung up, Olivia tugged at his arm. "Come on, they're already calling for us. Today isn't the day to keep people waiting. I want to give Michelle her gift first, before anyone else gets the chance."

By the time they stepped out, the party was in full swing.

Because the event was hosted jointly, most of the guests were Daniel and Aiden's old friends and close relatives from both families.

The reason for such a grand celebration was simple—Michelle was precious beyond measure.

She was not only the first newborn in the Brown Family, but also the first child in the Wilson Family.

And that was no small thing. None of the five Wilson brothers had children. Until recently, only Atticus had married; the rest remained bachelors.

Years ago, at Isabella's birthday party, Daniel had publicly declared her the heir to the Wilson Family.

Everyone thought he was deliberately provoking his sons, yet, to their surprise, the brothers were willing to let Isabella inherit.

In fact, they had supported Daniel's decision wholeheartedly, loving Isabella as if she were their own daughter.

It was only later that people learned the truth—the five brothers had been away building their own empires, each successful in his own right.

That revelation had stirred the ambitions of every family hoping to marry into the Wilsons.

Then, half a year ago, Atticus had shocked them all by announcing his marriage to Olivia of the Smith Family—shattering the Wilson Family's reputation for lifelong bachelorhood.

Countless people had dreamed of marrying their daughters into the Wilson Family. Now, that dream had just become a little harder to reach.