The Billionaire's Bought Bride and Instant Mom Chapter 175

Aveline

The relief I felt as I drove home from school was palpable. No more hulking men in dark suits lurking around corners, no more feeling like I was living in some kind of crime thriller. For the first time all day, I could breathe normally again.

But as I pulled into my driveway, thoughts of Vivian crept back into my mind. Orion's concerns about her potential for revenge weren't entirely unfounded. After all, she had betrayed me before—drugging me and setting me up to be assaulted by Dwayne. The memory still made my skin crawl. Still, I couldn't quite picture her having the courage to try something that bold again.

The moment I stepped through my front door, however, all thoughts of relaxation evaporated. There, in my living room, was Vivian's familiar silhouette. My entire nervous system went on high alert, but I forced myself to maintain composure.

"Vivian!" I said with what I hoped was a natural smile. "What a surprise. I haven't seen you in ages."

But as I walked closer, I noticed Grandma Eleanor's expression—a mixture of profound sadness and stern disapproval that immediately put me on edge. Something was very wrong here.

"What's going on?" I asked, my voice tightening with concern.

That's when I realized Vivian wasn't standing—she was kneeling on our living room floor, tears streaming down her face and hitting the hardwood with audible drops. The sight was so unexpected, so dramatically pathetic, that I almost didn't know how to react.

"What happened?" I demanded, moving toward them both.

The moment Vivian saw me, she shot to her feet as if electrified. "I was wrong!" she burst out, her voice cracking with emotion. "I lied to you! I lied to everyone! I faked the pregnancy—all of it was fake!" The words tumbled out of her in a desperate rush. "I thought if I could make you all feel sorry for me, maybe Grandma would forgive me for everything else I've done. Maybe I could find a way back into this family."

*Oh God, here we go again,* I thought, my internal alarm bells ringing. *What's the performance about this time?*

But before I could respond, Grandma Eleanor's voice cut through the room like a whip.

"You manipulative little bitch!" The venom in her tone was shocking—I'd never heard her speak to anyone like that before. "You come into my house, you manipulate my emotions, you lie to my face, and now you think confession will fix everything? What kind of poison did your parents fill your head with?"

I stared at my grandmother in shock. The fury radiating from her was intense, but underneath it, I could see something that surprised me even more—a deep, wounded love. Despite everything, she still cared about Vivian.

"Grandma, please don't get yourself worked up," I said quickly, moving to take her hand. "This isn't the first time she's pulled something like this. Don't let her upset you."

Eleanor gripped my hand tightly, clearly struggling to regain her composure, but her eyes never left Vivian's face.

I turned to face my stepsister, my own patience finally exhausted. "Whatever game you're playing this time, we're not interested. I want you to leave. Now. And don't come back."

But instead of the defiant outburst or tearful pleading I expected, Vivian slowly straightened up, her expression shifting to something I'd never seen from her before—a cold, almost serene resignation.

"I will leave," she said quietly, her voice steady despite the tears still glistening on her cheeks. "In fact, I never want to be part of your life again. I'm tired of living in your shadow."

The words hit me like a physical blow. "Don't you dare blame me for your choices!"

"I'm not blaming you," Vivian replied with eerie calm. "I'm just telling you the truth. All of it. Before I disappear forever."

Both Grandma Eleanor and I went silent, something in her tone warning us that whatever was coming would be significant.

Vivian began pacing our living room with the deliberate movements of someone who had finally decided to drop all pretenses. When she spoke again, her voice carried a brutal honesty that was somehow more unsettling than any of her previous performances.

"You want to know the truth? Dwayne has been in contact with me this entire time. The fake pregnancy? That was his idea. He's been planning his return, planning to destroy Orion, and he promised me that when he succeeded, I would finally get everything I wanted." She paused in front of our fireplace, her back to us. "Including taking your place, Aveline."

The casual way she delivered this confession made my blood run cold. This wasn't the melodramatic revelation of a disturbed woman—this was the matter-of-fact admission of someone who had genuinely been plotting against me.

"And now?" I managed to ask, my voice barely steady. "You've changed your mind?"

Vivian turned to face us, and her smile was sharp enough to cut glass. "Not at all."

Grandma Eleanor's gasp was audible across the room.

"But I've come to realize something," Vivian continued, her voice gaining strength. "I've already lost. You've won everything I ever wanted before I even had a chance to fight for it properly. Grandma's love—something I'll never have no matter what I do. Orion's devotion, while Dwayne could never give me that kind of genuine affection. Even little Ryan treats you like you're the most wonderful thing in his world. I can't even imagine if my own future children would show me half the adoration your students have for you. You've achieved everything I've been desperately trying to steal."

The pain in her voice was so raw, so genuine, that despite everything she'd just confessed, I found myself struggling to maintain my anger.

"So I've made a decision," she continued. "I'm going to live the life that someone like me deserves. I'm leaving America. I'm going to Europe to be with Dwayne. Two damaged people living in the shadows, where we belong."

"You cannot be serious!" Grandma Eleanor exploded, rising from her chair with surprising agility. "You cannot go to that monster! Vivian, he's poison—he'll destroy what's left of your soul!"

But Vivian wasn't finished. She turned to face Eleanor directly, her voice dropping to barely above a whisper, but every word carrying devastating weight.

"Do you know what the worst part is, Grandma?" Her voice cracked slightly. "For the first eighteen years of my life, I fantasized about having a grandmother. While Aveline was growing up with your love, your bedtime stories, your Christmas mornings, I was stuck with my stepparents' cold indifference. They treated me like an obligation, not a daughter."