Filed To Story: The Broken-Hearted She and The Icy He Book PDF Free
“Mom!”
From the staircase, Renee had witnessed the confrontation in the living room.
Seeing both James and Jetson turn against Susan, she panicked. Not even bothering to change her clothes, she ran downstairs.
She was terrified James would be ungrateful, heartless, and truly send her to prison.
She had already consulted lawyers-Luke family had ironclad evidence. If they pressed charges, with the power of the Luke Group’s legal team, she could face ten years behind bars.
She didn’t want her best years wasted in prison.
She clutched Susan’s arm, tears spilling down her cheeks. “It was Jetson who came upstairs just now… James is already treating you so badly. He’ll never spare me. If I’m convicted, my life is over. Who would marry a girl who’s been in prison? I don’t want to go…”
“Don’t cry, Renee.”
Susan, certain Soren would help, felt her confidence surging back.
She gently wiped her daughter’s tears, her voice soft yet steely. “I won’t let you go to prison. Do you remember Soren-Mr. Soren? He adored me once, utterly devoted. If I reach out, he’ll do anything to win me back. Once he quietly takes Lily and her brats out of the picture, and kills that hag Winona, James will see your worth. Nancy will soon be finished too. Then we’ll not just be mother and daughter-we’ll be mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. Our good days are ahead.”
“Mr. Soren…”
Of course Renee knew him. Susan had bragged more than once about the many men who had pursued her, and Soren was one of her so-called admirers.
Every time Renee had visited the Luke estate, she’d caught Soren looking at her with doting eyes. Clearly he still pined for Susan, and by extension, for her as well.
And Soren held real influence in the household. With him on their side, Lily and her unborn bastards wouldn’t stand a chance.
As expected, when Susan called, Soren was deferential, obsequious.
He solemnly promised that by tomorrow, Lily and her unborn children would be gone.
“James, I’m not clean anymore. Do you think my future wife will find me disgusting?”
By the car, Jetson practically pinned James against the door.
James’s face darkened. He had no patience for Jetson’s antics. But if he didn’t placate him, Jetson would cling to him, sobbing, which was even worse.
So he frowned and muttered, “Don’t touch me.”
“If you keep this up, I won’t keep tonight’s secret. But if you ever…”
His gaze dropped-and there, on his shirt sleeve, was what looked like Jetson’s snot.
His fist clenched. His face went iron-bluc. “If you ever dare smear your snot on me again, don’t expect me to keep quiet about what happened tonight.”
Jetson, who had been fishing for a shred of comfort from this iceberg of a man, instantly recoiled in horror.
He leapt back a full step. “Fine! I won’t touch you. But you mustn’t tell anyone about tonight.”
The so-called little overlord of the capital cared deeply about his pride. If people knew he had been molested, how could he face anyone?
“Mm.”
Since Jetson stopped leaning on him, James’s expression finally eased-if only slightly.
Once they were in the car, Jetson suddenly remembered James still hadn’t explained what Rence had actually done to Lily.
His curiosity boiling over, he asked, “So what exactly did Renee do to Lily? Don’t tell me she tried throwing herself at you too?”
“Shut up.”
James instantly regretted not kicking him earlier.
If Jetson spread nonsense that made Lily suspicious of him, he would snap his legs without hesitation.
“What then, she tried climbing into your bed?”
James despised wasting words on Jetson. But the more ridiculous his guesses grew, the less James could risk Lily hearing such rumors. His voice was cold as he clarified, “She gave Lily abortion medicine.”
“Lily didn’t drink it-Ivan did.”
“What?!”
Jetson’s eyes went wide with shock. He had never imagined this was why James wanted to take Renee to court.
He smacked himself across the face. “I deserve it! That filthy woman actually tried to poison Lily, and I wanted you two to reconcile? I’m worse than trash! James, I support you suing Renee. If Luke Group’s legal team isn’t enough, the Chen family’s legal team is yours to use too! If anyone dared give my wife abortion drugs, I’d make sure she wished for death in prison and never got it! James, once Renee’s in jail, you’d better not let her off easy!”
Watching Jetson slap himself, James’s disdain for him finally eased a little.
He didn’t linger-he was eager to get back to his wife. After dropping Jetson at the Corden family villa, he drove straight back to the Luke estate.
There was still Jetson’s snot on his sleeve.
Worried Lily might notice and recoil, he first showered in a guest room and changed into clean clothes before heading into their bedroom.
He had barely pushed the door open when Lily hopped off the bed, stormed up to him with puffed cheeks, and demanded, “James, why did you go see Renee again? What are you trying to do?”
Earlier that evening Lily had checked her social feed. As expected, she’d found another of Renee’s “only visible to her” posts.
Renee was like a poisonous snake, lurking in the shadows, always trying to drive a wedge between them.
Lily trusted James’s heart. But knowing he had gone to Renee’s place still made her uneasy.
She knew he wouldn’t willingly do anything with Rence. But a dagger in the dark was harder to guard against. What if Renee tried drugging him? Even if he resisted, the thought was nauseating.
And it hurt more that he still went when it was Susan calling.
He knew Susan schemed after Blanc, yet he still worried about her. That felt unfair to Nancy, and Lily couldn’t smile it away.
“Renee posted pictures,” Lily pressed on, her cheeks puffed out like buns. “One of them had her practically naked under sheer fabric. Did you see her like that?”
“And Susan covets Dad, dreaming of becoming his mistress, yet you care about her? Mom gave birth to you for nothing!”
“If you keep pitying Susan and upsetting Mom, I won’t talk to you anymore!”
“I don’t pity Susan.”
Lily thought she was being fierce.
But with her soft cheeks and bright eyes, James found her unbearably cute, not angry at all.
Seeing her bare feet on the floor, he scooped her up to keep her warm before answering. “I know Susan covets Dad. I would never help her do anything to disappoint Mom.”
Still, Lily glared at him, her eyes saying plainly: If you really wouldn’t, then why did you go see her? Who would believe that?
James couldn’t help but laugh. “I didn’t go of my own accord. Jetson’s back from abroad, I gave him a ride. Susan called, said she was sick. I suspected her intentions, so I went to confirm. If I was right, she’d lose all face with me. And I was right. Jetson, the idiot, even tried to talk me into dropping the charges against Renee. So I held a grudge-I claimed I needed the restroom and sent him upstairs first. Just as I thought, the one waiting in Susan’s room wasn’t her-it was Renee. She was half naked, threw herself on Jetson, scared him so badly he nearly called the cops. Lily, I never looked at Renee, never touched her. I have a wife. The only woman I want to see, the only one I want to hold, is my wife.”
Lily hadn’t been truly furious to begin with. And hearing him say that, all her anger melted away.
When she had first married into the Luke family, he had been cold to her, always issuing warnings. She had never imagined he could speak such tender, coaxing words.
“Lily, I’ll get you some warm water to wash your feet.”
James knew how much Lily liked cleanliness.
The floor wasn’t dirty, but she had walked on it barefoot. To him, that meant she needed to wash again.
She’d already bathed, so he couldn’t shamelessly insist on holding her in the shower. Instead, he fetched a basin and knelt to wash her feet.
Lily hadn’t expected that at all. Her cheeks burned crimson.
She instinctively tried to pull her foot back. “You don’t have to. I can do it myself.”
“It’s an honor to wash my wife’s feet.”
Lily, “…”
Sweet talk!
Yet, oddly, she liked his sweet talk. Her face flushed even deeper.
It wasn’t that washing feet was intimate by itself. But when his hands held her foot so carefully, rubbing gently, her heart pounded as if it would burst from her chest.