"The seller dumped two percent of Holt Group's shares. Pretty bold move. Don't worry, I've got someone watching it for you," Austin said.

Then, with curiosity burning in his voice, he added, "Come on, spill it. What's going on? Don't tell me you, Mr. Holt, are short on cash and decided to sell?"

Sebastian already had a pretty good idea of who it was. At this point, the only person who would be offloading Holt Group shares was probably Julia.

"Buy that two percent for me. And while you're at it, try to scoop up any other scattered shares that hit the market," Sebastian said.

He gave Austing a few more instructions before hanging up.

Then he stood in silence for a moment, his mind spinning, before pulling up Penelope's number.

"Yes, Mr. Holt?"

Across town, Penelope tried to suppress the flutter of excitement in her chest. A call from him in the middle of the night was…

Sebastian di

While looking at the lineup of mysterious and striking designs, Julia felt something stir inside her, something she thought had died long ago. 

Her passion for art was waking up.

"Now you realize how much you've missed, huh?" Haley teased gently from the side, catching the way Julia looked like she might dive straight into a sketchbook.

"Come on, let's go to my office."

Julia reluctantly pulled her gaze away. The pieces on the gallery wall had sparked a sudden, overwhelming urge to create again.

As they walked and chatted about how much the company had grown in recent years, the two entered Haley's office one after the other.

Julia glanced around—it was decorated in Haley's signature style.

If she hadn't chosen marriage and life as a homemaker back then, her office might have looked like this.

"Oh, right. I wanted to ask if you could mentor someone for me. She's a young woman, a 

Xavier's eyes, so much like Sebastian's, immediately clouded with mist as he stared up at Julia.

She hadn't checked on him all night, and she hadn't even brought the creamy corn soup he had asked for.

And now, she didn't even seem to care about his injury? She was blaming him for being dramatic?

His leg really hurt. Why couldn't he stay in the hospital?

His longing for Julia was instantly swallowed by anger.

"I didn't ask for you to come anyway! I'm in the hospital, and Aunt Penny and Daddy are taking care of me!"

Julia's face remained completely expressionless.

Xavier kept his eyes on her. Normally, whenever he mentioned Aunt Penny, Julia would react.

But now…

Something about her silence made him feel suddenly small and wronged. "I'm hurt, and you didn't come to see me. What kind of mom are you?"

Julia let out a cold laugh. That entitled tone was exactly like Sebastian's.

So, because she was the mother, she automatically owed them everything?

Without a word, she brushed past Xavier and headed for the exit.

Xavier's voice cracked with emotion. "You can't go! Mommy, don't go!"

Julia didn't stop. When she lifted her head, she came face-to-face with Sebastian and the others.

Sebastian's gaze was dark, filled with cold anger. He scooped Xavier into his arms and stared at her with contempt. "You really are heartless, Julia."

"Jules, what did Xav ever do to deserve this from you?" Penelope chimed in.

She stood close beside Sebastian, the two of them flanking Xavier, looking like a picture-perfect family.

Julia saw through Penelope's little performance instantly, but she no longer had the energy to care.

"Even if Xav did something wrong, he's still just a kid. He doesn't understand what he's saying. As his mother, shouldn't you be the one who forgives him?" Penelope continued, glancing at Xavier before turning back to Julia.

Xavier pouted, already feeling upset, and after hearing Penelope's words, he felt even worse.

She was right. He hadn't done anything wrong. He just liked playing with Penelope more sometimes. 

It was Julia who was being petty and taking it out on him.

Seeing Xavier cry, Penelope let a few tears fall herself. "Jules, how can you be so heartless?"

With that, she firmly sided with Sebastian. The three of them now glared at Julia as if she were the villain.

Julia let out a bitter, self-mocking smile. "Oh, right. I'm the heartless one. But none of you seemed too concerned when a little kid was running around the hospital unsupervised, huh?"

If she hadn't stepped out of the elevator at that moment, Xavier might've taken it somewhere alone.

She turned to leave, but just then, a nurse hurried down the hallway toward her. "Ms. Summers, here's your medication."

She handed over a plastic bag, nearly full with what clearly wasn't cold medicine.

Sebastian narrowed his eyes. He set Xavier down and stepped toward her, voice low and hoarse. "Are you sick?"

Julia hadn't planned to answer. But if she didn't, he'd probably go snooping around the doctor's office anyway.

She lifted her chin, expression cold and voice razor-sharp. "Yeah. Sick in the head. Love-sick."

Sebastian's expression tightened. He didn't like her tone at all, but after a moment's pause, he said nothing.

Xavier, standing to the side, heard her say she was sick. He didn't catch the sarcasm, and he truly thought she was unwell and opened his mouth to speak.

However, Penelope quickly cut in. "Xav, how about I make you some creamy corn soup, okay? I'll cook whatever you want, as long as you eat something, alright?"

At the mention of creamy corn soup, Xavier's eyes instinctively flicked to Julia, full of wounded longing.

She didn't care about him anymore, so why should he care about her?

But deep down, he still craved her soup more than anything.

After a moment of stubborn silence, Xavier looked up at Julia and said stiffly, "I want creamy corn soup. Are you going to make it or not?"

He finally broke his silence, still hoping that she'd apologize and make up with him.

He looked like he was on the verge of tears, but his tone was still half-demanding, like he was the one doing her a favor.

Julia shook her head slightly. "No. If someone wants to make it, go ahead. I'm not."

Penelope glanced at her with a subtle, smug challenge. "Jules, it's just a bowl of creamy corn soup. It doesn't take that long. Why make Xav sad on purpose? His leg hasn't even healed yet…"

She dabbed at the corners of her eyes and reached for Xavier's hand, full of tenderness. "I'll make it for you, okay?"

"Okay."

Xavier sniffled, glaring at Julia with hurt in his eyes. "Mommy, I don't like you anymore. From now on, I only like Aunt Penny…"

Even though he was still young, Xavier already knew exactly what to say to hurt Julia.

He'd said it countless times. Whenever she made him study and he didn't want to, he'd throw out that line, "I don't like Mommy. I like Aunt Penny."

So Julia knew—he understood perfectly well that those words cut her, and he still chose to use them as a weapon.

"Xavier!"

Sebastian's sharp voice startled him. Xavier flinched, looking even more wronged.

"That's enough. Back in the room, Ms. Snee made it from the same recipe. It won't taste that different," Sebastian said coldly.

Xavier was still a little scared of Sebastian when he got angry. He cast a pitiful glance at Julia, hoping she'd say something.

But she stood still, unmoved. So, Penelope took his hand and led him away.

"Julia, I need to talk to you—"

But she was already done. The checkup was over, and she'd picked up her prescription. Julia didn't even look at Sebastian as she walked straight into the elevator.

Sebastian's expression turned stormy as the doors slid shut. Clearly, he'd spoiled her for too long.

…

Julia returned to Haley's place.

Haley had dropped everything the night before to pick her up and had left early that morning to catch up on work.

Now that Julia had decided to come back to her own life, she knew she'd need to start working behind the scenes again, at least until the baby was born.

She opened her laptop and began reacquainting herself with the workflows she'd once managed.

…

Night fell quickly.

At the Holt residence, Sebastian returned home two or three hours earlier than usual. He was planning to sit down and have a serious talk with Julia.

But the house was empty, and there wasn't a single sign of her.

"Julia didn't come back today?" he asked Moira, who was handing him the dinner menu. 

At his question, she quickly replied, "Ms. Summers hasn't been back at all."

"Call her Mrs. Holt. Or just ma'am, either is fine," Sebastian said coldly, his tone clipped. 

He didn't like the sound of "Ms. Summers". It made it seem like she didn't belong here anymore.

"Ah, yes. Of course," Moira said, flustered. 

So it seemed Julia still had some standing in this house after all.

As for the other woman who came back with them to take care of Xavier, Moira could only guess that it had to be the cunning mistress.

Sebastian, unaware of Moira's assumptions, frowned and headed upstairs.

He waited for hours, but Julia still didn't come home.

Just as he was about to call her, half-suspecting she'd already blocked his number, his phone suddenly lit up.

The caller ID read "Austin Munoz", one of his friends in the industry.

He picked up. "Yeah? What's up?"

"Well, well, Mr. Holt, what's this? Is Holt Group going bankrupt or something?" Austin's lazy drawl came through the line.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I mean, if it's not bankruptcy, then why are your shares being sold off?" Austin's voice had a smug edge. He was clearly enjoying this.

Sebastian glanced at the screen again, confirming it really was Austin's number.

"You sure about that?" Sebastian questioned.

Someone was selling off shares of his company?

"The seller dumped two percent of Holt Group's shares. Pretty bold move. Don't worry, I've got someone watching it for you," Austin said.

Then, with curiosity burning in his voice, he added, "Come on, spill it. What's going on? Don't tell me you, Mr. Holt, are short on cash and decided to sell?"

Sebastian already had a pretty good idea of who it was. At this point, the only person who would be offloading Holt Group shares was probably Julia.

"Buy that two percent for me. And while you're at it, try to scoop up any other scattered shares that hit the market," Sebastian said.

He gave Austing a few more instructions before hanging up.

Then he stood in silence for a moment, his mind spinning, before pulling up Penelope's number.

"Yes, Mr. Holt?"

Across town, Penelope tried to suppress the flutter of excitement in her chest. A call from him in the middle of the night was…

Sebastian didn't waste time. "Penelope, I want you to buy up all the shares that just hit the market."

"Underst

Chapter 13