Chapter 8

"I..." Grace's face turned bright red, clearly trying to argue. But Julian didn't give her the chance, flashing a polite smile as he cut in, "Even if I'm not exactly a model citizen, I still carry the Everett surname. Got my name inked right in the Everett family registry. If you've got an issue with that, Mrs. Andrews, feel free to take it up with my grandpa." Grace was fuming inside, but she didn't dare make another peep. Julian wasn't wrong—no matter what people said about him, just being an Everett was more than enough to make the Andrews family keep their heads down. Julian turned to Evelyn, gave a small shake of his head, and said, "Now I get why you admitted you were blind today, Evelyn." Evelyn chuckled and shrugged like it was nothing. "With this bunch? You'd have to be blind not to see it," Julian added, without sparing anyone, not even George. The others in the room turned visibly sour, while Evelyn just looked around at their darkened faces, letting out a soft laugh. Once her amusement faded, her voice turned frigid as she looked at Nathaniel. "Since there's nothing between us anymore, then get lost." That was pretty much the mic drop—she had kicked him out without hesitation. Nathaniel bit down hard, his glare practically screaming he wanted to rip Evelyn apart. Edward Andrews gave George a furious death-stare. "This is the lovely daughter you raised, huh? We Andrews really couldn't afford her." With that, he didn't even wait for George to respond. He turned and stormed off exuding pure rage. Grace, still fuming, grabbed Nathaniel's arm and dragged him out too. George's rage had his face twisted and vein-popped, his hands shaking as he pointed at Evelyn. "Evelyn, you've gone way too far! How shameless can you be?!" He'd already decided in his mind that she and Julian were involved, and now he was glaring at both of them, lunging forward with his hand raised to hit her. Julian narrowed his eyes, grabbing George's wrist with all his strength, stopping him cold. "You wanna try that?" Julian had heard every word George threw at Evelyn earlier—even before he stepped into the room. A real father should've been worried about what she went through today. Instead, George came in guns blazing, making her out to be some kind of disgrace. That alone said everything about what kind of life Evelyn must've been living in that house. Julian's gaze turned sharp and cold. And for some reason, thinking about all she'd endured made something in his chest tighten.Behind her, Evelyn glanced at the man standing protectively in front of her. She slowly stepped out from Julian's shadow, her lips parting slightly. "Have you ever bothered to really know who I am? My dear father?" Her tone dripped with sarcasm. George's face twisted with irritation, his eyes full of disdain as he looked at her. Ever since his wife Clara Hayes passed away, it didn't even take him a month to bring Amelia and Emily into the house. At that time, Emily was barely half a year younger than Evelyn. From that point on, Evelyn gradually faded from his radar. Though she was the eldest daughter of the Knight family, aside from Charles's obvious affection, to George, she may as well have been invisible. And once Amelia gave birth to their son, Felix Knight, George completely washed his hands of any parental duty toward her. To him, Evelyn wasn't a daughter, just a pawn—useful for networking and pushing his business forward. Amelia looked on with raised brows at the tense standoff between father and daughter. She leaned back, watching the drama unfold with a look that said she was enjoying the show. George felt utterly humiliated today, especially after Evelyn had shut him down more than once without giving him a chance to respond. His voice tightened, full of suppressed anger. "I'm your father. Is that how you speak to me?" Julian couldn't help feeling how laughable this was. Was this seriously how a father is supposed to act? Evelyn's lips curled into a cold smile. "If you weren't my father, I wouldn't have to stand here letting you accuse me like this for no reason." "You—" She turned her gaze away, voice still icy. "Now you remember you're my father? Where were you before when it actually mattered?" Without sparing him another glance, Evelyn looked at Julian and said, "Thanks for bringing the necklace back. Sorry you got dragged into today's mess." She hadn't expected Julian to show up at her place. This twist didn't quite align with her original plan, but it wasn't a big deal. At least they'd grossed Nathaniel out—and the engagement was off. That was enough for now. As for the rest, she'd deal with them one by one and make sure they paid. The Andrews family wanted to be on top in Lichester? Over her dead body. Evelyn would see to it they fell from grace. This game was just getting started—and she had no plans of going easy. Julian gave a casual shrug. "Didn't think I'd walk into all this either. But it's fine. I don't mind a good show."Noticing George's furious face out of the corner of his eye, Julian leaned in close to Evelyn right in front of him, lowering his voice with a hint of playfulness, "That idea you brought up earlier… suddenly sounds pretty tempting."