He Wouldn't Claim Me — Another Man Did

Chapter 182 - 168: Like

Luna Langley spent the night at the hospital. Her condition stabilized, so the doctor discharged her.

Silas Lockwood didn’t go to the office that morning so he could handle her discharge paperwork. He took her back to Sutton Gardens before changing and heading to work.

"Get some rest at home, and call me if you start to feel unwell." Silas was still worried as he was about to leave.

"I will. You should get to work. Drive safe."

"Alright."

The two of them had never spoken to each other like this before. Even Aunt Sinclair could tell they had grown much closer overnight.

Luna Langley slept for the afternoon. That evening, Silas Lockwood came home right on time. He had just walked in, and before the two could even speak, Arthur Vance followed closely behind.

"President Langley!" Arthur Vance rushed in, making a beeline for Luna Langley. But a glimpse of Silas Lockwood from the corner of his eye brought him to a screeching halt. "President Lockwood, hello."

Silas Lockwood had felt a pang of guilt over his unfriendly attitude toward Arthur Vance last time, but seeing him show up at their home today made that guilt instantly evaporate.

He gave a faint nod in acknowledgment.

Arthur Vance was in a hurry and didn’t have time to worry about Silas Lockwood’s cold expression. He turned to Luna Langley. "President Langley, I have something to report to you."

"Let’s talk in the study upstairs."

"Alright."

As Arthur Vance was about to follow Luna Langley upstairs, he felt a chilling gaze land on him.

He turned back sheepishly to check with Silas Lockwood. "President Lockwood, I... can I go to the study?"

Silas Lockwood said nothing, merely making a "go ahead" gesture with his hand.

Arthur Vance quickly scurried upstairs.

Luna Langley laughed at him. "It’s rare to see you so afraid of someone."

At the company, Arthur was the intimidating VP Vance, the kind of person employees would take a detour to avoid.

’Everyone meets their match.’

"Because I always get the feeling President Lockwood wants to eat me alive." Arthur Vance still shuddered at the memory of Silas’s glare. "President Langley, why is he so hostile toward me?"

’How should I know?’

"Let’s get to business," Luna Langley said.

"Right."

Arthur Vance had come because he discovered that the shelf collapse at the site, the one that injured Luna Langley, was no accident.

"Director Langley was behind it."

The Director Langley he mentioned was Blake Langley, The Langley Group’s Finance Director and Luna Langley’s younger uncle.

"This is about all he’s capable of." Luna had always considered Blake Langley a good-for-nothing.

"It’s more than that, President Langley. While auditing the books today, I also found that he’s been tampering with the company’s tax filings. I’m afraid this injury was just an appetizer. His ultimate goal might be..."

"To do what?"

"To send you to prison."

Luna Langley’s expression barely changed. "You need to find a way to resolve the tax and accounting issues. As soon as possible."

"Understood. The problem is, I still don’t know how big of a hole he’s dug. If we can’t patch it up..."

"We have to patch it, even if you think we can’t. Take a team tonight and go over everything again, meticulously. This is our top priority right now. You can ignore everything else for the time being."

"Yes, President Langley."

Arthur Vance left.

Luna Langley sat in the study, her mind in turmoil.

After her father passed away, her uncle, Blake Langley, had repeatedly opposed her, relying on the old master’s support. If this wasn’t handled well, she was afraid the entire Langley Group would be affected.

’That idiot. He probably thought burning his bridges would be enough to crush me, not realizing his despicable methods would only result in mutual destruction.’

Luna Langley walked to the window and made a call.

"What’s the status of the matter I had you investigate?"

"We have what you need."

"Send all the evidence to Blake Langley’s email. Also, print a copy and have it delivered to the old master."

"Yes, President Langley."

--

When Luna Langley left the study, her head began to throb again.

Downstairs, her mother-in-law, Yvette Shaw, had arrived.

"Luna!" Yvette Shaw saw Luna Langley coming downstairs and waved with a smile. "I heard from Silas that you were injured. How are you? Are you alright?"

"Mom, I’m fine."

"That’s good to hear. Come, let’s eat."

This was only the second time Luna Langley and Yvette Shaw had met. Unlike the effusive, fawning warmth of their first meeting, Yvette was polite yet distant toward Luna today.

’Perhaps now that The Langley Group’s funds had been transferred to The Lockwood Group, she no longer felt the need to act.’

Luna Langley couldn’t be bothered to guess what was on Yvette Shaw’s mind.

After the three of them finished dinner, Yvette Shaw pulled Silas Lockwood into the courtyard for a walk.

Luna Langley went back to her room. With Aunt Sinclair’s help, she gave herself a quick wash and changed her clothes. By the time she came out of her room, Silas Lockwood and Yvette Shaw had returned to the living room downstairs.

"Silas, you have to listen to what I just told you. My information is absolutely reliable. The situation at The Langley Group is about to change drastically. When it does, Luna Langley will very likely be in trouble. You must divorce her as soon as possible. Letting her go is the only way to protect yourself."

Yvette Shaw’s voice drifted faintly up to Luna Langley’s ears.

Luna Langley frowned. ’How could Yvette Shaw know that things at The Langley Group were about to change? Was her reach really that long?’

"I know that for all these years, Isabelle has been the only one in your heart. You were forced to marry Luna Langley; there was no other choice. You two don’t have any feelings for each other, so you should make a clean break to avoid being harmed."

’Silas Lockwood’s heart only had room for Isla Prescott...’

’A mother knows her son best. Perhaps Yvette Shaw was the one who understood Silas Lockwood better than anyone.’

In that instant, Luna Langley’s heart plummeted.

"Didn’t you hear me? I told you not to bring this up again!" Silas Lockwood’s angry voice floated up. "I am not going to divorce her. You can say it ten thousand times, and I still won’t divorce her."

"Why? You don’t even like her!"

"Who says I don’t like her?"

"Silas, don’t just say that to spite me."

"I’m not trying to spite you. I really like her."

’Silas likes me?’

Luna Langley’s heart instantly soared.

Her emotions had been on a roller coaster, and now, all that remained was an overwhelming sense of joy.

Luna Langley wanted to hear what else Silas Lockwood would say, but just then, the phone in her hand rang without warning.

The ringtone startled the two people downstairs.

Silas Lockwood and Yvette Shaw turned their heads at the same time, spotting Luna Langley in the upstairs hallway.

"Luna..." Seeing that Luna Langley had heard their conversation, Yvette Shaw grew flustered. "Don’t misunderstand, I... I..."

Even though Yvette Shaw was trying to convince Silas Lockwood to divorce her, Luna Langley had no intention of going downstairs for a confrontation. She couldn’t be bothered to deal with Yvette Shaw. She simply glanced at Silas Lockwood, then turned and went back into her room.

"Mom, you should go home for now. If you need anything in the future, call me. I’ll visit you at Arcadia Heights. You don’t need to come to Sutton Gardens again."

Silas Lockwood’s meaning was clear: it was no longer necessary for his mother, Yvette Shaw, and his wife, Luna Langley, to meet.

Yvette Shaw was furious when she heard this. "Silas! Why won’t you listen to me? I’m doing this for your own good! Neither you nor The Lockwood Group should be dragged into The Langley Group’s internal struggles."

"I know you mean well, but I know what’s best for me." Silas Lockwood stood up, looked his mother in the eye, and said firmly, "I will not sacrifice my feelings for anyone or anything ever again. I won’t let the regrets of the past be repeated."