CHAPTER 33: CHAPTER 33: SENSUALITY—FROM LITTLE SISTER TO WIFE

The call went unanswered. Zinnia dialed again and again, but the other end remained silent. She didn’t know if he hadn’t seen her calls or if he was intentionally teaching her a lesson by refusing to answer.

"That dog Forrest isn’t answering? Of course, he wouldn’t!" Yara Fairchild said through gritted teeth.

"Did you upset Jenson? Say something!" Gloria Grant shoved Zinnia anxiously.

The push sent Zinnia staggering. Her bag fell to the ground, and a divorce agreement tumbled out. It was a fresh copy Zinnia had printed and signed, ready to throw in Jenson Forrest’s face the next time she saw him and force him to sign it.

Gloria Grant snatched it up and stared at Zinnia in disbelief. "What in the world did you do? Jenson doesn’t want you anymore? It’s a complete disaster! Go find him right now and beg him to take you back! Get on your knees and beg him! Go!"

A wave of exhaustion washed over Zinnia. This was her biological mother. Her daughter was getting divorced, but she wasn’t concerned about what Zinnia had suffered. Her only worry was losing her life of luxury.

Zinnia forcefully shook off Gloria Grant’s hand. "If you want to kneel, you can go kneel yourself!"

Gloria Grant stumbled back. She was about to erupt in anger, but when she met Zinnia’s hard, cold gaze, she froze. She was the type to bully the weak and fear the strong, so she immediately cowered.

Zinnia couldn’t just stand by and watch her brother get kicked out of the hospital. She took Yara Fairchild’s hand.

Yara Fairchild immediately reassured her, "Don’t worry, go. I’ll stay here and make sure nothing happens to your brother."

Only then did Zinnia clutch her phone and hurry out of the hospital.

「Evening. The Imperial Court.」

It was the biggest den of indulgence in Veridia, a place frequented only by the top echelons of society. Zinnia had found out from Miles Chase that Jenson Forrest had a gathering here tonight.

Ordinary people couldn’t get into the club, so Zinnia waited outside. Miles arrived quickly. He was dressed in a burgundy V-neck suit. His hair was casually styled, with fine bangs slightly veiling his devil-may-care eyes. He exuded the noble air of someone raised in opulence, impossibly charming.

"Brother Miles, I’m relying on you."

Miles Chase smiled and raised an eyebrow. "Zinnia, you’ve gotten even prettier in the two years I haven’t seen you. Come on, Brother Miles will take you in."

They soon arrived at the door of a rather secluded private room. Miles Chase stopped and spoke to Zinnia. "I’ve already spoken to the staff. From now on, whenever you come, just head straight to this room. I keep it reserved for small gatherings with my close friends, so it’s not open to the public. If you’re looking for Third Brother, you’ll always find him here."

"Thank you, Brother Miles."

Zinnia smiled and thanked him again, not thinking she would ever be back to look for anyone. Once she and Jenson Forrest were divorced, their social circles would completely diverge.

A waiter pushed the door open, and decadent music and conversation spilled out.

"Ha, Zinnia compared to Crystal? Third Brother will definitely choose Crystal. Think of how many times he’s given Zinnia the cold shoulder for Crystal’s sake these past two years."

"Not necessarily. Zinnia was raised by Third Brother himself. If not a husband’s love, there must at least be the affection of a brother for his sister, right? Back in the day, he doted on her. He’d have given her the moon if she’d asked for the stars."

Zinnia froze at the door.

The voices inside continued, one laced with endless sarcasm. "Pfft! That’s just Third Brother being protective of his own! It’s in his nature. Even a pet he raises has to be the best, right, Third Brother?"

Zinnia recognized the voice. It was Finn Quinn.

She held her breath, hoping to hear Jenson deny it, but all she heard was a man’s mocking, indifferent voice. "If you know I’m protective of my own, then shut up!"

Zinnia felt that cold voice slice through her skin like a sharp knife, and the blood that flowed from it ran cold. Katherine Rhodes had told her she was worse than a dog raised by the Forrest family. It turned out that in Jenson Forrest’s eyes, she, Zinnia Lawrence, was nothing more than the best-kept pet he had ever raised. A plaything for his brothers to freely comment on, compare, and mock at gatherings like this.

Zinnia’s face turned pale. Just then, the people inside finally noticed them.

"Yo, Brother Miles is here! And you brought a new girl? She must be a stunner! Quick, let me get a look!"

Someone shouted as he came over and pulled Miles aside, exposing Zinnia to everyone’s view. Her gaze met the man’s, who was sitting in the middle of the large sofa.

Zinnia’s eyes glided over the delicate figure beside the man, a faint smile touching her lips.

Oh, Crystal Sutton is here too. How embarrassing to have disturbed them again.

The lively atmosphere suddenly turned cold and silent.

Crystal Sutton surveyed the room, her eyes filled with jealousy. It was simple: Zinnia was too beautiful. Standing there quietly without a trace of makeup, she had an otherworldly beauty, like a character stepping out of a painting. She was like the first red plum blossoming on a snow-white branch in winter, effortlessly stealing all the color from the world.

"Zinnia? Come in and sit down." Crystal quickly walked over to Zinnia and reached out to pull her, acting as if the whole drowning incident had never happened.

Zinnia sidestepped her. Crystal’s hand froze awkwardly in mid-air, her expression strained.

"Who is this? Can’t even give Miss Sutton face. Be careful you don’t act too high and mighty and pull a muscle," the young starlet Lucy Lucas piped up. Crystal was Jenson’s date, and Lucy wanted to get on her good side.

The atmosphere grew even more tense.

Zinnia looked at Jenson Forrest, her gaze clear and cold. She had no intention of going inside. "Can you come out for a moment?" she asked.

Jenson’s thin lips pursed, his eyes glinting with coldness. The man sat with his legs crossed, his long fingers swirling the red wine in his glass. He didn’t move.

The room was a kaleidoscope of flashing lights, filled with young masters and beautiful women. He sat in the center of it all, his deep-set features and regal air making him the undeniable focal point.

He remained silent and still, and no one else dared to make a sound. The atmosphere was even more rigid than before. The invisible humiliation made Zinnia want to turn and walk away. But Mason’s life was on the line; Zinnia had no choice.

She bit her lip and spoke again. "I have something to discuss..."

Only then did Jenson speak. "Who let you come here? If you have something to say, we’ll talk about it back home."

The implication was clear: You’re not welcome here. Get out.

An icy chill shot up Zinnia’s spine, leaving her hands and feet numb. She shouldn’t have come. She had walked right into her own humiliation.

Miles had brought her, and he hadn’t expected the situation to turn sour so quickly. He raised his hand, intending to put it on Zinnia’s shoulder to convince her to stay, but before he could touch her, he felt a lethal glare directed at him.

Tsk.

He curled his hand into a loose fist, coughed lightly into it, and said, "Zinnia, did you have a fight with Third Brother? No wonder he’s had a sour face all night. That’s all the more reason for you not to leave. Come on, your Brother Miles here has a high EQ. Let me mediate for you two."

Someone teased, "With the speed Brother Miles changes girlfriends monthly, are you trying to get Third Brother to switch partners too?"

"Get lost!" Miles shot back with a laugh.

Crystal Sutton lowered her head, her eyes shifting. She knew exactly why Jenson was being so merciless with Zinnia. She quickly grabbed Zinnia’s arm to stop her from leaving.

"This is Winston’s welcome-home party. He must have personally invited you, Zinnia," she said. "After all these years, you and Winston are still so close. You never like to go out, but you’re a different person now that Winston is back."

Winston’s welcome-home party?

Zinnia had no idea. She had seen in the news that he was returning to the country, but she didn’t know it was today. She hadn’t seen Winston Forrest in two years and missed him. Besides, she had to resolve Mason’s situation tonight. Caught between everything, she was half-pushed, half-pulled toward the sofa.

Crystal sat down, nestling close to Jenson. "Sit beside me, Zinnia. We can chat." She motioned for Zinnia to sit, positioning herself between Zinnia and Jenson.

The chill emanating from Jenson intensified, and the knuckles of the hand gripping the wine glass had turned white. He treated Zinnia as if she were air, and Zinnia had no desire to fawn over him.

Expressionless, she shook off Crystal’s hand and walked to a single armchair at the very edge of the seating area. "Go on," she said. "Who queued this song? Isn’t anyone going to sing it?"

The song that was cued up was Lucy Lucas’s hit single. She, wanting to wow the crowd, immediately rose to her feet elegantly.

The seductive melody began, and the atmosphere in the room grew lively again, though it remained somewhat strange. Everyone went back to their own fun, but they were all secretly watching Zinnia, Jenson, and Crystal.

Although Zinnia had grown up in the Forrest family, she didn’t share their name. She was practically invisible at first. That all changed when Zinnia turned twelve. Jenson nearly beat a man to death for her in public, an incident the Forrest family had to expend great effort to cover up. From then on, everyone in Veridia knew that Third Young Master Forrest had a stunningly beautiful and treasured younger sister.

But Jenson was fiercely protective, and given their age difference, he rarely brought Zinnia out. The young masters present had seen her at most once or twice, so they were hardly familiar with her.

Later, the sister became his wife. The little orphan of the Forrest family became its future mistress, and in such a scandalous way. The taboo and lurid nature of it all made Zinnia a frequent topic of private discussion.

However, Jenson had spent much of the last few years abroad and had never once appeared in public with Zinnia. Over time, the gossip eventually died down. Today was a rare occasion to see the couple in the same place, yet they weren’t sitting together. Instead, Jenson was sitting with his ex-girlfriend.

Combined with the fact that they had been married for two years without a formal wedding, and that Jenson had followed Crystal abroad to build his empire, it led to a tacit understanding among everyone. The glances they cast at Zinnia were a mixture of pity, disdain, and scorn.

Zinnia was well aware of this and had long grown accustomed to it.

She took out her phone and sent a message to Yara Fairchild on WeChat.

[Things are a bit tricky here. This might take a while.]

Yara Fairchild replied with a sticker: a knife was plunged into a dog’s body, its head photoshopped to look like Jenson’s.

Zinnia’s lips curved into a slight smirk, but Crystal’s voice cut through the air. "Are you messaging Winston, Zinnia? When is he going to arrive?"