Chapter b172 /bSister–inw

    Feeling a pit in her stomach, Renee was about to relinquish her hold when Marcelo spoke.

    “No, thank you.” He refused Vivian directly.

    Marcelo waved in the direction of Damian, who was standing nearby. “Damian will keep youpany.”

    Vivian and Damian were already acquainted.

    “Huh? Oh, sure. I’ll take it from here,“Damian replied.

    want

    He was startled at first, and then bewildered by the sudden task that was thrown in his face. But Marcelo to leave Renee alone and go with another woman, so he agreed without a second though

    The smile froze on Vivian’s face, and her eyes darkened. She swallowed and quicklyposed herself. “Well,” she said, forcing another smile at Damian. “I’m afraid I will have to trouble you in the meantime.”

    Damian paid no mind to her strained expression and carried on as he would with an old friend.

    “It’s no trouble at all. We were just about to y dice, do you care to join us?Renee is quite good at it. Why don’t you give it a try?“Damian offered.

    Wyatt nced sideways at Damian and covered his mouth to keep himself fromughing.

    Renee was already Marcelo’s wife, but Dania was still working so damn hard to stand up for her. It was cute and pitiful at the same time.

    Jason joined the conversation and further encouraged Vivian to y.

    The guests were left dumbfounded. They had been anticipating a dramatic event to happen, so they all had whish from the unexpected turn of events.

    “I thought Damian never got along with Renee?” someone asked in obvious confusion.

    “Why is he helping her now?”

    “I’d like to know the answer to that myself.”

    Just then, Marcelo turned his head to look up at Renee. When he saw that her eyes were trained on Damian, his expression turned grim. “Who are you looking at?”

    Marcelo sounded sullen, and if she didn’t know any better, she would have thought he had caught her cheating with the way he was acting.

    “I’m looking at-“Renee cut herself off and withdrew her eyes from Damian. “Just know that you made the right decision tonight..

    She proceeded to lean over and whispered in his ear, “If you had agreed to go with another woman, you would have been forbidden from sleeping with me for a month.”

    It was a threat, no doubt, but she made it sound like yful banter from a long–time lover.

    As she spoke, her lips brushed against the shell of his ear, causing goosebumps to rise in his arms.Marcelo had to grit his teeth and ball his hands into fists to keep himself from snatching Renee into his arms and kissing her

    senseless.

    “Careful with your lips. You know I don’t mind public disys with you.“he warned her in a low voice.

    Renee pulled back slightly and blinked at him.

    Chapter 172 Sister–inw-

    What did he mean by that?

    Was he seriously going to make out if she doesn’t behave.

    His eyes drifted down to her chest and delicate waist. She had a slender figure that filled out in all the right ces. He had no doubt her delectable derriere was attracting a lot of attention at the moment. He reached up and pinched her cheek.

    “Stand straight.”

    Marcelo then swept a cold nce over the nosy crowd.

    The guests immediately looked away from Renee, scared that their brief ogling of her would bri altering repercussions.

    ife-

    They did feel somewhat aggrieved–only a blind man would be able to resist Renee’s charms! The more they thought about it, the more they envied Marcelo.

    “Do my words mean nothing to you anymore, Marcelo?“Paul mmed his walking stick on the floor, his voice filled with outrage. “How dare you ignore my wishes!”

    Marcelo simply sneered at the old man.

    As for the rest of the King family, they wondered wryly when Paul’s words had ever worked on the headstrong Marcelo.

    Marcelo had already warned themst time, so none of them dared to act so recklessly around him.

    More importantly, Marcelo was the current CEO of KM Group. It wasn’t in their best interests to oppose him in

    any way.

    “Where is she?“Marcelo asked Paul coldly.

    Paul knew that he was talking about Jessica.

    Still scowling, he signaled at the butler to take them to her.

    Paul had enough sense left in him to know when to step back. If he pushed any further, Marcelo would only cause an even bigger scene and ruin the birthday party.

    “Oh my,

    Vivian!“Damian sighed. “Why don’t you focus on the game a little more. You keep losing!”

    The distress in his voice was genuine–he felt a little lonely now that Renee was no longer in the hall.

    Vivian gaped at him in disbelief. What kind of socialite would know how to ce dice in the first ce?

    When she noticed that Renee and Marcelo were headed to the second floor, she instantly jumped to her feet. “I’m going to the bathroom. Please enjoy yourselves.”

    Vivian didn’t give them a chance to stop her and chased after the couple.

    But just as she stepped into the second floornding, she was promptly stopped by the bodyguards stationed there. “My name is Vivian Lambert,” she dered. “I know the woman in the VIP lounge.”

    One of the bodyguards eyed her suspiciously before calling Paul to check if she had permission to enter.

    Jessica was not always allowed to public gatherings because of her condition.Only family members knew that she

    Chapter 172 Sister–in–Tow

    was mentally unstable and they couldn’t risk the public knowing that as well.Only a few trusted people knew about her condition, and Vivian happened to be one of them

    Inside the VIP lounge.

    d in a deep purple dress,Jessica was sitting straight on the sofa and staring at the TV on the wall. The screen disyed a shot of the first floor.

    “Hello, Jessica. How have you been these days?”

    It wasn’t until Renee spoke that Jessica realized someone else was in the room.

    “Renee!“She eximed in delight as she rushed over and sped Renee’s hand. “I’ve missed you

    She then nced at Marcelo, and deliberately rolled her eyes. “Who might this be? Why does he lo

    Jessica was already over fifty years old, but she was still childish in some aspects.

    “He is your son, “Renee replied, catering to her teasing.

    Jessica was highly amused by this.

    my son?”

    Marcelo, on the other hand, didn’t say a word. He let them continue with their talk as if he was made of air.

    After a while, they heard a knock on the door.

    Before anyone could say or do anything, the neer directly opened the door and walked inside.

    “Oh, I’m so sorry! I had no idea you were here, so I just walked in…“Vivian acted all surprised and apologetic before turning to Jessica.

    “Good evening, Jessica. I saw a beautiful dress the other day and thought it would suit you perfectly, so I bought it for you.”

    Marcelo’s face remained nk.

    Neither he nor Renee stopped Vivian.

    Jessica tilted her head and squinted at Vivian. “Who are you?”

    Vivian stopped in her tracks, and for the second time that night, the smile froze on her face.

    Vivian’s smile remained strained as she spoke. “Jessica, it’s me, Vivian. Don’t you remember me?”

    “Oh, it’s you!“Jessica eximed, a sudden realization dawning on her. “You’ve be more beautiful. I didn’t recognize you at first.”

    “Jessica, do you like this dress? Theke blue color really suits you.“Vivian presented a dress from a shopping bag, and Renee immediately recognized it as the one she had liked but had been snatched away by Alma.

    “Of course I love it!Vivian, you have such great taste!“Jessica’s face lit up with joy.

    Vivian subtly nced at Renee, a knowing look passing between them, hinting a provocation.

    “Miss Hudson, I heard you’ve also prepared a gift, “Vivian said, though she immediately regretted her words. She shot a quick nce at Marcelo, worried he might catch on to her intention of making Renee look bad. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to realize, and Vivian breathed a sigh of relief.

    “Really?“Jessica turned her expectant gaze towards Renee

    Chapter 172 Sister–in–Tow

    “Yes.“Renee had indeed prepared something. She picked up the violin she had prepared in advance, positioning it skillfully.

    As she began to y, her movements were both skilled and seamless, filling the air with a melodious and graceful sound.

    The piece,sting only a minute, artfullybined two different styles, embodying elegance and joy, making it a perfect fit for the asion.

    Her violin ying, both in technique and emotion, was top notch.

    Marcelo found himself unconsciously captivated, watching Renee. In that moment, she exuded elegance, seamlessly blending with the violin.

    Her beauty wasn’t merely skin deep–it was the captivating presence she carried.

    And this amazing woman was his wife.

    па

    As the piece concluded, Renee performed an elegant curtsy. Her smile held a touch of girlish yfulness as she said,

    “This piece is dedicated to you,Jessica, I hope you like it.”

    “I love it!“Jessica eximed. “Renee, you are still so outstanding! But I’ve never heard this piece before.”

    “I wrote it myself as a gift for you,” Renee replied.

    “This is simply the best gift I’ve received in years! Sweetie, you’re amazing!“Jessica was thrilled and moved to embrace Renee, but Marcelo intervened, blocking her gently.

    “She gets it. You’re thankful,” he advised, a hint of protectiveness in his tone. “Don’t get too physical. And don’t call her that.”

    He had never used such a term for Renee.

    While people like Sarah could get away with it, others, even his own mother, were not allowed to.

    “You rascal!“Jessica, unable to do anything about her son’s protectiveness, turned to Vivian to boast. “Vivian, Renee has such artistic talent, doesn’t she?”

    Vivian’s face darkened momentarily, but she forced a smile, replying, “Yes, Miss Hudson is very impressive.” She had expected Renee’s gift to pale inparison to her own, thinking she would choose something less remarkable. But Renee had surprised her with this hidden talent.

    “Hey,Vivian, since you and Marcelo are like siblings, you should call Renee ‘sister–inw!” Jessica suddenly remembered that Renee was now her daughter–inw. Her memory wasn’t the best, so the caretaker had to remind her daily of this fact.

    Vivian’s face turned pale as she stammered, “I…”

    She couldn’t bring herself to call Renee that.