The Scent of 123

Jordyn didn’t notice the indifference in Celeste’s tone. She breathed out a sigh of relief upon hearing what Celeste had just said.

Ivan handed his gift to Betty, and Celeste followed afterward.

The first gift she gave Betty was an embroidery painting. “Grandma had Trevor help prepare this painting for you.

Betty took the painting, unfolded it, and examined it for a while. It was exactly what she wanted. Smiling with satisfaction, she said, “How considerate of her.”

. Next, Celeste handed the emerald jewelry set to Betty. “This is from Trevor.”

The jewelry set was of exceptional quality.

Betty liked it a lot.

– However, since it was a gift from Trevor, she closed the box and put it away right after she took a glance at it. She

remarked in a neutral tone, “It looks lovely. Pass along my thanks to him for me.”

She never asked whether Trevor would come to celebrate her birthday.

She didn’t care enough to ask, nor did she want to.

Celeste knew Betty wasn’t fond of Trevor. She’d have definitely defended Trevor in the

But now, she no longer spoke up for him. She took out the gift she had

past.

ed for Betty and handed it to her.

It was just as Celeste had expected–among all the gifts Betty received, she loved the set of exquisite scholar’s writing set from Celeste the most.

Betty had it in her hand, admiring it nonstop. Immediately, she went to the study and wrote a piece of calligraphy.

Once the gifts were given, they all sat down for breakfast.

The breakfast was filled with warmth and laughter.

Betty, too, was all smiles, clearly delighted.

And yet…

Every so often, a fleeting loneliness could be seen in her eyes.

Celeste, Ivan, and the rest understood that today was, above all, a day for a family reunion.

But on an important day like this, there was one noticeable absence.

The thought made Celeste avert her gaze, her eyes growing misty.

However, to keep the atmosphere light, no one mentioned isabelle.

By mid–morning, the guests with closer ties to the Rodriguez family started to arrive.

They’d dine at a hotel they had reserved for dinner in the evening as well.

It was then that the birthday party would truly commence.

As Celeste was greeting the guests, Ivan’s son, Hector Rodriguez, noticed Jordyn sitting aside, looking bored. Hence, he tenderly rubbed her cheeks and asked, “What are you doing, Jo? You seem lost in thought.”

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Chapter 123

Upon hearing that, Celeste knew Jordyn was missing Wynn

Jordyn did obey Trevor’s words. She stayed in the Rodriguez residence and didn’t sneak away.

But her mind was clearly elsewhere.

Jordyn sent several texts to Wynn in a row today. However, Wynn seeined to be busy too because she barely texted her back.

In the afternoon, they all went to the hotel.

The guests were slowly arriving at around 6:00 pm.

Ivan accepted the gift and guided the guests to their seats. Hesitating for a moment, the guest said, “Apologies, Mr. Rodriguez. I have a banquet to attend today. I’ll just have a glass of water, and I’ll leave.”

Ivan and Celeste understood and didn’t insist, knowing the guest had other plans.

Initially, they thought it was just an exception.

But half an hour later, a lot of business partners handed over their gifts and then left. On top of that, several guests opted to have their secretaries bring the gifts instead of coming themselves.

Given the current situation, it seemed that the majority of the reserved tables would go unused tonight.

It was disappointing to see this. After all, it was such a joyous occasion with a well–prepared birthday feast. Betty would probably be upset once she found this out.

Ivan could understand if the guest had decided to leave early for personal reasons.

It was just that his expression would certainly be far from cheerful.

Seeing how everyone was rushing to another banquet, Ivan couldn’t help but turn to Robert Langley, who had a closer relationship with him, and asked, “A lot of friends mentioned that they didn’t have time for food tonight, and they all said they’re going to another banquet. Mind if I ask, Mr. Langley, to which banquet you’re heading next?”

Those who didn’t stay or left after giving presents–could they be attending the same banquet as Robert? What were the odds of such a coincidence if not for that?

“I’m heading to the Shaw Residence,” Robert replied. Seconds later, he added, “Oh, it’s the grandmother’s house of Mr. Fleming’s girlfriend. They’re not from Letville. Since they’re moving to the Baumond, they’ve purchased a house not long ago. Today’s the day of their housewarming party.”

Upon hearing that, Celeste and Ivan’s expression darkened

They thought there wouldn’t be any other matters to deal with for a while once they had resolved the villa issue. They had never expected the Shaws to have something like this planned for them.

And they refused to believe that it was just a coincidence that the Shaws had their housewarming party today.

After all, Betty had known Wynn’s maternal grandmother for years, and they had celebrated countless birthdays together.

Thus, could the Shaws really forget the fact that today was Betty’s birthday?

No, they must have remembered.

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They purposely held a housewarming party today, just because they remembered Betty’s birthday.

Robert was unaware of the grievances between the Rodriguezs, the Shaws, and the Lockets.

He could understand how Ivan felt, seeing the empty tables at such a meticulously planned birthday feast.

Lowering his voice, Robert uttered, “There’s nothing I can do, really. The Shaws are backed by Mr. Fleming, and they’ve sent the invitation. We’re not familiar with the Shaws, but who would dare refuse Mr. Fleming? I had no choice, Ivan…”

If he skipped the Shaws‘ housewarming party or just attended briefly without eating, they’d sure think he was snubbing them.

Besides, rumor had it that Trevor was going to marry Wynn soon.

Hence, it’d be like offending both Wynn and Trevor if they offended the Shaws.

And upsetting Trevor was something they couldn’t risk.

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Chapter 124

Chapter 124