Chapter 717

Chapter 717

Steve’s slap echoed through the room, bringing a sudden silence.

This wasn’t the first time Selena had felt his hand. She cradled her cheek, collapsing to the floor in tears.

lan sat on the couch, his face a mask of Indifference as he watched the altercation unfold.

Flashes of the past flickered through his mind. This wasn’t new. It had been like this since he was a kid.

He casually picked up a glass of water from the table, taking a sip before calling out to a passing servant, “When’s

dinner ready?”

He seemed utterly unfazed by the chaos unfolding around him.

” I = 9 x 9

Seeing her son’s cold reaction, Selena’s sorrow deepened, her crying intensified.

The room was filled with servants, and Steve felt embarrassed as he said, “If you’re going to cry, go do it outside.

Don’t ruin our Christmas.”

Selena hastily picked herself up and ran to the kitchen.

Steve sighed in relief, but guilt quickly took its place as he turned his gaze to lan.

Ever since lan’s head injury, Steve realized that he had missed many important moments in his son’s life.

“Tan.”

With just that word, lan put down his glass.

“Dad, let’s talk later.”

Steve had originally intended to apologize, but at lan’s words, he kept quiet.

The sound of Selena’s crying from the kitchen was grating on his nerves.

After a few moments, Steve finally stood up, grabbing his coat, he hoarsely said,

“I won’t be eating dinner here tonight.”

He’d rather spend the evening with his employees.

Hearing that, Selena sprinted out of the kitchen.

‘Honey, please don’t leave. I’ll stop crying. Let’s have dinner here tonight, it’s Christmas after all.”

In the end, Selena gave in. Her greatest fear was Steve ignoring her.

But all Steve felt for her was disgust.

His gaze naturally fell on lan.

It had been a long time since he’d shared a meal with his son, but now lan was also standing.

“I’m leaving too.”

Selena’s face hardened instantly; her eyes filled with resentment.

She believed that her son had no affection for their home, and even less respect for her.

Taking a deep breath, she forced a smile onto her face.

“Dinner’s ready. Are you really going to leave me here to eat by myself?”

But lan was already at the door, seemingly ignoring her words.

Finally, Selena couldn’t hold back any longer and began to curse.

lan and Steve left even faster, the sound of Selena’s screams echoing behind them.

lan stood in front of his car, just as he was getting in, Steve slid into the passenger seat.

“Give me a ride home, or we could grab something to eat.”

‘No need, I’ve got a date.”

The fireworks for the evening were ready. He was going to spend the rest of the day with Penny.

But he could give Steve a lift.

Seeing the tenderness in his eyes, Steve ventured a guess, “Someone special?”

“Yeah.”

This was the first–time they had talked about such things.

Steve once again reached into his pocket, the cross was still there, but he couldn’t find the words.

The ones he owed wasn’t just lan, but also Eric.

Over the years, he’d been so caught up in his work that he could never spend quality time with his two sons.

The year Eric died, his grandfather retired, and Steve’s responsibilities became even heavier.

The Raymond family always needed someone to step up, otherwise, their vast fortune would surely attract the

greed of others.

It wasn’t really about Lillian. Even though he was very unhappy with Selena but she was still the mother of his two

children.

However, over the years, Selena couldn’t get over her own mental hurdle. Whenever something happened, she

would bring up Lillian and get angry.

He didn’t have much affection for her to begin with, and in the end, all he felt was disgust.

Steve was a rational man but dealing with a woman who had been angry for over twenty years, he’d finally had

enough. He’d rather stay out of her sight and spend some peaceful time.

In the past, when Eric was around, they would have a chat, and they had a good rapport.

But then Eric had that accident, and his grandfather retired, leaving Steve with more responsibilities.

The last time he came home, he realized his relationship with lan was beyond repair.

His hand fumbled in his pocket, but seeing the indifference in his son’s eyes, he stared straight ahead, his face

stern.