The atmosphere in the living room turned frosty in an instant.


    Cyrus recognized that he couldn''t and wouldn''t be able to persuade Alyssa. If he tried, he would only


    make the situation worse. So, he retreated discreetly.


    Angelina also brought Lauren away, leaving space for the rest to talk.


    Jasper held his breath. His hands were trembling. Subconsciously, he reached out, wanting to hold


    Alyssa''s hand. But, he stopped midway and curled his fingers in. He really didn''t want Alyssa to leave.


    He was never a coward. When he loved someone, he would love them fully. When there was someone


    he hated, he hated them to the core.


    It was just that he was indebted to Alyssa. At the same time, he felt guilt toward Winston.


    No matter if it was the three years of heart-rending marriage or Alyssa''s miscarriage... These were all


    his fault. He was the one who hurt Winston''s precious daughter. He hadmitted an unpardonable


    sin.


    He didn''t mind if Winston berated him or even beat him up again. He would allow him to vent his anger


    until he was cated.


    "What are you thinking, Winston?" Alyssa scoffed.


    With an adamant look, she continued, "I wouldn''t have risked falling and running away from home if I


    wanted to listen to you. I think it''s best for you not to focus so much on me.


    "I had spent all those years being away and wandering in a foreignnd. You didn''t turn the entire


    country inside out to find me back then. Yet now, you are scheming and using every possible means


    just so you can ruin my happiness?"


    Jasper pressed his lips tightly together and stepped forward. Alyssa still had a determined look on her


    face. He stared at her side profile with a gaze filled with concern.


    "Alyssa! You." Winston''s face turned pale, and his breathing became irregr. A fire of rage burned


    from within him. "Look at you now! Are you still my precious daughter?


    "You even went to the supermarket in person to do your own groceries. Have you had to cook your own


    meals these few days?


    This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.


    "You were no different from a housekeeper in the Beckett family, except that you worked without pay for


    three years. Haven''t you had enough of that? Is this the kind of love that you wanted? Is this the kind of


    life that you wanted to have?"


    The more Winston spoke, the more enraged he became.


    She was the only daughter he had had with the woman he loved the most. She should be loved! How


    could she suffer a lire like that?


    Didn''t Jasper know how to get the chores done?


    "Winston, this is the life that I have always wanted. A normal life."


    Alyssa was filled with a plethora of emotions. She choked on her tears as she continued, "I don''t think


    that I am suffering in any way because this is what I want. I want a life with just the two of us under one


    roof and spending our days together."


    Blood drained from Jasper''s lips, and his fingers curled up into a fist of regret.


    Spending their days together...


    Words were not enough to express Jasper''s feelings for Alyssa. That was what Alyssa had always


    wanted. But he had only managed to fulfill her wishes now.


    "You have never experienced these. Neither have you really understood me. I would go as far as to say


    that you didn''t even know what Mom wished for. So, you do not have the right to dictate my life. You


    cannot get in the way of the choice that I''ve made."


    Alyssa''s words pierced through Winston''s heart. The world in front of him gradually became a blur.


    "Also, these days, Jasper has been the one doing the cooking. He cleaned the house and did my


    Alyssa wrapped her warm hands around Jasper''s tightened fist. She intertwined her fingers with his,


    then said, "My Jasper knows how to do everything other than having kids. So, you don''t have to be


    such a busybody and worry about me.


    "Feel free to stay for a meal tonight, and you''ll get to try Jasper''s cooking. Otherwise, you may take


    your leave."


    After Cyrus retreated, he hadn''t actually left because he still had matters to speak with Alyssa about.


    He simply strolled around in the manor.


    He ended up walking along a long corridor. There, he discovered paintings that had been framed up in


    delicate-looking copper frames that were hung up on the walls.


    Some of them were paintings of scenery of the early summer. Some had lively dogs. But, more than


    that, there were portrait paintings.


    He couldn''t help but stop in front of a three-foot-tall painting.


    The painting portrayed a man in a ck shirt. He was slender and tall, with broad shoulders and a


    narrow waist. His eyes were as bright as a star. The man depicted in the painting was none other than


    Landon.


    Cyrus widened his eyes and inspected the artwork carefully. His decent upbringing refrained him from


    giving in to his urge to touch the painting.


    "What an impressive piece. It is as lifelike as a photograph."