Chapter 439 - 442: An Estranged High-Society Marriage

Night deepened. Adrian Lancaster and Wren Sutton returned to the old Lancaster estate, one after the other.

Moonlight spilled over the villa’s ornate iron gate.

Adrian Lancaster pushed his car door open and got out. His figure was tall and straight, and he exuded an unapproachable, cold detachment.

A few minutes later, Wren Sutton’s car slowly pulled to a stop. She gathered her overcoat around her, a faint, almost imperceptible sadness in her eyes.

The moment they stepped into the villa’s living room and the door clicked shut, all their public facades completely fell away.

Adrian rose from the sofa without a moment’s hesitation, strode to Wren’s side, and pulled her firmly into his arms.

The heat from his palm was scalding as it enveloped her fingertips. The cold detachment in his eyes vanished completely, replaced by an overwhelming tenderness.

"Honey, we can finally stop pretending. You worked hard tonight. I’m sorry, baby."

Leaning into Adrian’s warm, broad embrace, Wren felt his familiar scent and scalding warmth. The feigned melancholy in her heart instantly dissipated, and she squeezed his hand back tightly.

She looked up, her eyes curving into a smile, a gentle warmth rippling within them.

"You don’t have to apologize. We’re putting on an act. The colder and more distant we seem, the better the effect."

"I think we coordinated perfectly tonight. It was flawless. A lot of people must believe there’s a rift between us now."

Adrian looked down at her, his gaze tender. He reached up and brushed a stray lock of hair from her forehead, his movement so gentle it was almost reverent.

Then, he cupped her face with both hands, the pads of his thumbs stroking her delicate cheeks.

He slowly leaned in, their warm breaths mingling. He gently nuzzled his nose against hers in an intimate, doting gesture, his love for her impossible to hide.

"I’m sorry to put you through this, honey, having to play along with me in a show like this."

Wren tilted her head back, wrapped her arms around Adrian’s neck, and pressed her body against his, full of reliance.

"For our plan, it’s no trouble at all."

Hearing this, Adrian hugged Wren even tighter, as if to meld her into his very bones.

He looked down, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Unable to suppress the love and tenderness welling up in his heart, he instinctively lowered his head and kissed her soft lips.

Wren stood on her tiptoes, returning his kiss.

Under the light, their embracing figures were a picture of tender intimacy, all pretenses and fatigue melting away in that deep, affectionate kiss.

After a long while, they reluctantly parted. Their breaths were slightly ragged, and their eyes were filled with thick, sweet affection.

"Honey, you’re so sweet."

Wren’s face flushed with shyness. She bashfully lowered her gaze, her eyelashes trembling, looking all the more endearing.

The next second, Adrian bent down, swept her up into his arms, and turned to walk toward the stairs.

"It’s getting late, Mrs. Lancaster. We should get some rest."

The warm light elongated the couple’s shadows, and the air was thick with gentle, lingering love and sweetness.

...

The next day, the sky took on the pale cast of dawn.

After waking up, Adrian Lancaster and Wren Sutton exchanged a look of tacit understanding, a mix of reluctance and helplessness.

Wren went to wash up, then packed a single suitcase with just a few changes of clothes.

Dressed and composed, she walked out of the bedroom alone, carrying her suitcase, without giving Adrian a single glance the entire time.

Adrian sat on the living room sofa, exuding a cold, icy aura. He flipped through a document, not getting up to see Wren out, not offering a single word to ask her to stay. He didn’t even let his gaze fall upon her.

The husband and wife had once again started their act of being complete strangers.

Wren carried the suitcase by herself, walking out the main door step by step. She got into a pre-arranged car and headed back to her parents’ home.

The entire process was cold and lonely. With no husband to accompany her and no children in tow, she was all alone, a desolate and frail figure.

At the same time, someone Adrian had arranged in advance was silently and secretly photographing the scene.

The camera was far away, so the image wasn’t sharp, giving it a hazy, blurred quality.

But it precisely captured the lonely image of Wren dragging her suitcase as she left the Lancaster estate.

Before long, this news, accompanied by the photos, began to quietly ferment and spread across the internet.

Mrs. Lancaster leaves home alone, without the children; President Lancaster doesn’t see her off; zero interaction between the couple...

Just a few keywords were enough to pique everyone’s interest in the gossip, and related topics quickly started trending.

Some speculated that the couple’s marriage had completely reached its end.

Others guessed that an irreconcilable conflict had caused Wren to heartlessly abandon her young twins and return to her parents’ home.

Still others speculated that the wealthy marriage was one of convenience, which, combined with the couple’s distant behavior at last night’s banquet, was basically confirmed.

The rumors spread like wildfire, and public opinion fermented layer by layer. Netizens all believed that Adrian Lancaster and Wren Sutton’s relationship was on the rocks and their marriage was on the verge of collapse.

Claire Bennett sat on her bed, her fingertip slowly scrolling across the screen, looking at the photos that had exploded online and the netizens’ fiery comments.

She smiled smugly.

’Adrian was so cold he wouldn’t even see her out. Wren was so disheartened she heartlessly left the twins behind to live separately from him at her parents’ home.’

Claire repeatedly zoomed in on the photos, staring at Wren’s lonely, desolate back. She was certain that her marriage to Adrian was now in jeopardy.

She had been waiting for this opportunity.

’As long as Adrian and Wren are estranged, living apart and giving each other the cold shoulder, I can take the opportunity to get close to Adrian and drive Wren away from his side for good.’

...

Wren Sutton’s car slowly pulled away from the old Lancaster estate. Its wheels rolled over the stone-paved path in front of the gate and gradually disappeared from view.

Adrian Lancaster stood in the foyer. The layer of deliberately feigned coldness and detachment instantly fell away, leaving only the deep-seated tenderness and longing in his eyes.

A moment later, he turned and walked up the stairs toward the nursery on the second floor.

The early winter sunlight streamed through the thin white curtains, casting dappled, soft shadows on the plush, light-beige carpet.

The faint scent of milk hung in the air.

In their crib, Owen and Nina were wide-eyed, their little hands and feet waving unconsciously as they made soft, gurgling sounds. They looked well-behaved and adorable.

Adrian leaned over and picked up both children, holding one in each arm.

The little ones felt their father’s familiar scent and the warmth of his hands, and their waving limbs immediately settled down.

As if on cue, they both nuzzled their heads into the crook of his warm arms, snuggling obediently against him, their tiny hands clutching his sleeves.

Looking at the soft, adorable little babies in his arms, Adrian’s lips curved into a gentle smile.

He adjusted his hold to let them rest more comfortably.

"Are you wondering where Mommy went? Why you can’t see her?"

"Daddy’s here to tell you, Mommy went to Grandma’s house. She’ll be back in a couple of days. She didn’t really leave us."

Adrian knew Owen and Nina couldn’t understand him, but he still wanted to explain it to them clearly.

"Mommy and Daddy are putting on a show together, pretending that we’re not getting along and that we’re fighting. It’s all to fool the bad people hiding in the shadows, the ones with ill intentions, so they’ll lower their guard and fall step by step into the trap we’ve set."

"Once Daddy takes care of the bad people, Mommy will come home. Then our family will never have to be apart again."

He spoke while gently rubbing the babies’ backs.

Owen and Nina, as if they truly understood their father’s words or perhaps just sensed his emotions, responded with soft coos.

Their short legs kicked gently, their little mouths pursed, and they occasionally blew a tiny bubble. They looked utterly adorable.

Adrian’s expression grew even more gentle as he patiently played with his two children.

He reached for a plush comfort toy sitting by the crib, pinched its little ear between his fingers, and dangled it gently in front of the babies.

Every now and then, he would touch the toy to the babies’ little cheeks.

Owen and Nina were so amused their eyes curved into little crescents. They let out clear, gurgling laughs, their little hands reaching out to grab the toy.

His heart melting, Adrian kissed his children’s foreheads, his eyes full of paternal love.

At the same time, he felt an even deeper gratitude for Wren, for giving him such a lovely pair of children.

"Owen, Nina, promise Daddy that we’ll always love Mommy, protect her, and never let her be sad or wronged."