The Perfect Wife's Perfect Revenge novel Chapter 145

The next day, Victoria spent the entire day buried in work at Quantum Core Technologies, hardly giving a thought to her daughter.

She’d meant to call Gwyneth once the sun came up, but once she got back to the office, the idea completely slipped her mind.

By the time she remembered—after clocking out and heading home—she was already back at the Turner estate.

As she stepped out of her car, she immediately noticed McNeil’s sleek sedan parked in the driveway.

It was a rare thing for surprise to flicker across Victoria’s face. She checked the license plate twice, but it was definitely his.

She was still puzzling over it when the car door swung open and Violet stepped out.

"Should I be calling you ‘cousin’ now?" Violet teased, a sly smile on her lips. "After all, you’re the daughter of my soon-to-be uncle."

Only then did Victoria recall what Simms had said the night before about important guests coming for dinner—he’d meant McNeil and Violet.

Realizing this, Victoria knew it was too late to make an escape.

Simms happened to emerge from the house just then, catching sight of the group.

“Victoria, you’re back! Come help welcome our guests.”

Victoria let out a silent, sardonic laugh, the corners of her mouth twitching into a wry smile. McNeil met her gaze across the drive, his eyes utterly impassive.

He looked at her as if she were a stranger, then turned to enter the house with Violet, his expression unreadable.

Inside, Yulia was busy directing the household staff as they set the table, radiating the air of a lady of the house.

It dawned on Victoria, then—regardless of formal titles, as far as Simms was concerned, Yulia had long since taken the place of his wife.

Still, “Mrs. Miller” and “Ms. Morris” were not quite the same, no matter how you spun it.

Without betraying any emotion, Victoria followed them inside, maintaining the polite distance of strangers between herself and McNeil.

“Violet, Mr. Langford, dinner’s about to be served—please have a seat,” Yulia called out warmly.

Simms was already seated at the head of the table, Yulia beside him.

Despite being Simms’s daughter, Victoria was relegated to a seat farther down, facing Violet and the others.

“You’ve all met at Grandma’s birthday last time, so there’s no need for introductions,” Simms announced with shameless ease, showing no hint of awkwardness.

McNeil pulled out a chair for Violet and thoughtfully arranged her silverware.

Not once did he look Victoria’s way; his attention seemed wholly fixed on Violet. Both Simms and Yulia exchanged satisfied glances—they’d clearly noticed how attentive McNeil was to Violet.

Simms in particular couldn’t hide his pleasure, a touch of pride coloring his tone.

Victoria lifted her water glass and took a calm sip, her composure unshakable.