The Jilted Heiress' Return To The High Life

Chapter 1693:

They had stepped into the Astley family’s estate prepared for anything—whether welcome or war. Though, it seemed fortune had tipped slightly in their favor.

The Astley family didn’t approve of this marriage, and their cold shoulder came as no surprise.

If the Ford family wanted reconciliation, being humble was their only recourse, but whether the Astleys would offer clemency was another matter entirely.

Thankfully, Franco’s plan worked.

Jules had endured his share of turbulence, but at least his suffering wasn’t for nothing.

As Franco and Corrine spoke quietly by the marble archway, her eyes drifted beyond him, catching a glimpse of someone.

Her brows drew together.

Was that… Leif?

Noticing the shift in her expression, Franco instinctively turned to follow her line of sight—but the space beyond was empty.

Was his intuition wrong?

No—it couldn’t have been.

Before he could question it further, Corrine glanced back at him. “Franco, I need to take care of something. Please excuse me.” She didn’t wait for a reply.

She slipped away, weaving through the crowd, her eyes never leaving the figure at the far end of the hall. But after a few steps, a waitress collided with her, sloshing red wine across her dress in a careless sweep.

“Oh—I’m terribly sorry, Miss,” the waitress blurted, fumbling for a cloth and dabbing uselessly at the stain. It only made it worse. “Please, let me escort you to get changed. It’s entirely my fault.”

Corrine’s reflex was to wave her off—her mind still locked on Leif—but her gaze dropped to the cloth in her hand. Something about it made her curious.

her mind.

at all, Miss Holland. Please, this way,” the waitress said, her demeanor suddenly

she stepped out of the

𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀

someone is waiting for you at

nodded once. “Thank

chill crawled beneath Franco’s collar. Something

focus. With his cigarette poised between his fingers, he frowned and made a call. “What do you

do you ask?” Nate’s voice came through the line—cool, emotionless. One could never know

Through the glass, he spotted

has

Nate replied

Franco echoed, unsettled now. “That doesn’t strike you as odd? Corrine’s lived her entire life in Lyhaton. Leif disappeared off the radar years ago. They shouldn’t even know

turned his back on the arranged marriage and disappeared without a word, the Mendoza family had steadily withdrawn from the public eye,

grandfather, had come to terms with the absence of a capable heir and chose to step back quietly, steering the family out of the limelight to avoid stirring jealousy or misfortune. But now, with Leif’s sudden and very public return,

he’d embraced the weight of the

Mendoza family’s standing in Nelting had crumbled. They clung to relevance only through the lingering respect people still

make sense of Corrine’s connection to Leif. By all logic,

then, Nate’s voice snapped through the phone.

leave, though the air

me,” Nate

request, responded

through the line before

moment the dial tone echoed in his ear,

had that laugh

like a quiet dismissal, as if Nate didn’t take him

on the pair growing smaller in the distance, eyes clouded with

he was seen with—Corrine? Walking by