Chapter 408: He Always Feels His Partner is Strange
Chapter 408: Chapter 408: He Always Feels His Partner is Strange
"’I don’t understand?’" Bear found this laughable. "I really don’t. All I know is that you betrayed Dad. You betrayed our family!"
Phoebe Sterling was heartbroken. "Rainbow, please don’t talk to your mother like that."
She reached out to take her daughter’s hand. "Rainbow, please, let me explain. Can you just listen?"
Bear flinched and pulled back. "Fine. Explain. I’d love to hear why you betrayed Dad."
Phoebe, hurt by her reaction, cried even harder. "Rainbow, I was originally supposed to marry your Uncle Warren."
"And then what?"
"But your Uncle Warren was going abroad, and he asked me to wait for him. During that time, your father was constantly pursuing me..."
"Is that so?" Bear stared at her, her face devoid of expression. "Are you trying to say that Dad was the one who came between you and Troy Warren?"
"I... That’s not what I meant." Phoebe quickly shook her head. "Can you please not twist my words?"
Bear said coldly, "After all that, you still don’t think you’ve done anything wrong."
"Rainbow..." Phoebe wanted to say more, but she watched as Rainbow turned and walked toward the bedroom.
SLAM— The bedroom door was slammed shut.
Phoebe slowly sank to the floor, holding her head in her hands as she sobbed.
In the bedroom, Bear called Scott Conway.
It rang a few times before being answered. A man’s gentle, smiling voice came through the receiver. "Rainbow, you miss your dad?"
"Dad..." A sting in her nose, Bear choked back a sob. "Are you okay?"
On the other end, Scott Conway was stunned for a few seconds, then asked with concern, "Rainbow, why are you crying?"
"Dad." Bear clutched the phone to her ear and sniffled. "I want to see you."
"I understand," Scott said hurriedly. "Where are you now? I’ll come pick you up."
In the living room, a thought seemed to strike Phoebe, and she immediately pulled out her phone to call Scott Conway.
’He must have said something he shouldn’t have to our daughter.’
The moment the call connected, Phoebe launched into an accusation, "Scott Conway, have you been badmouthing me to Rainbow?"
Bear, who had changed her clothes and come out, heard her and snatched the phone away. "Are you really my mother? How could you become like this? I told you, Dad hasn’t said a single bad thing about you to me. I found out all of this on my own!"
On the perch, Orion suddenly squawked something everyone could understand: "Shameless! My eyes!"
The color drained from Phoebe’s face.
"All you know is how to blame Dad." Bear was utterly disappointed in her. "But you’re clearly the one who did something wrong!"
She hung up, placed the phone on the coffee table, and turned to leave without another glance.
Phoebe called out to her daughter’s retreating back, "Rainbow..."
Bear finished putting on her shoes and looked back at her, her expression calm and cold. "Mom, if you and Dad really get a divorce, I’ll choose to live with him."
With that, she walked out the door without looking back.
Phoebe collapsed to the floor, a sudden chill running through her.
**
It was a quiet day at the police station, so Renee Jennings and Michelle Fuller slept in until noon.
Sean Fuller was very attentively preparing lunch for them.
"When things are this unusual, something’s definitely up." Michelle Fuller sat at the dining table, sizing up her little brother. No matter how she looked at him, something felt off. "Spill. What are you plotting?"
"Sis, can’t you use nicer words? I’m your actual brother. How can you talk about me like that?" Sean Fuller said, exasperated.
Michelle snorted. "Hmph, you think I just met you yesterday? I know what you’re going to do before you even do it!"
"Well, Sis, want to take a guess then?" Sean chuckled slyly.
"It’s definitely about Renee," she said. "You want to ask Renee for a favor, don’t you?"
Sean immediately snapped his fingers and gave his sister a thumbs-up. "Sis, you’re brilliant! Guessed it in one go!"
Renee Jennings raised an eyebrow, asking curiously, "What do you need my help with, Sean?"
"Renee! You’re the best sister ever!" Sean sat down next to her and used the serving chopsticks to place a piece of short rib on her plate. "Sis, eat this first. Let me explain everything slowly."
"Okay." Renee Jennings played along and started eating the rib.
Sean began, "So, here’s the thing. I have this friend who’s dating a girl..."
"This ’friend’ wouldn’t happen to be you, would it?" Michelle blurted out.
"No!" Sean shook his head frantically. "It’s not me! I don’t have a girlfriend. If I were to get a girlfriend, I’d definitely need my two amazing sisters to vet her first."
"Then keep talking." Michelle also put a piece of short rib on Renee’s plate. "Renee, eat the one I gave you. The piece Sean picked has no meat on it."
Sean: "...Sis, you can’t be like that. Why are you trying to one-up me?"
Michelle shot him a look. "Are you going to talk or not? If not, I’m taking Renee shopping."
"I’ll talk!" Sean looked back at Renee. "Renee, my friend has been dating his girlfriend for about six months, but he always feels like there’s something weird about her."
"Weird how?" Michelle asked immediately. "Does he suspect his girlfriend is actually a guy?"
Sean: "..."
’My dear sister, can you please give me a break?’
Seeing her brother on the verge of a breakdown, Michelle quickly pantomimed zipping her lips. "Fine, fine, I’ll shut up."
Sean sighed in exasperation before continuing, "He feels like his girlfriend isn’t the same person."
"Huh?" Michelle exclaimed in shock. "How many girlfriends does he have?"
"Just one, but she feels different on every date." Afraid his sister would press for details, Sean quickly added, "I don’t really know the specifics, to be honest. That’s just what he told me."
He looked at Renee expectantly. "Renee, can you help?"
Renee also found the story a bit incredible, but as for helping...
"I can only help if there are animals involved," she explained. "If they don’t have any pets, I probably can’t do anything."
"They do!" Sean nodded emphatically. "They have a pet. If they didn’t, I wouldn’t have asked you for help. That would just be putting you on the spot, right?"
Renee Jennings nodded slightly. "For your sake, Sean, I can help."
"That’s great!" Sean clapped his hands happily, then asked, "So, Renee, are you free this afternoon? I can have my friend explain the details to you."
"Renee and I are going shopping this afternoon," Michelle reminded him.
Sean, ever the smooth talker, replied, "Then I’ll have my friend come along to carry your bags. And I’ll have him buy each of you a purse!"
Michelle’s eyebrows shot up. "I get one too?"
"Of course!" Sean nodded. "You and Renee are both my sisters. You’ll definitely get the same treatment!"
"Good boy!" Michelle was very gratified. "In that case, your sister won’t be holding back!"