Jessie Sterling leisurely swallowed a mouthful of soup, her expression calm. "Oh, I've suddenly realized that Dad's earlier concerns were quite reasonable. I've changed my mind."
Before her family could recover from their shock, Jessie Sterling spoke again, as if completely unaware of the uproar her words would cause.
"Someone else's leftovers. I'm not interested."
Quincy Sterling's lips twitched. 'Didn't Julian Grant only have one girlfriend?' she thought. 'How does that make him someone's leftovers?'
Before she could voice her thought, Jessie, who was beside her, tilted her head and made a bold declaration—
"I don't want someone else's trash."
Quincy Sterling: "..."
She couldn't resist reaching out to feel Jessie Sterling's forehead. This was so out of character; it wasn't like her dear older sister at all.
Mr. Sterling was the quickest to react. Though he didn't know why his eldest daughter was suddenly acting so strangely, he had never been optimistic about Julian Grant. If not for Jessie Sterling's insistence back then, he wouldn't have approved.
It was just that compared to the benefits of a marriage alliance for family interests, he was more inclined to respect Jessie Sterling's own choice.
"You know what our two families were supposed to do tonight, right?" Mr. Sterling asked.
Jessie Sterling nodded. Her and Julian Grant's years as childhood sweethearts weren't for show. Julian's mother, Ms. Sandra Quinn, adored her. Later, after Jessie married Julian, she chanced upon the truth: Julian's breakup with Arya Thorne wasn't just because Arya had returned to the country to pursue her career. It was also because the Grant family looked down on the Thornes.
But Sandra Quinn had always been very good to her. Growing up, Jessie Sterling had lost count of how many times the woman had said she wished Jessie were her daughter—or if not a daughter, then a daughter-in-law would be just as good.
When she married Julian Grant back then, this had certainly been a factor in her decision.
If she married Julian Grant, she wouldn't have to worry about any mother-in-law troubles at all.
"I know, but it was never set in stone, was it? Besides, Julian might not even want to marry me. So this is perfect. Neither of us is interested, so we can just treat it as a regular welcome-home dinner," Jessie Sterling said.
"If you're not going to be with Julian, then you'll have to consider the one from Aethelburg..." Quincy Sterling frowned. To her, Julian was just an ordinary neighborhood big brother—she didn't particularly like or dislike him. However, compared to Jessie marrying far away in Aethelburg, she'd much rather her sister stay in Southaven.
At least in Southaven, if anything happened, she could rush to Jessie Sterling's side immediately.
"Oh, Victor Morgan?" Jessie Sterling mentioned the name calmly. Before, whenever Mr. Sterling brought up the Morgan family, she would act like a ruffled peacock. Now, her voice was serene as she brought him up herself. "Whatever."
She had never actually had any direct contact with Victor Morgan. Due to her previous vehement protests, she had never even met him.
But perhaps because of his status as a "once-considered marriage candidate," when Jessie Sterling married Julian Grant, she received a wedding gift from him.
It wasn't some trinket like jewelry or luxury goods, but a complete, out-of-print, first-edition set of books from her favorite artist, complete with an autograph.
When she first received the gift, Jessie Sterling thought it was from Lynn Jennings.
After all, her younger sister, Quincy, was a prim and proper workaholic. Only a best friend like Lynn Jennings would go to such lengths to find things she liked and give her such a thoughtful gift.
She never expected it to be Victor Morgan.
Looking back on it now, Jessie Sterling thought with a touch of self-mockery, 'The person I loved, someone I even grew up with, gave me gifts that were less thoughtful than a stranger's.'
Julian Grant had no feelings for her, so why should she get hung up on another woman's leftovers?
The Morgan family was just in Aethelburg. At least it was still in the country. If she wanted to come home, she could do so anytime, right? It was nothing like following Julian abroad, where even with a private jet, the flight time was over ten hours.
At this thought, Jessie Sterling felt a sense of relief.
The remaining three people at the dinner table truly stared at each other, utterly baffled.
Jessie Sterling still remembered this dinner.
The first time around, when she had seen Julian, she hadn't hidden her good mood at all, sitting right next to him in the private room.
But now, as Jessie and Quincy Sterling walked into the private room and saw Julian Grant already seated inside, a flicker of a daze crossed her face for an instant.
Julian, who had only just returned to the country after graduating, still had a youthful air about him. When his captivating, almond-shaped eyes landed on her, they curved slightly, a hint of a smile flashing through them.
"Jessie."
Jessie Sterling gave a polite nod. "Julian."
Julian Grant's brow twitched. In the past, whenever Jessie saw him, she was like a sweet piece of milk toffee, calling him "Brother Julian." Her voice was sweet and delicate, making it hard for anyone to dislike her.
But today, she seemed a little different.
"In a bad mood?" Julian directly pulled out the chair next to him. Since he had come to this dinner tonight, he knew of and had agreed to his parents' plan. "Come sit. Want to talk?"
His tone was just like all those times he had comforted her as a child whenever she was upset.
Jessie Sterling shook her head. "I'm fine. I'll just sit next to my sister."
Julian Grant watched as Jessie Sterling sat down diagonally across from him, a flash of surprise in his eyes.
But then Jessie started greeting his parents obediently, seemingly unchanged from before, and Julian thought he must have been overthinking things.
The two families were meeting specifically to discuss Jessie and Julian's marriage. But who would have known that Jessie would suddenly reject the marriage at home that afternoon? A short while later, when Julian's parents tried to bring up their children's engagement, Mr. Sterling subtly changed the subject, and the atmosphere at the table immediately turned a bit strange.
Quincy Sterling was already used to it. She sat at the table, listening to the parents' back-and-forth. As for one of the main parties involved, she was beside her, sipping her soup in small but frequent increments, her movements still looking elegant.
Quincy propped her chin on her hand. 'Jessie seems to have a huge appetite today,' she thought.
Sandra Quinn was finally getting restless. She had picked up on the Sterling family's intentions.
Seth Sterling didn't want Jessie Sterling to marry into their Grant family.
'Is Seth Sterling still considering the Morgan family? It's not hard to understand. After all, bankers tend to prefer industrialists.'
"Jessie." Sandra Quinn smiled warmly at Jessie Sterling, who was still focused on her soup a short distance away. She had watched the girl grow up—so obedient and beautiful. She was a bit delicate, but what girl wasn't? Sandra had long ago decided Jessie would be her daughter-in-law. "Didn't you always fuss about marrying your Brother Julian when you were little? Now your Brother Julian is back. He just got back from overseas, and Southaven has changed quite a bit over the years. You should take him around when you have time."
To this moment, Sandra Quinn still believed the decision tonight came from Seth Sterling and his wife. Now, she wanted to try her luck with Jessie Sterling.
Jessie Sterling looked up, her eyes filled with a natural-looking confusion and helplessness. "Huh? I don't think that's a good idea." Jessie bit her lip, her delicate and fragile appearance making it seem as if anything she said could be forgiven. "Auntie Quinn, Julian has a girlfriend. I should keep my distance."
After saying this, Jessie Sterling ignored the dead silence that fell over the private room and even turned to look at Julian Grant with a slight smile.
She only found out later that when Julian returned to the country back then, he was still entangled with Arya Thorne.
How could she possibly be that same obedient, naive fool again?
It was hard to say whether Sandra Quinn wanted her as a daughter-in-law because she genuinely liked her, or because she could use her to make sure there was absolutely no possibility of Julian and Arya Thorne getting back together.
Jessie Sterling had no intention of being used as a pawn again.