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Chapter 184: Chapter 184: Scratch Her

Lynn Winslow detected an odd undertone in the butler’s words. She looked at Ian Sterling with suspicion.

Ian Sterling looked a bit awkward and guilty. Lynn’s lips curved into a smile as she said softly, ”I’ll go downstairs with you.”

”Didn’t you have a fall? Maybe you should stay up here. That old lady from the Thatcher family isn’t easy to deal with. I’m afraid you’ll get angry if you go down.” Ian Sterling tried to persuade her, but Lynn Winslow had already stood up and started heading downstairs ahead of him. When Kiki saw her leaving, he took Humphrey and followed at her heels.

Upon reaching the doorway, Ian Sterling was still standing frozen in place. Lynn Winslow looked back at him, feigning confusion. ”What’s wrong? Am I not allowed to go?”

Ian Sterling strode to catch up, shaking his head with a smile. ”Of course not. Let’s go. Just don’t get worked up over whatever they say. Don’t let them get to you.”

”Don’t worry.” Lynn Winslow glanced at him sideways and let out a light, airy laugh that made Ian Sterling shudder.

Madam Thatcher was sitting on the sofa, with Miss Thatcher, Annabelle Thatcher, seated beside her, currently sizing up her surroundings.

Upon seeing Ian Sterling, Annabelle Thatcher’s eyes lit up for a moment, but her face turned cold when she saw Lynn Winslow.

Madam Thatcher patted the back of her hand and said with a faint smile, ”Finn.”

”Madam Thatcher.” Ian Sterling’s expression was indifferent. In the past, he would have called her Miss Thatcher out of courtesy, but after what happened a few years ago, he couldn’t be bothered to keep up such superficial pleasantries.

”It seems my grandnephews were the ones who smashed your car. I’ve come to apologize and to discuss compensation.”

Ian Sterling led Lynn Winslow to a seat opposite them. He chuckled at her words, but his laugh was tinged with sarcasm. ”There was no need for you to make a special trip.”

”It’s what I should do.” Madam Thatcher shot Annabelle Thatcher a look.

Annabelle Thatcher had been looking at Ian Sterling with an aggrieved expression. At Madam Thatcher’s reminder, she snapped out of it and took out a card.

She held the thin bank card between her slender fingers, holding it out in mid-air, waiting for Ian Sterling to take it.

Seeing this, the butler stepped forward to take the card, but Annabelle Thatcher dodged him, her gaze stubbornly fixed on Ian Sterling.

Lynn Winslow propped her chin on her hand, watching the strange atmosphere between Ian Sterling and Annabelle Thatcher as if she were watching a play.

Feeling Lynn Winslow’s gaze on him, Ian Sterling swallowed dryly. He leaned back on the sofa, avoiding Annabelle Thatcher’s eyes and looking quietly at Madam Thatcher instead.

”Madam, did you come here sincerely to apologize, or did you bring your granddaughter here to cause trouble?”

Given her age and experience, Madam Thatcher’s expression didn’t change at Ian Sterling’s words. ”Finn, Annabelle was nearly engaged to you, after all. It’s only natural she’d lose some of her composure seeing you. For the sake of how much she used to like you, don’t hold it against her.”

Lynn Winslow’s fingers curled slightly. She lowered her gaze, hiding the emotion in her eyes.

’She hadn’t known about this. In the original plot, there wasn’t even a mention of Ian Sterling getting engaged. Beyond the unease in her heart, she was also baffled.’

”You said it yourself—it was *nearly*. It was just a verbal agreement back then. You know I have a girlfriend now, yet you insist on bringing this up.” Ian Sterling stood up, his face cold, and narrowed his eyes at the two women opposite him, whose expressions had turned ugly.

”As for the car, I’ll have my mother negotiate with you directly. At that point, whether you want to bring up your granddaughter or your rotten grandnephews, it will have nothing to do with me.” Ian Sterling turned his head to the butler and ordered sternly, ”Show them out. If they don’t leave, have the bodyguards drag them out and throw them out. No need to be polite.”

Madam Thatcher shot to her feet, pointing a finger at Ian Sterling, her whole body trembling with rage.

”Is that any way to speak to an elder?”

”What kind of elder are you?”

Lynn Winslow couldn’t be bothered to listen anymore and stood up to go upstairs. For some reason, Annabelle Thatcher strode forward and grabbed Lynn’s hand, squeezing it with some force. Lynn hissed in pain.

Kiki and Humphrey had been following right behind Lynn Winslow. Seeing a strange woman grab their owner’s hand, their fur instantly stood on end.

Kiki leaped up and swiped with a paw. His claws were actually quite dull from regular trimming, but because of Kiki’s size and strength, he still managed to break Annabelle Thatcher’s skin. The scratch was deep, even exposing the flesh beneath.

Annabelle Thatcher shrieked, stumbling back a few steps while clutching the bloody scratch on her hand. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes.

”You beast! How dare you scratch me?”

Humphrey knew his big brother had just done something that would make their mommy happy, so he eagerly prepared to join in. Hearing Annabelle Thatcher’s angry shout, and although he couldn’t understand the words, he could tell she was cursing at them.

He was even more agile than Kiki. He hopped onto the sofa and then took a mighty leap, scratching several bloody lines across the unsuspecting Annabelle Thatcher’s exquisitely made-up face.

Ian Sterling had always known the two big cats were protective, but he hadn’t expected them to be this effective. He burst out laughing without reservation. The butler, however, showed some restraint, lowering his gaze as his body shook with suppressed laughter.

After that, the two of them were too embarrassed to stay any longer and left in disgrace.

Lynn Winslow had already taken Kiki and Humphrey back upstairs. Ian Sterling followed behind, but when he tried to open the bedroom door, he found it was locked from the inside.

He stood at the door and knocked softly. ”Lynn,” he said gently, ”I can explain. Please open the door, okay?”

Lynn Winslow had already changed her clothes and was lying on the bed, resting with her eyes closed. She pretended she hadn’t heard him.

The two big cats were lying obediently on the bed. They didn’t react much to Ian Sterling’s voice, clearly prepared to share a common enemy with their mommy.

Ian Sterling leaned against the door, his gaze lowered as he spoke in an aggrieved tone. ”After we broke up, my parents were still on pretty good terms with the Thatcher family. They wanted to force me to move on quickly, so they arranged a verbal engagement between the two families. I didn’t know about it.”

”But as soon as I found out, I refused. The whole thing, from the verbal agreement to its cancellation, took less than a week. The old lady of the Thatcher family has always held a grudge about it, but she never mentioned it because she was wary of the Sterling Family. I really didn’t expect her to do this today, completely disregarding the relationship between our families.”

”I’ll tell my parents that since they were the ones who started this mess, they can be the ones to clean it up. I won’t see anyone from the Thatcher family again. Please don’t be angry. If you’re really upset, you can come out and hit me a few times. Just don’t stay angry and upset yourself.”

’Lynn Winslow slowly opened her eyes. Listening to Ian Sterling’s explanation, she felt that she was indeed being a little unreasonable. But she was hurting—an unbearable pain—and she didn’t know how to vent it. If she argued with him, he would be too pitiful and innocent in all this. She could only try to sort through her feelings on her own.’

She remained quiet for a long time. Mr. Powell and Elder Winslow came by at one point, but after learning what had happened, they didn’t try to persuade her and simply returned next door together.

Lynn Winslow waited until they left before getting up. She walked slowly to the door and opened it. Ian Sterling was sitting on the floor, cross-legged, his gaze lowered, looking lost and pitiful.

”This matter has nothing to do with your parents.”

Ian Sterling looked up, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears.