Accidentally Yours, My Super Rich Second Husband-Chapter 154: Divided Loyalties

The grand dining room of the Harrington estate was bathed in the soft glow of a chandelier, the golden light casting elegant shadows across the polished mahogany table. A quiet tension hung in the air as Robert and Helena sat opposite each other, their dinner plates only half-touched. The room, though opulent, felt heavy with an unacknowledged strain, one that had only grown more apparent in recent months.

Lyvia sat quietly in the middle, her fork idly pushing around a piece of roasted potato on her plate. The silence stretched between them, interrupted only by the occasional clink of silverware against fine china.

Helena took a slow sip of her wine, her gaze flickering between Robert and Lyvia. She exhaled softly, setting the glass down with a quiet clink. "Well," she said, her tone light but edged with something unreadable, "this is lively."

Robert didn’t look up from his plate, cutting into his steak with a bit too much force. Lyvia glanced at her mother but said nothing, unwilling to be the first to break the uneasy quiet.

Helena took a delicate sip from her wine glass before setting it down with a quiet clink. "We need to attend the wedding, Robert," she said, her voice smooth but firm. "It would be disgraceful if we refused."

Robert scoffed, reaching for his napkin and dabbing at the corner of his mouth with slow, deliberate movements. "Disgraceful? What was disgraceful was how they treated Delphinia," he countered, his voice calm but laced with an unmistakable edge of anger. "They threw her aside like she was nothing. Now you expect me to sit through a celebration for those two?" He stabbed his fork into his steak with unnecessary force, the silverware clinking against the porcelain.

Helena tilted her head slightly, watching Robert with an amused glint in her eyes. "It’s funny," she mused, picking up her wine glass again. "At first, you were so eager to blame Delphinia for the divorce. But now, it seems like your real problem is with the Robinsons."

Robert exhaled sharply through his nose, cutting his steak with unnecessary force. "Don’t twist my words, Helena."

"Oh, I don’t have to twist anything. It’s all there, plain as day," she replied smoothly, leaning back against her chair. "First, it was Delphinia’s fault for not being ’good enough’ to keep her marriage intact, and now it’s suddenly a crime that the Robinsons have moved on?" She arched a brow. "So which is it?"

Robert’s grip on his fork tightened. He knew she was right, and that irritated him more than he cared to admit. He had been furious with Delphinia when the marriage fell apart, convinced she hadn’t fought hard enough, hadn’t done what was necessary to secure her place. But now, watching the Robinsons parade around as if nothing had happened, celebrating a wedding as if they hadn’t cast his daughter aside like an unwanted afterthought—well, that was a different kind of rage entirely.

"I don’t regret being angry with Delphinia," he said finally, his voice measured. "She should’ve been stronger. Should’ve known how to navigate that family better." He paused, his knife pressing against the plate. "But that doesn’t mean I’ll sit and pretend they didn’t treat her like disposable trash."

Helena hummed, swirling the wine in her glass. "So you hate them now?"

"I don’t hate them," Robert said, but there was no conviction in his voice.

Helena smirked knowingly. "You’re certainly acting like you do."

Robert sighed, setting down his utensils. "I just can’t stomach the idea of sitting there, watching them celebrate, pretending everything is fine." He looked at her, his expression serious. "They threw away my daughter like she was nothing, Helena. And now they want us to smile and clap for them?"

Helena’s eyes flashed with irritation. "That is in the past, Robert. Kai has moved on, and so has Delphinia."

"Moved on?" Robert let out a humorless chuckle, shaking his head as he placed his utensils down. "Helena, our daughter was humiliated. She was betrayed, cast aside, and made a spectacle of. And now you want us to stand there, smiling, as if none of that ever happened?" He leaned forward, fixing his wife with a hard stare. "Tell me, Helena. Would you have gone if Evander hadn’t stepped in? If she had been left with nothing?"

Helena pursed her lips, but before she could respond, Lyvia, who had been sitting quietly throughout the exchange, finally spoke up. "Mother, you can’t seriously expect us to go," she said, her voice surprisingly resolute. "I don’t understand why you’d even want to. Kai and Adalaine don’t deserve our presence. They never did."

Helena sighed and set her utensils down, rubbing her temples. "It’s not about what they deserve, Lyvia. It’s about appearances. We are the Harringtons. We must uphold our dignity and status. Ignoring an invitation from the Robinsons could—"

"Could what?" Robert cut in sharply. "Damage our so-called reputation? Helena, our family’s reputation is built on integrity, not on playing pretend at an event hosted by people who showed us nothing but disrespect."

Lyvia nodded in agreement. "Father is right. Delphinia may not say it outright, but I know she wouldn’t want us there. And quite frankly, I don’t want to go either. I won’t stand in a room full of people who smiled while she was suffering."

Helena inhaled deeply, frustration evident in the stiffness of her posture. "You two are being unreasonable."

"And you are being naive," Robert shot back. "Or worse, willfully blind."

A tense silence stretched between them, the only sound in the room the soft clinking of silverware as the servants moved discreetly in the background. Helena clenched her jaw, her fingers tightening around the stem of her glass. "I will not be made to feel like the villain for choosing civility."

Robert let out a tired sigh and stood up, folding his napkin neatly before placing it beside his plate. "If you choose to go, that’s your decision."

He didn’t wait for Helena’s response. With a final glance at Lyvia, who gave him a supportive nod, Robert turned and strode out of the dining room, his footsteps echoing through the grand halls of the estate.

Helena remained seated, her expression unreadable, as she stared at the empty chair across from her. The weight of her family’s division pressed down on her shoulders, but whether she would heed their stance or stand her ground remained uncertain.