"Aaron! Is that how you speak?" Madam Lancaster snapped, slapping Elder Mr. Lancaster sharply.

"If she didn’t, she’d just tell me directly! If she did, I’m going to make her regret it!" Elder Mr. Lancaster fired back.

Ivy Collins listened quietly to Elder Mr. Lancaster’s words. During her visit to the Birch family over the New Year, she had sensed that he held a vague grudge against her.

Now, no matter what she said, it seemed inevitable that a ...