Chapter 796: Persuasion

Chloe Reed’s expression was remarkably calm. Her clear, watery eyes looked at Judith Pierce without much emotion as she took out her phone and typed, "This matter has nothing to do with me."

Judith was extremely anxious and stepped in her path to stop her again. "Chloe, please don’t be like this. After all, we were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law once. I’ve never done anything to wrong you, nor have I ever made things difficult for you. Just help me this one time, okay?"

Chloe furrowed her brows slightly, a wave of impatience rising in her chest.

"What right do I have to speak to him about this? Whether he goes or not is his own choice. Would it even make a difference if I tried to persuade him?" she wondered.

Seeing Judith pleading so desperately, her gaze stripped of its usual sharpness, Chloe’s resolve finally softened. She nodded and typed, "I’ll try."

Judith broke into a relieved smile, letting out a heavy breath. "That’s good. Walker listens to you a lot now. As long as you ask, he’ll definitely agree."

Remaining expressionless, Chloe typed back, "Whether he goes or not is entirely up to him. Don’t pin all your hopes on me."

Once the cold, robotic female voice from her phone finished speaking, Chloe turned around and headed straight upstairs.

In the study, Walker Grant was right in the middle of a conference call with Dylan Finch. Hearing a knock, he raised his head and turned his face toward the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Chloe spoke up to announce her presence. "It’s me."

A smile instantly bloomed on Walker’s previously expressionless, handsome face, and the corners of his thin lips curved upward. "Chloe, how did you know I was missing you?"

Chloe fell silent, not quite knowing how to respond.

Over the line, Dylan Finch quickly interjected, "I’ll let you go then, Mr. Grant."

"Mm."

The call ended. Walker stood up, intending to navigate around the desk and walk toward Chloe, but she crossed the room first and gently held him in place.

She quickly typed on her phone, "Don’t move. I came to see you because I want to talk about you going home for the Spring Festival reunion dinner."

Walker’s tone deepened a fraction. "Did Mom talk to you?"

Lowering her eyes, Chloe continued typing. "You should go back. Your parents only have you as their son, so you still need to have the reunion dinner with them. If you feel uncomfortable, just let me know, and I’ll come pick you up."

Walker felt his way forward and grabbed her hand, saying in a low voice, "But I want to go back with you."

Chloe’s fingers trembled slightly. She pulled her hand free and typed again. "I won’t go. If I went, the dinner would just be awkward. No one would be happy in that kind of atmosphere. I’d rather spend the holiday by myself."

"Then I won’t go either," Walker declared immediately.

Seeing his stubborn demeanor, Chloe’s beautiful brows knitted together. Pushing past her limitations, she forced her actual voice out. "You. Go. Back."

She paused between each word. Her voice was still hoarse, but its tone had already recovered a hint of its former, familiar melody.

Walker reached out and grabbed her hand again, pressing it tightly against his own cheek. He leaned into her almost dependently. "Without you, I won’t be happy anyway."

Chloe looked down at him. "Just. Go. Eat. A. Meal."

She was trying so hard to persuade him, and Walker didn’t want to disappoint her. Moreover, he knew exactly what she was thinking. Regardless of his father’s attitude toward him, his mother, at the very least, truly loved him. Chloe hoped he would cherish that familial bond, largely because she was deeply envious that he even had a family to share such a bond with.

Realizing this only made Walker feel even worse.

The mere thought of the New Year made his heart ache so much he could barely breathe. While other families gathered warmly for their reunion dinners, Chloe would be left here all alone, solitary and completely by herself as she watched the fireworks light up the sky outside.