I Raised My Husband's Love Child

Chapter 8

Rosie set down her wine glass and marched over to me, her voice sharp with accusation. "Daphne, today is Kian's wedding day, and every guest here is either wealthy or influential. How did someone like you sneak in?"

Stephen followed close behind, his scowl deepening. "Exactly! You're not welcome here. Get out!"

Facing their hostility, I stayed calm. "I entered with an official invitation."

The two exchanged a quick glance, their doubt evident.

Just then, Kian appeared, looking immaculate in his tailored suit, but his expression was one of pure disdain. "Daphne, are you out of your mind? Do you know how important this wedding is to me? I personally oversaw every single invitation, and you weren't on the list! How dare you claim you entered with an invitation? Have you no shame?"

Rosie snorted, her voice thick with mockery. "Listening to her talk, I almost believed she was actually invited. Turns out, some people are shameless enough to lie in public."

Stephen sized me up with a look of disgust. "She's probably starving and snuck in just to scrounge a meal. Look at her, she clearly hasn't had more than a bite of plain rice in ages."

Ignoring their taunts, I calmly reached into my bag, pulled out the invitation card, and held it up for them to see. "I'm here as a relative of the bride."

Kian's face darkened instantly. He snatched the card from my hand and studied it closely. When he saw the name on the invitation, Grace's personal invitation, his eyes widened in disbelief.

"Impossible!" he muttered.

Rosie, sensing something was off, leaned in closer. "What's wrong, son? Is the invitation real? Did this vile woman forge it?"

Kian shook his head, his voice shaky. "It's real."

A murmur rippled through the crowd. Kian turned back to me, his voice demanding and filled with doubt. "Tell me, where did you get this invitation?"

Stephen, trying to rationalize, spoke up quietly, "Kian, after all, Daphne raised you for so many years. Maybe Grace sent her the invitation out of courtesy?"

Kian immediately shot that down. "That's impossible! Grace left all the invitations to me. She personally printed one special invitation, and she said it was for the most important person in her life."

The moment those words left his mouth, both Rosie and Stephen's expressions shifted. Even the nearby guests started murmuring among themselves.

"I heard Grace is an orphan. She doesn't have any relatives here today."

"Then how did Daphne get that invitation?"

"Yeah, wasn't the special invitation meant for the most important person to Grace? Could it really be Daphne?"

"This wedding just got a lot more interesting."

Now, all eyes were on me, filled with curiosity and speculation. The livestream chat exploded with questions, demanding answers.

Stephen, frowning deeply, finally asked the question everyone was thinking. "Daphne, what's your connection to Grace? Why did she give the only special invitation to you?"

The tension in the air was palpable as everyone waited for my answer.

But before I could speak, Rosie exploded, her voice shrill and accusing. "I've figured it out, she stole it! That invitation has to be stolen!"