The Nightingale's Heir Returns

Anniversary Gift

“You can’t go in. Mrs.Vanessa and her gentleman are upstairs hosting a celebration banquet.” A guard stepped directly into his path. 

“What?” Adrian asked, confused. He wondered what he meant by ‘gentleman.’ 

The guard looked him up and down, taking in his simple clothes. “They aren’t accepting visitors without an appointment,” he said, gesturing for him to leave, scorn clearly written across his face.

"A gentleman?" He muttered. The words confused him. If she had a gentleman upstairs, then what was he?

For three years of marriage, he had never once set foot inside Lawson Industries. That was Vanessa's rule. She said she didn’t want him to interfere with her professional space, but today was their third anniversary and he decided to surprise her. 

He held a bouquet and a small gift box–gold earrings. A replacement for the ones she said she had misplaced a week ago. 

No. This had to be some misunderstanding. Adrian swallowed hard and his fingers tightened around the gift box.

"There must be a misunderstanding," Adrian shook his head. “What gentleman?” He frowned.

“Well… he arrived earlier with expensive gifts and arranged the whole celebration upstairs and only visitors with appointments and her family are allowed.” The guard replied casually.

Adrian became more confused. 

 “I’m her husband, I need to go in,” Adrian replied. 

Suddenly, the guard clutched his stomach and burst into laughter while Adrian watched in confusion.

“Look, man,” he said between chuckles. “We see all kinds of people trying to sneak in here, but this?” He gestured dismissively at Adrian. “This is a new one.”

He shook his head, still laughing. “This is hilarious. I have never heard Ms. Lawson had a husband. Especially someone like...” The guard’s eyes swept over Adrian slowly, taking in the plain clothes he wore, which were simple without the slightest hint of wealth.

“If you don’t leave,” the guard added in a firm voice. “I’ll be rough with you. Don’t make a scene.” He threatened.

Adrian exhaled and reached into his coat. The guard rolled his eyes. “What now? You're going to show me a fake ID?”

Adrian pulled out a small, intricately carved wooden box and opened it. Inside, resting against dark velvet, was the Lawson family emblem.

“Does this count?” he asked, lifting it. 

The guard’s smirk vanished instantly and the guard's eyes went wide.

It was unmistakably the Lawsons’ family keepsake.

"I... please go ahead, sir." The guard stepped aside and gestured toward the elevator.

“What floor?” He asked him.

"Twenty-Ninth floor." He stammered.

Three years. He loved her so much that he moved into the Lawson residence as a live-in son-in-law and stayed at home to take care of Vanessa while she focused on her career. 

Whenever her family used his status as live-in son-in-law to make his life difficult, she always stood up for him.

His mother had never supported the marriage. She never liked Vanessa and strongly disapproved of their union. But Adrian loved Vanessa so deeply that he cut ties with his own mother and even hid his family background from her.

The elevator doors opened with a soft chime.

Music spilled into the hallway, and the sound of laughter followed.

Adrian stepped toward the conference hall entrance. It has been turned into a temporary banquet hall. The room was alive with celebration.

Glasses lifted mid-toast as guests gathered in circles. Adrian walked closer to the door. The walls and doors were made of glass and were completely transparent, so he could see them clearly.

Vanessa, in a red dress. It was definitely not the one she had worn when she left home that morning. Her arm was linked through another man’s as they raised their glasses for a toast while the room erupted in cheers.

 Vanessa poured wine into the cup and handed it to him, gently serving the drink to his lips. 

The room erupted into cheers. “They look perfect together!”

His heart dropped. He had expected the guard to be wrong, but here she was in a compromising position with a man. Suddenly, he recognized the man, Marcus!

Adrian’s chest tightened sharply. Marcus was her first love from university. The man she once swore she had let go. Earlier, he had heard that he had returned just one month earlier and needed Vanessa's attention for a business partnership.

He stood there frozen in place and something in his chest cracked. Suddenly, everything made sense.

Her recent absences. The late nights she’d been spending outside for nearly a month. She did return disheveled in the mornings and when he complained, she just brushed it off, saying it was work and she had to accompany Marcus because he was an important business partner.

Each time he told himself not to overthink and he trusted her. She was his wife and she chose him, so he felt she had no reason to cheat on him. That was what he had always believed, but what on earth was going on now?

"Vanessa, doesn't your husband get jealous when you do this?" someone called out playfully from the crowd.

Adrian’s fingers tightened around the gift box until the wrapping paper creased. He needed to hear her answer. Maybe he was overthinking and all this was a misunderstanding. 

"Adrian?" She took a sip of champagne from Marcus."He's just a live-in husband. He can't help me with my career." She sounded casual and dismissive, as if he had never mattered at all. "Even if Marcus and I share a drink, it's business. Adrian doesn't get a say." Her tone carried faint amusement. 

The words hit Adrian's chest hard.

Her words echoed inside his head, and he felt a thousand needles poke his heart. She was the one who asked him to become a live-in son-in-law. She told him they were building a future together. He believed her and gave up everything for her. But now she referred to him as a nobody?

"So now that Marcus's back for good, when are you ditching him? I mean, we all know he was just filling the space Marcus, your true love, left when he went abroad.” Another voice chimed in.

The room hushed. It was kind of quiet when everyone wanted to hear the answer. 

Somewhere deep inside him, something fragile still hoped she would deny it. 

Vanessa hesitated. Then she smiled faintly. “He did serve that purpose.”

“But he’s obedient,” she added thoughtfully. “And easy to manage. So I’ll be keeping him around for a while.” She shrugged. 

The bouquet and the gift box slipped from Adrian’s hand and hit the floor with a light thud. 

No one even noticed.

Something inside him shattered completely. Obedient and compliant?

He had sacrificed three years of his life working for her family as a live-in son-in-law, believing he wasn’t alone and they were building their future together. While not minding how her family humiliated and treated him. 

But now he realized she was the same and she only kept him because he was convenient.

Adrian turned and walked away. The streets were already dark, but he didn’t even notice his surroundings. He walked back home in a daze.

He didn't say anything, just letting out a bitter smile, turned around and walked out of the building into the night. 

Memories of when he proposed to her at her favorite restaurant. She covered her mouth, tears spilling freely as she nodded again and again before saying yes. Then she threw herself into his arms as she told him she loved him. But all of it was just a lie! He had just filled the gap her lover left.

“How long have I been blinded?” He muttered as he walked back to the home he had shared with Vanessa for the past three years working as a housekeeper for someone who saw him as a nobody. His fists clenched at his sides and his nails dug into his flesh until it injured his palm.

When he got back home, he shut the door and stood at the entrance for a long time. Then slowly, he reached for his phone and dialed a number he hadn’t called in three years.

It connected. 

“Hello?” He sounded like the words he was about to say were heavy. “Mom.”

There was a brief silence from the other end. “Mom.’ He repeated. 

“Adrian?” His mother finally spoke.

“Yes, Mom, it’s me,” he said quietly. “I was wrong,” He sighed. The words felt heavy.  

“I shouldn’t have left like that.” His voice dropped even lower. “I want to come back to the family.”

He heard her sigh. It was the sigh of I-Knew-It.

"I knew you'd come back Adrian. She began. " I'll forgive you but it's not that simple." His mother had always been the strict one so he knew she wouldn’t just casually forgive him. 

"Mom I'm not asking for pity, I know there is a catch and I’m ready for whatever it is." He replied.

"I’m glad that you know Adrian!” She snapped in a firm tone. 

“I trusted your judgement." Her voice thundered. "Do you know how much money I had secretly invested has gone into Lawson Industries over the past three years after you asked?” Her voice hardened and Adrian sighed. 

‘Mom…”He wanted to say something but she interrupted him. 

“I’m aging and the family business needs someone energetic to manage it. I’ll hand over the family business to you effective immediately but you have to recover all I wasted on that woman because of you.” Her voice became icy. “Only when you do that will I recognize you as my son again.” She added.

Suddenly the line went dead.

Adrian dropped slowly onto the couch. Recover all the money wasted on Vanessa? That was easy.

After today he would no longer be the humiliated live in son in law but someone different.