Chapter 788
Silas ignored him completely. Quentin and the others all glanced at Calliope.
After all, it wasn’t every day Ulysses spoke like a normal person. He actually considered Callie’s feelings, so he didn’t start an argument with them.
Calliope shot them a look, silently telling everyone not to compete with Ulysses. She was curious to see if he was just talking big or if he really meant it.
She found it hard to believe he’d actually give her this insanely expensive painting. There was no way Ulysses had that kind of money.
But Silas and the rest, of course, listened to Calliope.
Mavis Shepherd and Portia Sutton exchanged surprised glances at Ulysses. He actually seemed sincere about Calliope, which was, well, a shock.
The auction kicked off. To everyone’s surprise, Ulysses actually raised his paddle.
Horatio, sitting beside him, was a bit more level-headed. He tried to quietly talk Ulysses down.
“Uly, this is way over our budget. We can’t afford it p>
“I get that you care about Callie, and you want to apologize, but this is just too much p>
“Uly, seriously. Let it go p>
“Just make it up to her in a way you can actually manage p>
Horatio pleaded with Ulysses.
But Ulysses looked determined—stubborn, even. He was set on winning that painting, even if he had to borrow money to do it.
He felt like he owed Calliope, and he was going to make up for it, piece by piece.
He’d always been generous with Lisette, now he wanted to double that for Callie.
Calliope honestly hadn’t expected Ulysses to actually win the painting in the end.
And for a small fortune, too.
She was surprised.
Though she couldn’t tell if Ulysses was doing this because Monty asked him to, or if it was really his own idea.
She didn’t ask.
After that, there were plenty of other hot items up for bid. Calliope picked out a few, and her brothers helped her win them.
When the auction wrapped up, the group was getting ready to leave and say their goodbyes wher Ulysses came over. He was holding the painting. s
He walked right up and handed it to Calliope.
“Callie, I told you this was for you. Merry Christmas p>
Ulysses looked at her with an intensity that caught her off guard.
“Ulysses, are you out of your mind? How much did you spend on that painting and now young just giving to her?” Zelda, who’d just found out, stormed over in a frenzy. s
Ulysses frowned, turning to her. “Mom, I told you, this is for Callie. Don’t try to stop me, unless you want to lose your son p>
“Ulysses!” Zelda snapped, brows furrowed.
“Looks like your family’s not thrilled about you giving this to me,” Calliope remarked.
“That’s their problem. I paid for it with my own money p>
Ulysses insisted, “Take it, it’s yours p>
He was absolutely set on giving it to her.
Calliope studied him for a moment, then finally accepted the painting.
“All right, if you’re giving it, I won’t say no p>
She shrugged. “But just so you know, taking the gift doesn’t mean I owe you anything. You can still change your mind if you regret it.S
You sure you could even gres?
afford
You could still sell it to someone else.” s
BUMS
“That’s not the point,” Ulysses said. “I had enough money, don’t worry about it.” “And if I didn’t, I’d figure it out. I said I’d give it to you, so it’s yours, no matter what p>