Chapter 87
I had really suffered a lot for Hayden’s love in the past.
“Mrs. Parker, it’s so late. Are you still going shopping?” Erhan asked, his voice full of confusion
1 mapped back to reality and subtly brushed the corner of my eye with my hand.
“Yes, I haven’t been shopping in a long time,” I said with a faint smile, taking a step toward the mall
Ethan didn’t ask any more questions and dutifully followed behind me.
In truth, I didn’t have much of a clue about the store situation. I just felt like I was missing something, so I thought I’d come by and take a look Maybe I’d find something new.
It wasn’t long before I reached the store.
The exterior renovation was almost complete, but the store hadn’t officially opened yet, so the lights were off
Occasionally, a few people passed by, but it looked pretty desolate.
After standing there for a moment, I started feeling the silence and turned to ask Ethan, “What would you do if you were in my shoes, dealing with this contract issue?”
“First, I’d beat those people up.” Ethan replied without even thinking
I froze for a second. I was expecting something like taking them to court or negotiating with someone, but Ethan’s solution was much simpler and more straightforward, though a lot more forceful
Just then, two middle–aged women walked up to the store’s door. They looked arounil, confused, scratching their heads. “Why isn’t it open? We’ve always passed through here before. If we go around the side, we’ll have to walk a huge detour,” one of them said.
“Yeah, it used to be open, but lately, who knows what’s going on? They just closed it up,” the other woman sighed.
I was puzzled by their conversation, and I walked up to chat “Was this always a store! Could you pass through here before?”
“Yeah, miss, you must be new around here. There used to be a passage between these two stores, and it wasn’t even narrow,” one woman explained
“I heard it was a fire exit? I can’t believe they just took it over like that. This mall is really irresponsible, the other woman added, agreeing
“Well, forget it. Let’s just go around, she suggested.
The two women exchanged comments as they continued walking.
From their conversation, I caught a crucial piece of information
Apparently, there used to be a fire exit between these four neighboring stores.
No wonder the stores here looked a bit bigger than others.
It seemed like they’d taken over the fire exit.
I quickly turned to look at Ethan, “Go get a floor plan of the mall and confirm whether this is actually a fire exit”
“I’m only responsible for your safety, not for running errands,” Ethan said, crossing his arms, sounding very much in the right.
I almost choked, but after a moment, I pressed my hand to my temples, “Till pay you extra for running errands.”
Ethan’s eyes lit up at once. Without another word, he turned and went off to handle i
I watched him walk away, feeling a little helpless for a moment.
Hut soon, I couldn’t help but envy him. No matter what happened, as long as money was involved, he’d be satished.
If only all problems in this world could be solved with money, maybe there wouldn’t be so much pain.
I stood there for a while, feeling a little tired. I decided to head home.
Che
12:38 PM
Chapter 87
When I walked into the living room. I immediately noticed how quiet everything was.
Usually, at this time, Rita would rush over to offer me some soup, but tonight, there was no sign of her.
“Where’s Rita?” I casually asked one of the maids nearby.
“Rita is helping Mrs. Parker pack,” the maid replied
At that, my eyes brightened. “Packing! Is Mrs. Parker leaving?”
Deborah had been staying here for quite some time, and she was probably heading back.
She’d mentioned before how much she loved the peaceful, simple life at the church and didn’t want to deal with troublesome matters.
With her leaving, I wouldn’t have to squeeze into a room with Hayden anymore.
But before I could feel too happy about it, the maid added, “Yes, Mrs, Parker said that since the holidays are coming up, she wants to take you and Mr. Parker back home for a family gathering
The smile on my lips froze instantly. “Back to the Parker residence!”
“Yes,” the maid continued nodding
At that moment, it felt like I could hear the sound of my soul shantering.
The maid kept talking, oblivious to my thoughts. “I heard Layla’s back. Mr. Parker will definitely be happy about that.”
Her words struck me like a bolt of lightning
Layla Parker was Hayden’s mother. She used to go by Angel, but she changed her name to Layla.
Layla was my mother–in–law.
She had always looked down on me. When Hayden and I got married, she was so furious she didn’t come home for days. Later, when Hayden went abroad, she left too.
I never expected her to come back now,
I could only feel an unbearable headache creeping up on me.
At that exact moment, Rita came downstairs and, seeing me, sud cheerfully, “Yvonne, you should get ready. We’re going back to the Parker residence tomorrow.”
Rita was looking forward to it. The Parker residence was lively and it had been her home for most of her life.
But I didn’t want to go back.
1 blinked, quickly brainstorming excuses. “I’ve been really busy lately, so I think I’ll skip this time…”
“That won’t do Rita sakl. The holiday’s coming up. Mrs. Parker wants to bring everyone together for the family reunion.
I appreciated her effort. Most of the Parker family didn’t like me, but Rica was an exception
“Actually, my dad just told me he wants me to come home for the holiday,” I said, making up a reason as I spoke
Of course, my father had never called me. I was just telling a lie.
Rita hesitated, clearly unsure. “Well, that does make things a bit tricky
“Yeah, why don’t you go ahead and accompany Mrs. Parker back? 1 need to swing by the Jackson residence for a bit.” I suggested, trying to seize the opportunity.
Just as I saw Rita about to agree, Deborah suddenly appeared, leaning on a cane. “Since you’re married now, part of the Parker family, why would you go back to your old place!
“Besides, I’m sure you don’t really want to go back there anyway, do you?”
I fraze for a moment.
2/3
12:38 PM c d
Chapter 87
While it was no longer forbidden for married women to go home for the holidays, Deborah’s words were quite absolute. And what she said afterward left me speechless.
“Mrs. Parker…” 1 mumbled, feeling deflated.
1 could get past Rita with a few excuses, but Deborah, being so sharp, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to avoid her questions.
Deborah walked over, took my hand, and sat me down on the sofa. “Is it that you don’t want to see Hayden’s mother?”
“No” I shook my head, speaking less and less.
Deborah saw right through me, sighing. “You know her well. She is unhappy that she didn’t decide on Hayden’s marriage. She can’t accept it. I get it. You’re afraid she’ll make things difficult for you.”
Angel, coming from an aristocratic family, had this air of superiority. She looked down on everyone, thinking she was above them.
In her eyes, the Jackson family was practically a shum
When Hayden married me, Angel probably thought she had been cursed for eight generations.
In the past, for Hayden’s sake. I endured all the sneers. Not only that, but I also tried to win her over.
But now, I just wanted to stay as far away from her as possibile.
After a moment of thought, I spoke again. “Mrs. Parker, I’ve been really busy with work. The Parker residence is a bit far for me. I was thinking of staying near the company for the next few days.”
Before Deborah could respond. Hayden’s deep, coll voice came from the doorway, “You’re coming back to the Parker residence too.”
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