Jenna was surprised, then looked toward Edward and smiled.Edward made it lively during their dinner while Elaine had a few things to say when the food was served.Nolan rarely spoke when dining, and Maisie would usually be the one speaking. She noticed that Jenna had no interactions with Elaine. After dinner, Edward walked them to the door. Maisie said goodbye to them politely and got into the car with Nolan. The car slowly drove away while she looked into the side mirror. “I felt that Jenna didn’t really blend in.”Nolan casually unbuttoned his jacket, tilted his head, and smiled. “You were paying attention to that?”“I just found it odd.” Maisie leaned on his shoulder. “Jenna had to look at her husband before speaking and didn’t interact with her daughter as though she was an outsider.”When the driver heard that, he said, “I heard that this is Mr. Xavier’s second wife. Ms. Xavier was from the first wife who he divorced many years ago.”Maisie leaned forward with a curio
Elaine walked toward the car.The car drove into the car park. After Lucy parked the car, she came out and closed the door. As soon as she turned around, she saw Elaine walking toward her. “It has been a long time, Lucy. It seems like you’re leading a pretty good life. You even have a new car.”Lucy did not expect to run into Elaine here. The smile on her face disappeared. “So? It's not like I'm spending your family's money.”Just when she was about to leave, Elaine stopped her. “It has been three years. You don't even care about how your mother is living in our house?”When Elaine talked about her mother, Lucy averted her gaze and fell silent.When she turned 15, her mother remarried a businessman. Since then, she and her mother had been living with the Xaviers. She had also acknowledged her stepfather as her father and changed her surname. However, she knew that she and her mother had always been outsiders. Her mother was obedient to the man and tried her best to be a good
Elaine took a sip from the tea silently. Nobody could tell if she was listening or not. She had not wanted to go with her father to the Blackgold that day. Even though she graduated from the same college as Nolan, she was unfamiliar with him.Her father had wanted her to go because he wanted to take advantage of the "relationship" between her daughter and Nolan and hoped that he would give them a chance. However, he was obviously wrong.She was also well aware that her father wanted her to enter that circle solidly and gain a foothold in it. Many people wanted to work with Blackgold, but not all of them had the opportunity. When people wanted to cotton up to the Goldmanns, the first target they would go after was Nolan, and they would usually ignore Nolan's wife. Her father knew how much Nolan loved his wife, so he wanted her to form a good relationship with her instead.Everyone said Maisie was just lucky for marrying Nolan. Some of them even thought that she was just a woman,
Not only that, but Elaine did not take the chance and curry favor with Nolan when they were having dinner that night. Apparently, she was not interested in Nolan. Elaine put the gift on the table and said with a smile, “To express my gratitude, I hope you can keep this, Mrs. Goldmann.”Maisie knew it was expensive, judging from the gift box alone.She narrowed her eyes and seemed rather perplexed. “You’re welcome, Ms. Xavier. However, did you not already express it at dinner the other day? So don't you think it's a little inappropriate for me to accept your gift now?”There were two meanings when it came to gift-giving. The first one was to express something, while the second was to curry favor. When one wanted to express something, it could mean that they were asking for a favor. However, Elaine did not look like she was asking for a favor but was more inclined to the second one.In other words, Elaine was currying favor with her, but she did not show it explicitly. It was wit
Nolan wrapped his arms around Maisie’s waist and pulled her closer. “Can’t you?”Maisie was stunned for a moment and chuckled. “Can I?”Nolan lowered his head and landed a trail of kisses on her cheek to the corner of her lips. “Yes, you can.”Maisie slightly pushed him away and lifted her head to look at his handsome face. “That’s because you know I won’t make any unreasonable demands.”To make a man obedient, being unreasonable was useless. An appropriate amount of vexatiousness could improve the relationship between husband and wife, but it would only make a man feel bored when overused.Nolan chose to listen to her when it came to important matters. He gave her the amount of respect and trust she needed. People always said that men went out to work while women looked after the house. When a woman gave her husband the respect he needed, the man would reciprocate by giving her a good life. However, things were different when it came to Nolan.Regardless of whether they were out
Lucy lowered her head and pressed her lips thin.Seeing her reaction, Jenna was worried that Edward would get angry, so she nudged Lucy. “Your father is talking to you.”Just when Lucy was about to say something, Elaine suddenly chimed in, “It’s just a small company. There’s nothing to ask, Dad.”After hearing what his daughter said, Edward nodded. Honestly, he was not interested in whatever Lucy was doing. If she really were the manager of a big corporation, it would mean that his stepdaughter was still rather useful. After all, profits and gains were the priority of businessmen.Lucy looked at Elaine, but Elaine paid her no mind.Lucy did not want to stay after she had finished lunch. Jenna walked her to the entrance. Before she left, Jenna grabbed her hand and said, “Lucy, are you mad with me?”Lucy was not someone who could hold grudges. When she said she was not mad, she was not mad anymore.After all, she had grown up now, and she could understand her mother’s choice.“Mo
“After getting married, any woman should act obediently and virtuously just like your mother. She takes good care of her family, her children, and her husband. However, the husband thinks those are all that she should do. He’s never given her a single word of approval or appreciation. You should know it yourself. Your mother has never dared to go against my father’s will.”The car was parked outside the apartment. Lucy unfastened her seat belt but did not get out of the car. Instead, she turned to look at Elaine.“So, is that why you don’t like my mother?” Lucy waited for her answer in silence.Elaine leaned on the back of the seat. “I just can’t stand your mother’s aggrieved looks and pleading manners.”Lucy lowered her gaze and said nothing.It was not that she did not know that her mother felt aggrieved and wronged. After getting married to the Xaviers, she could no longer engage in the profession that she liked. Edward wanted her to be a housewife and even asked her to cut tie
Maisie was stunned. “Does she have a bad father-daughter relationship with Edward?”Saydie shook her head. “I'm not sure about that, but that's the general situation. Ms. Xavier would have a fight with her father from time to time, and the staff often heard him say that it's a shame that Ms. Xavier is a woman.”‘It’s a shame that Elaine is a woman?’Maisie frowned, and understanding soon dawned upon her.Edward did not plan to nurture Elaine at all. In his eyes, his daughter was going to marry another man in the future, so no matter how capable she was, she would never stay in Beyond Technology and the Xaviers forever.She thought for a while and said to Saydie, “Help me to make an appointment with Ms. Xavier.”Several days later, at Beyond Technology…Elaine walked toward the CEO's office with a document in her hands, her face grim. The staff in the department had already gotten used to it, and just as they expected, a “smack” echoed from the CEO's office as she hurled the docu