Isabella remained silent. Tammy looked them both in the eyes, changed the subject, and said, “I made a lot of cranberry cookies, Mom. Can you bring them to the hospital tomorrow and give them to your coworkers?”
“I’ll do that tomorrow. But I need to get Isabella to the airport right now.”
Isabella poked her head out of the kitchen in a panic and said, “The airport? No! I’m not going back to America!”
“Then why didn’t you tell Jasper that you were coming to my house? If you’re not happy here, you’ll leave as well. In that case, how would I explain it to Jasper?”
Isabella frowned and said, “He’s not going to ask me anything! I’ve been on summer vacation for half a month, and he hasn’t even called me once. If anything bad happens to me, I’ll be six feet underground now.”
Anna rolled her eyes at her and said, “Stop talking nonsense. If Jasper hears this, he’ll be mad at you. Hasn’t he always given you the best of everything?”
Isabella realized Anna was very upset. She walked out of the kitchen, trembling, and said, “Don’t be mad, Anna. I didn’t mean to keep it from him. I ran away because Lily was pregnant.”
Hearing that, Anna was stunned. She knew that Jasper and Lily had been married for five years with no children, and it was because he didn’t want one himself. This couple fought a lot about children in recent years.
“Come here, tell me what’s going on,” Anna said as she sat on the couch.
Isabella took a deep breath and appeared irritated. She remained silent for a long time before finally saying, “My summer vacation ended about a month ago. Jasper went to Madrid on a business trip after I came back from school. Therefore, back then, there were just me, Lily, and the maid. You are well aware that Lily and I have never gotten along. Besides, I listened to you and never had a fight with her. I just stayed in my room all day long. And one day, she cooked for me and told me that she was pregnant.”
“What? Did she ask you to move out of their house?”
“Yes. She told me she’d found me an apartment near my school and asked me to move in.”
Noticing Anna was frowning, Isabella continued, “Don’t worry, I didn’t get into a fight with her. I don’t want to get in their way because it’s their first child. As a result, I left that night.”
Anna’s heart ached as she heard Isabella’s explanation. Isabella had a brave personality, but she had few people to care for her as a child. Anna had always asked Jasper to look after Isabella while she was in France. As a result, Jasper was important to Isabella. Isabella and Lily didn’t get along, but they never fought for Jasper’s sake.
“Have you discussed this with Jasper?”
“No, because I understand what Lily means. She believes that my presence at home prevents her from being intimate with her husband. People who are pregnant are said to be moody. If I tell Jasper about it, he’ll be upset, and the two of them will fight over me. So, I moved out.”
“You were afraid Jasper would ask you about why you didn’t come home for the summer, so you came to my place, right?” Anna asked.
“Yes,” Isabella said, nodding.
Anna suddenly felt angry. She patted Isabella on the shoulder and asked, “Why didn’t you call me earlier? You didn’t want to explain it to Jasper, right? So, why didn’t you ask me to help you?”
“I know you’re busy, so I was worried you’d come straight to America to find me,” Isabella said, covering her shoulder.
Anna was both angry and sad. She said, “Stop right there. Let me figure this out. You aren’t an adult yet, and you can’t live on your own. Don’t make your mind up about it again. You won’t be able to hide it from Jasper anyway.”
“Then what will you do about it?” Isabella asked, surprised.
Anna gripped her hand tightly and said, “You can live with me if you don’t get along with Lily. Jasper and I adopted you together, and legally, I’m your mother. “
Lily and Jasper had many conflicts, which involved having children, Isabella, Tammy, and even Anna. They frequently fought over these issues. Lily knew how much Jasper had cared for Anna and Tammy, and she expected him to do the same for her.
She forgot, however, that the way they got along with each other was difficult to change. Lily had been Jasper’s secretary for eight years and had always followed his instructions. So changing his ways right after they married would be extremely difficult for Jasper.
Eventually, Lily realized she was not receiving the care she deserved and began resenting everyone and everything around her. Anna had met Lily several times and heard her say some outrageous things. Lily believed that Jasper didn’t want any children because he already had two: Isabella and Tammy.
Tammy was living with Anna, and Isabella was the only one left there. Anna knew what Lily was up to, but she didn’t expect that she would kick an underage child out of the house.
Anna didn’t think it was a big deal because she was the one who proposed to adopt Isabella in the first place. As a result, she felt she couldn’t let Isabella stay at Jasper’s house any longer.
After both children had fallen asleep, Anna went to the balcony to call Jasper. She said, “Thank you for looking after Isabella all these years because I should have been doing it. You’ve done well enough, so it’s best if she stays with me in the future.”
After a brief pause, Jasper said, “I asked Lily about it. I’ll go to Birmingham to pick up Isabella before her summer vacation ends. Everything will be back to normal then.”
“No, you don’t have to do that. I’ve already thought about it.”
Jasper cut her off and said, “You haven’t given it much thought. You have to stay in Birmingham for a whole year, and you’re busy with your work, so you won’t have time to take care of her. When I previously promised to look after Isabella, I didn’t only do it for the sake of you, but also for the sake of Isabella. As her foster father, I will look after her even after she turns 18.”
Anna thought his words sounded a bit odd, but she couldn’t tell precisely what was odd about it. Then she asked, “What about Lily? You didn’t get into a fight with her, did you?”
“Lily and I have decided to divorce.”
“What? You two are getting a divorce?!” Anna asked, wide-eyed with surprise. She thought, I knew Jasper would be enraged because Lily kicked Isabella out without telling him. But I had no idea it would go this far! Besides, isn’t Lily pregnant? What about the baby?
Jasper didn’t appear to be in a good mood and didn’t seem to want to talk anymore. As a result, he quickly hung up the phone.
Standing on the balcony, Anna had mixed feelings as she looked up at the moon that was partly covered by the clouds. She thought to herself, Well, I’ve pretty much messed up my relationship with Wayne. So, who am I to tell what Jasper should and shouldn’t do? Jasper is a wise and steady man. He knows what is best for Isabella. After all, it’s him who has looked after Isabella all these years. As for Isabella… She’s about to turn 18. And I shouldn’t make the decision for her without her permission.
***
The next day, Wayne sat in his office, wearing a black shirt. The décor of his office was classical, making the entire atmosphere serious and upscale.
Noel, his assistant, said, “Mr. Wright, a media company is celebrating its anniversary at the end of this month, and they sent out invitations to you earlier. You haven’t decided whether or not you want to go there. What do you think?”
Wayne did not hesitate to say, “No, I’m not going.”
Celebrities typically attended media company anniversary celebrations, which served as excellent networking opportunities. It was also an incredible opportunity for him to promote the company.
“By the way, the legal department said that the result of our lawsuit with Light has come out,” Noel said after reading the notice.
Wayne raised his head. When he looked at Noel, his eyes were as calm and intelligent. “How did it go?” he asked.
“We won. Joshua Davis will be back tomorrow.”
“So, any reaction from the board?” Wayne asked, nodding.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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