When Clarice saw the photo, she felt dizzy and almost fell to the ground, but Alice didn't notice her change and only explained.
"Clarice, did you see this? This is what I told you when we were younger—the daughter of President Armani with the world's top financial magnate, that's success in life. And Mr. Nicholas is so handsome! I've only seen him once at the company, but he's so handsome, and Miss Armani is truly blessed. To be able to marry such a perfect man, it's really enviable."
Clarice stared at the photo expressionlessly; she felt her whole body getting cold, as if her blood were freezing. When she left his house, she still had a glimmer of hope in her heart; she thought that maybe Nicholas would look for
her, but of course, she was wrong. Maybe he wanted her to leave, but didn't know how to say it, so he just let things happen. And now, she had left on her own to make way for Miss Armani, and they had hurriedly spread the news of the wedding.
"And the wedding is scheduled in 20 days. I must say, the Murray family is very fast; the wedding will be held so soon. I wonder if a little employee like me will receive an invitation to attend the wedding. I'm really looking forward to it." Alice daydreamed as she was infatuated with the man in the photo.
However, Clarice felt like she was in an ice-cold house. In the next month, he would definitely be so eager to marry Miss Armani.
"Clarice, you're really foolish to think that he would come to look for you so quickly because he thought you had disappeared," she mentally scolded herself.
Alice, who was beside her, was infatuated for a while and then suddenly remembered that she would be late for work, so she quickly returned to her room to change and left.
On the other hand, Clarice sat on the living room couch in a daze. Her phone had been turned off since yesterday, and now it seemed like it was no longer important for her to turn it on. He hadn't looked for her.
She laughed bitterly at herself before picking up the phone and pressing the power button. Since her phone didn't have a missed call reminder, she couldn't receive any missed calls at the time of shutdown.
A few minutes after the phone was turned on, it suddenly rang.
She looked at the caller ID and saw that it was an unknown number.
Who could be calling her?
Nicholas?
The only thing that came to her mind was that name, but very quickly, she shook her head again.
How could he call when she was about to get married?
After some hesitation, she slid the answer button.
"Clarice, is that you?" On the other end of the line, there was a somewhat familiar voice, but she couldn't remember who it was.
"Who is this?"
"Julia, your mother. Don't you recognize my voice anymore?" Julia's tone carried a hint of reprimand.
Mother?
Upon hearing that name, Clarice suddenly felt her stomach churn, and her heart gradually grew cold.
"What do you want with me?"
"What are you saying, silly girl? Of course, I've missed you. Where are you now? Mom can invite you for lunch."
"No need. Since there's nothing else, I'll hang up." She didn't know why her mother, who had always treated her like a snake or a scorpion, suddenly became so intimate. This change reminded her of her father, whom she hadn't seen in a long time. She was very afraid.
"Hey, hey, hey, don't hang up, don't hang up. Mom has something to tell you." Julia saw that her attitude was cold and didn't want to talk much, so she asked anxiously.
"Go ahead."
"But, I can't explain it over the phone right now. How about you don't want to have lunch with me, and we can find a place for a cup of coffee? It won't take much of your time, just half an hour, okay?" Clarice hesitated.
"How is your brother now? I heard he went to study abroad. How is he?" Julia asked again on the other end of the line.
Upon hearing that she mentioned her brother, Clarice's heart softened. Yes, even if she didn't like her mother, but now that she thought of taking care of her brother, could she meet her once? Maybe her brother wasn't as averse to their mother as she was. What right did she have to refuse on behalf of her brother?
"Are you thinking about Otto now?" Clarice's tone was cold and harsh.
"Clarice, I know that everything that happened to you and your brother is my fault. I shouldn't have left you two behind, but as a simple woman, what could I do? And if I brought you with me, and you both went hungry? Clarice, I know you hate me, so I don't expect you to forgive me, but please, give Mom a chance. Let's meet. You've grown up, you're out in the world, you're capable of supporting yourself, but Otto is still studying, and I know studying abroad is expensive, so Mom can help him."
Certainly, when Clarice heard about this matter with her brother, in the end, she couldn't bear to reject, so she agreed.
"Send me the time and address."
"Okay, I'll send it to you right away. Do you need me to tell the driver to pick you up?" Julia asked attentively.
"No need, I'll go on my own." Clarice immediately rejected without thinking.
After hanging up the phone, Julia sent a message with the meeting time and address. Clarice looked at the address and tossed the phone aside.
It was a very stylish café in the city, and Clarice showed up on time. As soon as she entered the door, she saw Julia sitting in the corner, who also noticed her and immediately got up and waved to her.
Clarice walked over to her and, for the first time, helped her pull out a chair, her expression extremely attentive.
"After not seeing you for a few years, you seem more beautiful with each passing day. You look a lot like me when I was young." Julia assessed her daughter from head to toe and said with a smile, but Clarice wasn't pleased to hear her words.
She scrutinized Julia's face. Although she was already middle-aged, living like a queen for a long time had preserved her youth. Only the fine lines at the corners of her eyes still betrayed her age. She was wearing a dark green dress, her hair elegantly tied up, and a pearl necklace around her neck, exuding the vibe of a noble lady.
The waiter approached and took their order. Clarice ordered a cup of coffee and then fixed her gaze on Julia's face.
"If there's something you want to say, just say it!" Julia noticed her cold attitude and her face hardened slightly."Clarice, I let you and your brother down with this matter back then. As a mother, I chose my own path and didn't think of you two. In fact, all these years, I've been dreaming of you both every night, I..." Clarice didn't want to hear her confess her mistake, so she interrupted her before she could finish."Don't talk about what happened in the past. If you're going to talk about that, I'll leave." With that, she stood up and prepared to leave."No, no, I won't mention what happened back then. Let's talk for now, don't go!" At that moment, the waiter brought the coffee. "Seeing this, Julia immediately interrupted her.Clarice sat back down, picked up the coffee, took a sip, and felt disgusted. She frowned, put the coffee on the table, and didn't touch it."Is the coffee not good? Then let's change to something else." Julia keenly noticed the change in her expression an
"Clarice, do you really want to see me die? If Edward isn't your boyfriend, why would he announce in front of so many people? A man of his status and position would never speak without thinking." Of course, Julia didn't believe her. In her view, Clarice was just looking for an excuse not to help, and Clarice didn't know how to explain her relationship with Edward. Most importantly, Nicholas was really taking care of the Gatti family, but he carried the blame for it, Edward."How about this, if you don't feel comfortable, I'll bring Samanta to you tomorrow and have her kneel to serve you some tea, so she can apologize." Julia thought that she was still unhappy about being humiliated that day and pushed Samanta directly out of the way.Clarice didn't want to see Samanta anymore, so she naturally didn't want her to make tea as an apology. Turning her head to look around, she realized that Julia's kneeling had attracted many customers to watch.She didn't want to be the center of attentio
"You are free to come and go, but you must work eight hours a day," he didn't want to force her, after all, he still had some understanding of her personality after these few years together. Although she usually seemed so kind, her heart was strong. If he cornered her, he wasn't sure what she would do, so he would give her freedom, and she would be relieved. At least for eight hours a day, she wouldn't have to face him. "Alright, I'll start working tomorrow.""Starting today!" As he spoke, he crossed his legs and casually picked up a magazine that was carefully placed on the tea table and opened it, and Clarice stood in place, not knowing what to do.Starting today? You mean starting now?Seeing that the two had finished their conversation, Luna approached. "I'll replace your tea; it seems to have cooled down!""Is there a need for you to do something a housekeeper should do?" Nicholas glanced at the magazine, but his tone was very sharp. Clarice knew that the "housekeeper" in his m
"What did you say, Clarice?" Nicholas's eyebrows suddenly furrowed; he probably didn't expect Clarice to say that. Marry her? He hadn't thought about it, but he knew he liked her and wanted her by his side forever. "What? Do you think I'm delusional, Nicholas?" Clarice revealed a self-deprecating smile. "I know my background isn't worthy of you, Mr. Murray. However, since you never intended to marry me, why did you lead me to imagine that? Or do you think I'm motivated by money? That I would sell myself to it forever?" "Clarice, I can't marry you..." He said, feeling his voice falter, and in his mind, he added, "at least not now, Clarice," but kept those words to himself. "I understand," she nodded, feeling her chest tighten. "But you can still be by my side," he continued. "Besides my name, I can give you anything you want. If you want to see the entire world, it will be yours. If you want wealth, I'll give it to you. If you want status, I'll give it to you, just not by my side."
Luna saw that Clarice was about to leave the kitchen, so she asked,"Clarice, where are you going? Sit down, and let's eat together!""No need, I live far away, and I'm afraid there won't be a bus, and I'll be late. Just leave the utensils there after you finish eating. I'll clean up in the morning," she replied without turning her head."But, don't you live here? Like for the past few years?" Upon hearing this, Luna secretly looked to the side to see Nicholas's expression and found him expressionless as he drank soup with no intention of speaking."President Murray didn't tell you? I work only eight hours a day, and as for the time outside those eight hours, I think I'm free." Her words were laced with sarcasm, and her voice was cold."But..." Luna opened her mouth, wanting to ask her to stay until she heard Nicholas's voice."Just let her go," Nicholas, who hadn't spoken all this time, set aside his plate of food and spoke without looking at her.He had already used an unfair method
"Hello everyone, my name is Clarice Savas. I'm Alice's sister, and I came uninvited today, so it's a surprise. I hope I don't spoil everyone's mood.""Miss Savas, right? "Even though we're all having dinner in the department, we have a close relationship with friends, so there's nothing to be unhappy about, as long as you don't mind us making some noise.""Alright, alright. Come on, let's not talk about anything else for now. Let's raise our glasses and toast to the manager first. Without him, who knows how long we would have waited for today's meal. Let's thank the manager first."At the table, someone raised a glass of wine and suggested.So, everyone raised their glasses.As Clarice was pregnant, she naturally couldn't drink alcohol, and Alice served her a glass of fruit juice and toasted with everyone.After the first glass of wine, everyone started chatting and laughing.Clarice was in the early stages of pregnancy and had a bad premonition, so she didn't have much appetite. Howev
"I say, how did she know that the one who would come to fetch me was Nicholas? You must have told her, right?""No... I didn't... "Clarice denied, but she quickly realized that Nicholas might come here later, and couldn't help but feel anxious.She didn't want to meet him outside.Mary smiled at everyone, raised her hand, and checked the time on her wristwatch."It's almost time; he should be here soon. Take your time eating, I'll leave first." With that, she instructed the assistant next to her. "Winston, go to the cashier and buy things for them. If you need anything else, ask the manager to report to you tomorrow.""Yes, Miss Armani." Winston agreed and accompanied her out of the private room.Watching the two leave, Clarice let out a long sigh of relief. It was so close; she almost saw Nicholas again.Outside the restaurant, Nicholas's car was parked; Mary got into the car with a particularly happy smile on her face."Why are you in su
Alice was completely drunk, and she wasn't the only one. All the men and women at the table were essentially intoxicated.As her family, Clarice naturally had to take responsibility for getting her home safely. However, drunk Alice lacked the ability to stand on her own, and just lifting her from the private box took a lot of effort.As a pregnant woman, Clarice didn't dare make big movements, and seeing her struggle, the waiter kindly helped her to the door and took her to the roadside.It was already completely dark outside, and a few small stars could be vaguely seen in the sky, with the city being neon-lit and well-lit enough to overshadow the dimmer stars."I'm not drunk, I can still drink," Alice danced at the roadside while supported by Clarice."Alice, calm down, please, don't go crazy with alcohol," Clarice was helpless in response.If she had known that Alice's alcohol tolerance was so low, she wouldn't have let her drink so much, and Clarice reached out to hail a taxi.Howe