Maria nodded.
Mrs. Ragsdill continued, “If you can guarantee that you will quit the entertainment industry, never involve yourself in any entertainment-related matters, and focus on starting a family, then my son, Kim, can be completely yours.”
Upon hearing this, Maria felt a little unhappy. What kind of statement was that? They were treating her like a tool for the Ragsdill family’s succession?
“Mrs. Ragsdill, I’m afraid I can’t do that. The entertainment industry is my dream, and I have worked so hard…”
Before Maria could finish her sentence, Mrs. Ragsdill stood up abruptly and said to her, “Since that’s not possible, forget it. You may leave now!”
Maria was also filled with anger. If she had agreed, she would have truly become a tool for the Ragsdill family’s succession.
“No need to see me off. I’ll leave on my own!” Maria’s temper flared up, and she left the house on her own.
After Maria left, Kim looked at his mother and felt extremely uncomfortable.
“Mom! How could you say something like that? It’s like turning Maria into a tool for our family’s succession. Seriously!”
He immediately followed Maria and went after her.
After leaving Kim’s house, Maria went straight to Jane’s place.
…
On an arriving plane, there was a girl whose gaze was fixed on the window, her mind filled with various thoughts.
This girl was Melissa.
Having not returned to her own country for many years, Melissa was filled with excitement at this moment. After all, there were so many people she hadn’t seen for a long time in her family, and she naturally felt happy.
“I wonder how he’s doing,” she muttered under her breath.
“The plane has successfully landed. Please wait until the jet bridge is set up, then you may disembark.” The voice of the flight attendant repeated inside the plane, but Melissa was too preoccupied to pay attention.
After a while, Melissa came out of the airport and saw the chauffeur arranged by Mike, holding a sign and searching for her figure in the crowd.
“Hello, you must be Miss Pansy, right?” The chauffeur had also worked for the Pansy family for several years, so he recognized Melissa from her photo.
Melissa smiled and nodded.
The chauffeur took Melissa to the Pansy family.
On the way, Melissa looked at the surroundings and couldn’t help but feel emotional. In just a few years, her hometown had been developed even better. She felt a familiar sensation surging through her heart.
Upon reaching the doorstep, Melissa became even more excited. She took several deep breaths before mustering the courage to knock on the door.
Inside the room, an elderly person heard the knocking and smiled, saying to the people around them, “Quick, Melissa’s back. Let’s go and open the door.”
One person went to open the door.
When Melissa entered the room and saw so many relatives and friends gathered in one place, tears involuntarily streamed down her face.
Even if she didn’t want to admit it, at this moment, Melissa couldn’t hold back her tears of excitement. After all, it had been so long since she had experienced a family reunion like this.
“How was your journey, Melissa? Everything went smoothly, I hope?” Mike smiled and asked, concerned about Melissa.
Melissa returned the smile.
“Of course, it went smoothly. With you arranging everything for me, how could anything go wrong?” After speaking, she happily sat next to Mike.
“As an old man, I still enjoy listening to you talk.”
After the family reunion, they chatted for a long time and didn’t finish until late at night.
Suddenly, Mike made a suggestion.
“Let’s arrange a family banquet for Melissa tomorrow, and let her meet all the relatives she hasn’t seen in a long time.”
Melissa nodded, but in her mind, she was thinking not about any relatives, but about Kim. She wondered if he had changed over these years…
Melissa has always been a follower of Kim since childhood, and it was only as she grew older that she gradually realized that this affection was not as simple as sibling love. In her heart, Melissa had long regarded Kim as someone who could accompany her for a lifetime. However, regardless of their feelings, they were still relatives.
Melissa was well aware of the principle that close relatives cannot marry.
In order to dispel these thoughts, Melissa chose to go abroad, but she did not expect that her longing for Kim would not diminish but grow stronger after she left the country.
“Melissa, you’ve been on a plane all day, and it’s getting late. Go rest. Your mom and I will discuss the details of tomorrow’s family banquet.” Mike planned to inform each and every relative so that everyone could attend smoothly.
After hearing Mike’s words, Melissa returned to her prearranged room.
Meanwhile, Mike started notifying each relative after Melissa left.
Everything went smoothly until it came to Kim’s side.
Kim was surprised to hear about Melissa’s return, but he knew that if he went, it wouldn’t be as simple as catching up with old times.
Kim, being a shrewd person, naturally understood Melissa’s feelings toward him. So ever since they grew up, there were many times he would avoid Melissa. After all, if he knowingly played with Melissa while aware of her feelings, she would become even more intense.
After careful consideration, Kim decided not to attend the family banquet.
“Uncle, my company has been very busy lately, and I won’t be able to make it. Tomorrow’s schedule is already full, but I will definitely come to visit another time!”
Kim politely declined Mike’s invitation. He was somewhat concerned that Mike might be unhappy, but there was only one solution to this situation.
In any case, Kim definitely couldn’t attend the family banquet this time.
As for Melissa, she thought of Jane.
She contemplated whether or not to invite Jane to the family banquet. Since she had already returned, they would eventually meet one day, so why not at this family banquet?
With that in mind, Melissa dialed Jane’s number.
On Jane’s end, when she saw the unfamiliar number, she felt that it was somewhat familiar, but couldn’t recall whose it was.
She answered the call.
Jane immediately recognized Melissa’s voice after she said hello.
“I’m back. There’s a family banquet at the house tomorrow. Would you like to come?” Melissa got straight to the point.
Upon hearing this, Jane naturally understood the reason Melissa was reaching out to her. She casually made up an excuse to brush it off.
“I’m pregnant, so I have some mobility issues. I will come to visit another day. If there’s nothing else, let’s talk when I come to visit.”