They chatted all the way.
“Last night when you met my mother, did she say anything inappropriate?”
Emma thought for a moment. “No. She asked me where I had been, and I told her I was working.”
“Did she say anything against you?”
“We don’t talk much. So, it’s actually okay.”
Patrick always felt that Emma wasn’t telling the truth. Jennifer’s malice towards Emma could be felt through the walls. He didn’t think his mother was the kind to hold back her hostility.
“If you have any issues between the two of you, I hope you can tell me. Handling member conflicts is also the alpha’s job.”
Emma smiled, “It’s not that serious.”
Actually, she didn’t want to speak up. Most of the time, Jennifer just ran her mouth and didn’t really interfere in her life. She thought that even if she wanted to say something, she should at least wait until she could catch evidence of the other person causing her trouble.
“You don’t need to worry.”
Patrick hesitated. He wanted to say, “You can trust me more; I’ll be there whenever you need me.” But in the end, he swallowed these words.
He thought, I have plenty of time with her; there’s no need to rush things.
Patrick had other work to attend to, and Emma said she could go back by herself.
The two parted ways at the intersection.
Emma walked into the house and gently closed the door. She didn’t want Jennifer to know she was back home.
If Nelson wasn’t here, she would definitely be insulted and threatened. Although she didn’t care about those remarks…
“Darling!” she heard Nelson’s voice coming from the kitchen. He was probably calling Jennifer. She hoped Nelson wasn’t calling her; she hated that term of endearment.
But fortunately, he was home, which eased Emma’s mind. At least that way, even if she ran into Jennifer, she could only remain quiet. Every time she stared at her with hostility and hatred, she always felt uneasy. No one could remain indifferent when faced with such malevolent eyes. Those looks disgusted her.
“Emma?”
Emma approached the kitchen, and Nelson heard her voice.
“Hi, darling,” he said softly, still smiling. “Are you hungry?”
At this point, she finally saw Jennifer sitting at the table.
Emma rolled her eyes. She made sure Jennifer saw her do it. Neither she nor Jennifer made any effort to hide their mutual aversion now. Previously, she was willing to maintain basic respect and politeness, but now she felt these were meaningless to Jennifer.
“No, thank you, Nelson,” Emma replied politely. “But I’ve already eaten outside.”
That was a lie. She hadn’t eaten anything, and her hangover still throbbed in her head. She needed a glass of water to sober up. But it was inconvenient now, so she decided to take a bath and get some sleep.
Nelson frowned slightly.
“Are you sure, darling?” he asked, with a hint of concern in his voice. “It’s morning, and you’ve just come back from outside. I’m worried you might not have eaten enough.”
His feigned concern was really annoying.
Emma felt disgusted. Why had he never thought about whether he and his daughter might be starving when he abandoned them? So she gradually became impatient. “I’m not hungry.”
Nelson seemed to show a subtle change in expression, but Emma could understand it. She had never seen herself, so of course she would resist. But he wanted more communication with his daughter.
“Okay, darling,” he said, still smiling. “Would you like to sit with us and chat?”
Emma furrowed her brow. She didn’t know what Nelson wanted to talk about.
“What do you want to talk about?” She never walked over to the dining table. Sitting at the same table as Jennifer made her uncomfortable, and she didn’t want to bother herself.
Nelson said gently, “We rarely see each other since you came here.”
Emma remained expressionless, but inside she felt like laughing. She had seen Jennifer more times here than Nelson. She didn’t understand what Nelson was trying to compensate for. It seemed like he thought that by giving her the money and lifestyle he hadn’t provided in the past sixteen years, he could make up for his absence.
Well, she thought that method was foolish, but she wasn’t interested in interfering with his thoughts. If Nelson wanted to think that way, he could.
“Yes,” she said, “you seem busy.”
Every word she said left Nelson speechless. Emma wasn’t truly weak; she just didn’t want to conflict with others. She wasn’t afraid of confrontation, just like now.
Nelson didn’t speak for a long time. Emma could feel Jennifer’s gaze tearing her apart, but she wasn’t interested in Jennifer. She was looking at Nelson, wanting to see how he would defend himself.
After aPause, Nelson didn’t respond to that accusation for a while. Instead, he said, “I want to know about your recent situation. Is everything going well in your life?”
Emma didn’t expect him to ask that. She let out a breath but then swallowed it back. Anything overdue would no longer hold any value. She wanted to tell Nelson this.
A late father, a late home, late concern and greetings. She had no expectations of repairing her relationship with her father. She remained here because she needed to survive.
Yet, upon hearing this expression of concern, Emma could still feel anger consuming her.
She couldn’t help but be angry about this. He left his homeland, the place that raised him, and all he wanted to do was run away. The place had given him everything, and in the end, he abandoned it. He never went back.
Then he abandoned his destined partner, never attempting to seek out her life. He had a relationship with her mother but refused to acknowledge her. He didn’t think she would get pregnant. He irresponsibly ran away, escaping the chains in his heart.
Of course, these were personal choices. But he couldn’t expect to turn around and ask for her forgiveness after making such serious mistakes.
He had never fulfilled his duty as a father. He never tried to contact her or inquire about her well-being. He had never apologized to his own mother for his cowardly escape. Emma didn’t know if her mother had forgiven him in the end, as she refused to discuss him with her.
Therefore, she would forever hate Nelson. She wouldn’t betray her mother, wouldn’t forgive the man who had betrayed her mother, and certainly wouldn’t call him father.
“Sorry, Nelson, but I’m very tired. I have a part-time job at noon, so I need to take a shower and go to bed. That way, I won’t be late for my shift.”
Emma swore she saw disappointment in his eyes.
Her anger burned even fiercer in her heart. On what basis was he disappointed? Did he think that in less than six months, he could make up for sixteen years of accumulated mistakes and regrets? How dare he?