As Leonardo was coming out, Tim greeted and opened the car door for him.
Leonardo nodded to acknowledge him, face still stone-cold. After getting into the car, he asked, “Why did you and your wife divorce?”
Tim was struck dumb by the question, wondering why Leonardo was asking him this. But since he had asked, he would have to answer.
“I don’t really know why. I have even forgotten what we were quarreling about last. It was just that we both thought divorce was the best way forward for us.” There was a hint of sadness in his voice.
“Do you still love her?”
“Yeah,” Tim replied with no hesitation.
“Since you love her, why did you agree to the divorce?” Leonardo talked as if he was unconcerned, but there was a slight emotional fluctuation in his voice.
Tim had figured out why Leonardo was asking him this. “She requested it, saying every day was a torment to her. Divorce might make her feel better, and I could not bear to see her suffer.” His voice turned brittle.
Leonardo was sitting in the back seat. Looking from his perspective, he could see the side profile of Tim’s face—he looked mature and steady. He hired Tim at once when he first met him. Tim could always look at the big picture. Not that he was very special, but because he was circumspect and loyal.
“Don’t you still anguish over it?”
“Yeah,” as if he had thought of something happy, he smiled, “But I can still visit my son once a week, and see her.”
Leonardo’s brows were knitted together. When he spoke, his voice reeked of anger. “You have a son? Since you have a son, you shouldn’t have given up your son’s custody and she wouldn’t have left you.”
Tim knew what was happening when Leonardo did not allow Summer out of the house earlier. He roughly knew what bothered Leonardo.
“If divorce would make her life happier, I would be more than happy to do it.”
“Even if you’re not the one who gives her that happiness?”
“What?”
Leonardo sneered. “It would have been better to stay and suffer together.”
There was nothing he could do about what Leonardo thought. Tim said, “Young Master, we can’t weigh a relationship with the scale.”
“Oh, it looks like you really enjoy being divorced and alone.” Leonardo mocked him again.
Tim had no words for it. Leonardo just wanted to add salt to his injury simply because he had a quarrel with his wife.
He started to work for Leonardo after graduating. So he understood more about Leonardo than others did. He knew Leonardo had something that he could not get over.
He also knew how ruthless Leonardo could be. He could not say for sure if Leonardo was a good man, but he knew he was not evil.
This was also the reason he had been so loyal to him. You do not work for someone just because the pay is good, but to some extent, it is because of that person’s charisma that makes you want to follow him or her.
…
After breakfast, Summer sat in the living room, browsing the calendar. It hit her that New Year was coming in just a couple of weeks.
Putting away her mobile phone, she felt a little upset. The online gossip was over, and now another year would soon pass. She did not have to look for a job just yet; not only because she was pregnant but also because few companies would want to hire someone who would take two months’ maternity leave not long after joining the company. Her plan had gone south, and she would have to wait until she gave birth before she could start all over again. Each time when she thought of this, it would stick in her throat because it was all Leonardo’s fault.
“Do you know who I am?”
“I’m sorry, Young Master has said—”
“How dare you stop me!”
A commotion outside jolted Summer out of her thought. She got up and went to the door. Out of the living room, she immediately saw a group of people had gathered, seemingly in a quarrel.
It looked like the bodyguards were blocking someone on the outside. The tall bodies of the bodyguards had blocked her view; she could not get a glimpse of who was out there.
So she went out and asked, “What is happening?”
“Mrs. Emerson.” The bodyguards gave way to Summer, bowing in respect.
Right then, Summer instantly recognized the person whom the bodyguards had tried to stop. It was Alisa Emerson, whom she once met in the old residence of the Emersons.
This time, Alisa appeared more courteous than when they first met. When she saw Summer, she was all smiles and greeting her.
Summer could see that Alisa was trying to butter her up. But she pretended not to know and appeared surprised. “You’re looking for Leonardo? He is back to his office.”
Alisa’s expression stiffened for a second, then she recovered from it. “No, no. I just heard Grandpa say that you’re pregnant. So I thought I should come to visit. I’ve brought you a makeup kit specifically for pregnant women.” While speaking, she raised the shopping bag in her hand.
Summer had recognized the logo on the paper bag; it was a brand of Emerson Corporation. Leonardo had gotten her a few sets of them earlier on. But since Alisa had come, she decided not to shoo her away but let sleeping dogs lie.
“Thank you.” Summer took the present. “Please come in.”
Alisa wanted to follow Summer in, but the bodyguards still stopped her. Summer shot the bodyguards a glance and said, “She is Leonardo’s cousin. Let her in.”
Only then the bodyguards let Alisa pass.
She caught up with Summer, trying to lock arm with her. But Summer subtly avoided her. She pulled her hand back, feeling embarrassed. She checked around and when knowing that no one was looking; she breathed a sigh of relief.
The moment they stepped inside, Summer saw Eliza and called her, “Eliza, put this paper bag away. Be careful, it’s a gift from Leonardo’s sister.”
Since the showdown yesterday, Eliza thought Summer would pick on her. It surprised her that nothing had happened. But she would still not believe that Summer would be so kind to her. When Summer called her to take care of things, she sneered quietly, thinking Summer would show her true colors. But when she looked in her direction, her expression changed.
“Alisa?” “Eliza?”
They both spelled out each other’s names.
“You two know each other?” Surprise was written all over Summer’s face. But she was pretending it. She knew that they knew each other. Eliza was the daughter of Hoover City TV’s chairman, and Alisa was a TV host; they of course knew each other.
When she was still an intern in Hoover City TV, she had heard things about Alisa and Eliza. But at the time, she did not know that Eliza was the chairman’s daughter.
Alisa was parachuted into the TV station. Those with eyes knew that she was somebody’s daughter.
On the other hand, Eliza was the chairman’s daughter and worked backstage.
Both Alisa and Eliza had plenty of opportunities to work together.
As both of them also had an appealing look, they became rivals and subjects of comparison.
This had only come to mind when Summer saw Alisa now.
Alisa saw the maid uniform on Eliza and started to mock her. “I heard that Ms. Austin has been aspiring to marry into our Emerson family. But it has never crossed my mind that you would go to the extent of becoming a maid to achieve that.”
Eliza’s face turned pale. “What has this to do with you?”