Chapter 6 Seems to Be Pregnant
Daisy slept in for the first time in ages in Shawn's guest room.
When she woke up, sunlight was already filtering through the curtains, leaving scattered patches of light on the floor.
Daisy got out of bed, pulled open the curtains, and opened the window to let in some fresh air.
The mild headache from the hangover was still there, but she felt a strange sense of relief.
The shell she'd been carrying for six years had finally cracked open.
Shawn had gotten up earlier, or maybe hadn't slept at all. She was in the open kitchen frying eggs, the coffee maker gurgling away, filling the air with a rich aroma.
"You're up? Still have a headache?" Shawn walked over with two cups of coffee and handed her one. "Drink up, wake yourself up. Didn't you have plans to meet Ethan? Don't be late."
Daisy took the coffee and sipped it. The bitter liquid slid down her throat, making her shiver and snapping her awake.
"Yeah, I've got all my materials ready."
"Good." Shawn sat down across from her, took a bite of toast, and said through her mouthful, "Oh, I mentioned you to my dad last night. He's pretty interested in your research direction, said you two could chat when he's free."
"Please thank him for me." Daisy felt a rush of excitement.
Shawn's father had extensive connections in the business world. Getting his attention was validation in itself.
At ten sharp, Daisy arrived at the coffee shop downstairs from Ethan's company.
He was already there, laptop open, papers spread out.
"Morning, Mr. Reed." Daisy walked over and sat down across from him.
Ethan looked up. "Morning. Actually, you don't need to be so formal. Just call me Ethan, sounds better."
The two picked up where they'd left off from last time, the atmosphere relaxed.
Just then, a rather sharp female voice cut in abruptly.
"Well, well, look who it is—the Blacks' good daughter-in-law!"
Daisy's body stiffened. She turned to look. It was Vincent's cousin Sienna, dressed head to toe in designer brands, holding her eight-year-old son's hand.
Her face wore undisguised mockery and scrutiny, her gaze sweeping back and forth between the two of them before finally settling on Daisy's face, then breaking into a smirk.
As if she'd caught something scandalous.
"Daisy, instead of staying home taking care of your kid, you're out here having coffee with another man?" Sienna raised her eyebrows, her tone dripping with contempt. "What's the matter—are the Blacks not feeding you enough or clothing you well enough? Are you so desperate that you had to come out here to talk business?"
Ethan frowned and was about to speak, but Daisy gently pressed the back of his hand, signaling she'd handle it.
She stood up and said, "Sienna, what a coincidence. I'll be honest—Vincent cut my lab's funding, so I have no choice but to come out and find investors myself. I'm in the middle of a meeting right now."
"Find investors? You?" Sienna laughed mockingly. "Come on, everyone knows your lab is just a money pit. Vince letting you play around with his money is already generous. You actually expect other people to invest? Don't tell me you're being scammed and don't even know it!"
As she spoke, she looked Ethan up and down, her expression even more disdainful.
Her son tugged at her sleeve and said quietly, "Mommy, I want to go play in the sandbox."
Sienna's sharp, mocking face instantly softened. She bent down and pinched her son's cheek. "Wait a sec, almost done."
Then she pulled out a set of car keys and, as she always did, spun the keychain around her index finger and tossed it at Daisy.
"I've got something to deal with here. My car's kind of in the way where it is. Go move it for me, park it in the back lot."
Her attitude was arrogant, as if she were ordering around her own servant—no, worse than that: even when dealing with servants, few people would be this disrespectful.
Daisy caught the keys, but as Sienna was about to leave with her son, she placed them on the table with a clang.
Her voice was flat. "Sorry, Sienna, I can't leave right now. Move it yourself."
Sienna hadn't expected Daisy to refuse her orders. Her expression immediately darkened.
"Daisy! What's with that attitude? I'm doing you a favor by asking you to help. Don't forget your place! Do you still want to stay with the Blacks or not?"
"Yes."
Sienna fell silent, her face flushing as her pointing finger trembled.
"Fine, fine, you've got some nerve now. Alright, you just wait!"
With that, she grabbed her son's hand and stormed off in a fury, muttering curses under her breath about "bad luck" and "shameless bed-climber."
Ethan glanced carefully at Daisy's expression, somewhat worried. "Are you okay? The Blacks are really..."
"I'm fine." Daisy shook her head, took a deep breath, and sat back down.
The hand holding her coffee cup trembled slightly.
Not because she was afraid of Sienna, but because that suffocating feeling of being looked down on and ordered around made her uncomfortable.
But she quickly steadied herself and gave Ethan an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that. Let's continue."
Seeing her smile slightly, Ethan said nothing more.
--
The Blacks' villa.
Vincent had just picked Luna up from her early learning class.
The little girl was a bit tired from playing and was drowsy in his arms.
"Mr. Black is back." The maid Anna came to greet him.
"Mm." Vincent handed his daughter to Anna. "Give her a bath, then let her sleep for a bit."
Looking around, he frowned. "Where's Daisy? She's not back yet?" He wondered how long she planned to make a fuss over a little birthday party.
Anna's face showed hesitation. "Mrs. Black... she called this morning saying there's an urgent project at the lab and she needs to go on a business trip for a few days. She asked us to take good care of Miss Luna."
"Business trip?" Vincent was stunned, then a surge of anger rose up.
After last night's scene, instead of coming home today, she just went on a business trip? Not even caring about her daughter? When did she become so willful and reckless? Vincent thought angrily.
"Did she say where she's going? How many days?" He asked.
"She didn't say. Just said she might be pretty busy and told us to contact her lab colleagues if we needed anything." Anna spoke while carefully watching her employer's expression.
Vincent's face darkened further.
He pulled out his phone and dialed Daisy's number.
It rang for a long time. No answer.
He called again. This time, it was hung up directly.
The fire in his chest burned even hotter.
Fine, very good, Daisy. You've really got some nerve now, he thought distastefully.
He irritably loosened his tie and told Anna, "Take good care of Luna. I'm eating out tonight, won't be back."
Walking out of the villa and getting in his car, he still felt unsettled, especially since his cousin had just called to complain, saying something about Daisy being intimate with some man at a coffee shop.
True, he didn't love Daisy, but as his wife, her doing this was basically trampling his dignity into the ground!
He needed an explanation, and he needed someone to soothe this growing irritation.
His finger scrolled through his contacts and stopped on the name "Nessa."
Just as he was about to call, Vanessa's call came through first.
"Vince, I think... I'm pregnant. It might be from that night we..."