Chapter 53 A Malicious Invitation

Chapter 53 A Malicious Invitation

Shortly after stepping out of the elevator, Cordelia's phone rang. She pulled it out and saw it was Jack calling.

When she picked up, Jack's voice came through with a slightly fawning tone. "Cordelia, come home for a meal when you have time. I'd like to have a chat with you."

Cordelia let out a cold laugh. Julie had just gotten slapped yesterday, and now Jack was inviting her home for dinner. He was clearly up to something.

"If you want to talk, just say it over the phone."

Seeing that Cordelia wasn't budging, Jack was furious but completely helpless. "I don't have any bad intentions. I just want you to come over for a meal. Why does that have to be so difficult?"

Cordelia couldn't be bothered listening to him ramble on, so she cut him off. "What time?"

"What?"

Jack had a whole speech ready to go, but Cordelia had already agreed, just like that. The shift was so sudden that Jack couldn't even keep up.

When he didn't answer, Cordelia got a little impatient. "What time? Give me a time."

"Noon. Come back for lunch."

"Fine. Got it," Cordelia said, and hung up.

"So? Is she coming back?"

Jack glanced at Marigold and nodded. "She agreed. Have them get things ready."

Thinking about how arrogant and domineering Cordelia was, Marigold frowned. "Honey, when that awful Cordelia gets here, you'd better give her a good telling-off. Otherwise Julie took that slap for nothing yesterday."

Jack said impatiently, "Alright, I know what I'm doing. You watch yourself too. When Cordelia gets here, don't go wearing a sour face. Whether I can get those shares back from her depends on today."

"You have a plan?"

Marigold was surprised. The whole reason they were so wary of Cordelia was because of the shares she held. If they could get those shares back, Cordelia would have nothing to stand on. Then if she dared to act up again, Marigold wouldn't mind having someone beat her to death.

"Cordelia's sharp. She won't give in that easily."

Jack shook his head. "How do you know if you don't try? Alright, stop worrying. We'll deal with it when she gets here."

Seeing how confident Jack was, Marigold pushed her worries to the back of her mind.

Around noon, Cordelia went home and changed into a black dress. The neckline was cut high, just enough to cover the scar on her collarbone. She loosely pinned her hair into a low bun and went out bare-faced without a trace of makeup.

When she opened the wardrobe to grab her coat, her eyes swept over the neat row of medicine bags and treatment plans on the shelf. Her fingers paused for just a moment, then she grabbed her coat, shut the wardrobe door, and walked out.

Cordelia's car had barely pulled up to the front door when Willie came out to meet her. "Ms. Fox, Mr. Fox and Mrs. Fox are both waiting for you."

Cordelia gave a light hum, tossed him the keys, and walked straight toward the living room.

Marigold looked up at the sound and pursed her lips. Cordelia wasn't even wearing anything designer, so why did she look so effortlessly expensive just standing there?

Then Marigold's eyes landed on Julie, whose face still faintly showed the outline of a handprint. At the sight of it, Marigold forgot everything Jack had told her and let out a sharp, cold snort. "Cordelia, if you dare pull any of your nonsense today, don't think I'll let it slide."

"Let's get one thing straight — Dad was the one who asked me to come. I didn't come here on my own."

Cordelia said this while pulling out a chair and dropping into it. She glanced down at the table. A full spread of dishes. Looked pretty good.

Too bad there's no such thing as a free lunch. This family is definitely up to something.

"You're here, good."

Jack came downstairs, walked over to Cordelia with a big smile, and sat across from her, gesturing at the food. "Look at all this — it was all specially prepared for you. All your favorites from when you were young. Go ahead, try some."

Cordelia let out a cold snort. "Not bad. But it's a shame — during those three years in the Empire of Upheaval, I was so starved I drank slop water. So these days I don't really have favorites anymore. I just care about not going hungry. Nearly starving to death isn't something you forget easily."

The moment the words left her mouth, the smile on Jack's face froze. He pulled his hand back awkwardly. "Cordelia, I know these past few years have been hard on you out there. But don't worry, I'll make it up to you."

He sat down and kept piling food into Cordelia's bowl. "What's done is done. Let's not bring up the past."

Cordelia looked at the small mountain of food in her bowl and didn't touch it. "You're being awfully attentive. Must want something big. Go ahead and say it."

"Come on, now."

Jack stopped what he was doing, looking a little awkward. "I just care about you. Why would I want anything from you?"

"Is that right? Well, if you've got nothing to say, I'm leaving."

Cordelia made a move to stand up, and Jack quickly reached out and pressed down on her shoulder. "Why are you always in such a rush? Fine, fine, I'll tell you."

Jack shifted his expression to one of reluctance and let out a sigh. "The company's been having some cash flow issues lately. Several projects running at the same time, and things are a bit tight. The shares you're holding — would you be willing to transfer them to help the family get through this rough patch?"

Worried she might refuse, he quickly added, "Don't worry, I won't ask you to just hand them over for nothing. I'll make sure you get a good price."

Cordelia looked up, the corner of her mouth curving slightly, and said in a cool voice, "I went through the Fox Group's financial report from last quarter. Profit was up twelve percent, cash flow was healthy, and accounts receivable were collected half a month faster than last year."

She tilted her head slightly, her tone almost sincere. "Where exactly is this cash flow problem?"

The table went completely quiet.

Jack's hand froze mid-air, still holding his utensils, and a crack appeared in his loving-father mask. Marigold stopped stirring her soup, and the spoon clinked softly against the bowl — a small sound that felt oddly sharp in the silent dining room.

After three seconds of stiff silence, Julie was the first to jump in. "Cordelia, don't be upset. Dad's just doing what's best for the company."

Cordelia looked down at the hand resting on her arm, then swept her gaze over to Julie.

The moment Julie met those eyes, the hair on the back of her neck stood up.

There was no anger in them, no mockery — not even any real emotion at all. They were just still and unreadable, like the surface of a cold, deep pool. Julie's hand slipped away without her even meaning to let go.

Cordelia stood up. "Forget about the shares. If the company actually needs money, go to a bank."

She turned and walked out — clean, quick, no hesitation.

She was almost at the door when Julie's sweet voice floated up from behind her. "Cordelia, don't rush off."

Cordelia stopped but didn't turn around. Julie came over from the dining table and gently placed one hand on Cordelia's lower abdomen, her face wearing a carefully crafted look of shyness and happiness.

"There's some good news I haven't told you yet."

Julie took a slow breath and looked around at everyone in the room before settling her gaze on Cordelia.

"I'm pregnant. It's Ryan's baby."

The air in the room shifted.

Jack shot to his feet in delight, asking over and over, "Is this true?"

Marigold's expression was exactly the kind of warm relief you'd expect. "Why didn't you say something sooner? This is huge."

Even more convincing than Julie.

The room burst into noise, while Julie kept her eyes locked on Cordelia, waiting to watch her fall apart.