Chapter 63: CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
WHEN they reached the dining room, two women were already sitting there. The first one was a woman who was the same age as her mother. She wore a plain black suit and pearl necklace. The second one was very familiar to Cyrel. It was Lorna, her nanny when she was little.
“Lorna.”
Lorna stood up at once.
“Cyrel, you still remember me.”
She sauntered toward her and held her hands.
“You have grown into a beautiful lady. I didn’t believe I would ever see you again.”
“S-same here. H-how have you been?” The corners of Cyrel’s eyes moistened.
Lorna may have aged, but she still had that warm smile that spoke of kindness.
“I’m good!” Lorna pulled her into a hug. “Thank goodness. It’s been years.”
Lorna was a poor single mother with an abusive ex-husband. She used to babysit her and Casey as a side hustle. She needed to feed her three children and send them to school. When she finally decided to divorce her ex-husband, they had to move to another city for a fresh start.
“How are your kids?” Cyrel asked when she pulled away.
“Oh, they’re all good. They already have careers of their own.”
“You did a good job, then.”
“I heard you just got married.” Lorna glanced at Ross. “He’s a fine man. You look good together.”
“Ross, this is Lorna. She used to be my nanny when I was a kid. Lorna, this is Ross, my husband.”
“Hi, Lorna. I’m pleased to meet you.” Ross offered his hand.
Lorna took his hand shyly.
“Pleased to meet you. I’m sorry. My hands are rough.”
“That’s a sign of being a hardworking person. Be proud of it,” Ross said with a smile.
Cyrel glanced at him proudly.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. King,” interrupted the woman in a suit. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Gertrude Jones. I am the head of the Women of Tomorrow Foundation. Your father invited us tonight for an opportunity we could not miss.” Gertrude Jones offered her hand.
Cyrel took her hand despite being confused.
“Women of Tomorrow Foundation. That’s a pretty cool name,” Ross remarked when he was shaking hands with Gertrude.
“Yes, Mr. King, and I have amazing stories for you about our foundation.”
“Great. Everyone’s here,” Christian announced from behind. “Cyrel, Ross, I’m so glad you accepted our invitation. What a beautiful couple.”
Cyrel froze when Christian hugged her tight and kissed her hair.
“My amazing daughter. I’m so glad to have you home again.”
Cyrel did not make any remark until he let her go to hug Ross.
“Mr. Byrne, this is the first time we’re having a long conversation,” Ross said.
“I know. If you only knew how much I wanted to bond with my son-in-law,” Christian said with a chuckle. “You have no idea how long I waited for this opportunity to come. But the food is getting cold. We better start our dinner.”
“CYREL, DARLING, you might be wondering why I invited Gertrude and Lorna tonight,” Christian began when they had all settled down. “I heard you’ve been leading Rustom’s charity work, and I know Rustom. He never fails to extend help whenever he has the chance. I was following you guys.”
Why would he do that? Cyrel could only wonder to herself.
“In one of my out-of-town trips, I happened to cross paths with Lorna again. I know how much you adore each other. Right, Cyrel?”
Cyrel only smiled at Lorna.
“Lorna was a volunteer at Women of Tomorrow Foundation, where I happen to be the director,” Gertrude said. “We help women who are victims of domestic abuse, former drug addicts, sex workers who wanted to leave their old lives, and so on. What we do is we teach them skills, give them training, and help them land decent jobs. In Women of Tomorrow, everyone is welcome. But we,” Gertrude paused to sigh, “we lack sponsors that could sustain our advocacy. I met Mr. Byrne here while talking to potential sponsors, and he said he could help us since he knew Lorna for a long time, and she was like family already.”
“You know, darling, I’ve been looking for the right time to bring this up to Rustom,” Christian said. “He’s a very busy guy, and now that he trusts you as her daughter-in-law, I thought this could be it. I’m asking you a favor, dear. Do you think it’s possible to include the Women of Tomorrow Foundation as one of the beneficiaries of your upcoming fundraising slash thanksgiving party?” He smiled at her, then at Ross.
Cyrel glanced at Lorna. The latter smiled reluctantly at her, then looked away at once. Then, Cyrel turned to Ross. He looked thoughtful.
“I brought some documents that would support our foundation’s advocacy.” Gertrude grabbed her bag from the empty seat and retrieved an envelope. “You can read all about it when you have the time.”
Ross accepted it, but he did not open it and put it on the end of the table instead.
“Thanks. We’ll open it later,” he said.
“Thank you, Mr. King. It would be a great help to the women in our foundation if we could improve our facilities. They are so promising and determined. Each one of them has different stories but are all equally inspiring.”
Cyrel flinched when Ross put his arm over hers. She stared at him.
“That’s a lot of good words, Miss Jones. But do you mind if Cyrel and I talk about it first?” Ross smiled at her.
“Sure, Mr. King. We could definitely wait,” Gertrude said with a smile.
“Yes, that’s only appropriate,” Christian said with a laugh. “Please, everyone, enjoy your food.”
“Thank you, Mr. Byrne,” Ross said. Then, he leaned toward Cyrel. “Don’t worry about tonight. Eat as much as you want.”
Cyrel stared at him in awe and disbelief.
“You can’t motivate me and spoil me at the same time,” she reprimanded but in a soft voice.
“I can. I just did. Do you want some steak, Mrs. King?”
Cyrel narrowed her eyes at him.