Chapter 37: "Shier, Do You Like Nicole?"
Nicole's POV
I jerked my head up, staring at Hodgson in shock.
Damn it! What was he saying?
Why did he have to bring up Gardella at the dinner table, right in front of Molly?
Had he discovered something? Or was he testing me?
Molly's interest was immediately piqued, and her curious eyes turned toward me. "Really, Nicole? I thought you'd always lived in Astoria."
Before I could figure out how to answer, Wendy beat me to it.
"Of course not." She spoke in a tone that was both sympathetic and exaggerated, as if sharing some incredible secret.
"Miss Molly, you don't know. Nicole was only brought back from Gardella by my parents three years ago. She grew up by the sea with no one to supervise her, so her character is rather... problematic.“
”Speaking of Gardella, your family is quite well-known there. Since that's the case, you must also know that the upper-class social circle there and those people who hang around the docks all day are completely different worlds."
She deliberately paused and sighed, as if she were genuinely worried about me.
"Mom and Dad went to such lengths to help her adapt to life here, teaching her table manners, teaching her how to interact with people, but she still... Well, sometimes she still does things that catch people off guard. After all, habits formed since childhood aren't so easy to change."
Wendy didn't know the real situation with my adoptive parents.
Doris looked down on Vera's background from the bottom of her heart, and was even more afraid that because of Vera and my adoptive father's past, they might accidentally get entangled with the big trouble that was the Percy family.
So she had blocked all information about my adoptive parents from the outside world, not even revealing a word to Wendy.
In Wendy's understanding, I was just a girl who grew up in a poor family, lacking proper upbringing, and even though I had returned to the Gerald family now, I was still lowborn at my core.
The Percy family was the wealthiest family in Gardella. Wendy deliberately embellished my story to tell Molly because she wanted to use Molly's hand to humiliate me and make me lose face.
But Molly's reaction wasn't what Wendy had imagined.
Instead, she was very interested in my situation.
"So that's how it is... Then, Nicole, what was your surname before? Maybe I know your family."
Molly's curiosity made a layer of cold sweat instantly break out on my back.
Wendy sat to the side, picking up her coffee cup with an air of someone ready to enjoy the show.
Hodgson cut the food on his plate, as if all of this had nothing to do with him, but he was the one who had started this topic.
I took a deep breath, and when I raised my head again, my eyes were already filled with sadness and pain.
"Before I came to Astoria, my adoptive father had already died in an accident, and my adoptive mother also became very ill and has been in poor health... Those were very difficult days, so I haven't brought up things from before in a long time."
I concealed the real situation with the Percy family and only picked out part of the truth to tell.
I deliberately emphasized the words "died" and "seriously ill." The atmosphere at the table, which had been relatively relaxed and pleasant, instantly became extremely heavy.
Wendy frowned and looked at me with disgust.
"You're such a killjoy, Nicole."
But Molly didn't seem to care about my sadness, or rather, she didn't take my sadness seriously at all.
"So what exactly happened to them?"
She continued to press me, completely unaware of how inappropriate her question was.
Damn it! Why was she being so relentless?
My fingers clenched into fists under the table, and I could barely control my temper.
Just then, Hodgson, who had been silent, seemed to find this unbearable as well.
He wiped his mouth with his napkin, then dropped his knife and fork onto his plate with a sharp "clang."
"That's enough, Molly."
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable authority.
"You're being rude."
Molly's expression changed instantly.
She immediately restrained the curiosity and looked nervously at Hodgson.
Afraid he was unhappy, Molly quickly lowered her head and said softly, "I'm sorry, Hodgson, I... I was just a bit curious."
Hodgson didn't acknowledge her again.
After breakfast ended, I just wanted to leave Hall Manor as quickly as possible. The place made me feel extremely oppressed.
But as soon as I stood up, Molly came over again, wearing that innocent, enthusiastic smile on her face.
"Nicole, tomorrow Hodgson and I are hosting a beach party and inviting some friends. Will you come too?"
I was just about to refuse when Hodgson spoke before me.
"Nicole will definitely attend." He looked at me meaningfully. "I asked Shier, and he said he'll come with Nicole."
What nonsense was he talking?
Shier had obviously been dead drunk last night.
After Eric called him away, he never came back. I guessed he was probably still lying in the guest room sleeping off his hangover.
When had Hodgson asked him?
Wendy's expression instantly twisted, jealousy and anger intertwining to make her pretty face look somewhat fierce.
She turned to Molly, immediately putting on a flattering smile, her eyes full of longing, hoping Molly would invite her too.
But Molly acted as if she didn't see her at all, only looking at Hodgson, not sparing her a single glance.
I was too lazy to deal with their strange atmosphere anymore. I made an excuse and got up to leave the dining room.
Wendy followed closely behind me.
As soon as we left the dining room, she threatened from behind my back.
"Nicole, don't get too pleased with yourself!"
"You think that just because you got an invitation to Miss Molly's party, you can really squeeze into this circle? Don't forget what your status is! Just wait, I'll make everyone see your true colors, see that you don't belong here at all!"
I didn't want to acknowledge her at all.
Wendy stamped her foot angrily and turned to walk quickly toward the room where Shier was staying.
I knew she was definitely going to find Shier now to act coquettish and complain.
I didn't want to watch the two of them flirt, but the path back to my room had to go through the corridor in the guest room area.
To avoid running into them, I instinctively quickened my pace.
Halfway there, I indeed heard sounds coming from Shier's room.
I couldn't help but stop and hide behind a pillar at the corner of the corridor.
The door to the room wasn't completely closed.
First came Shier's hoarse voice after his hangover, and then Wendy's tearful questioning.
"Shier, tell me, have you fallen for that bitch Nicole?"