Chapter 102 Don't Want to Take Responsibility?
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes skeptically, "So you just wanna sleep with me? No strings attached?"
Timothy couldn't help but chuckle at her bluntness.
He reached over to help her adjust the bathrobe that had ridden up to her thighs. "Come on, let's grab some food."
A moment later, he added with a hint of wistfulness, "I had a surprise planned for you—an engagement ring and a dress. Guess the cat's out of the bag now."
Elizabeth stopped lounging around and climbed up, wrapping her arms and legs around Timothy. Her ears turned slightly red.
"Let's eat."
Timothy smiled, supporting her butt with one hand and carrying the food container with the other, bringing his clingy companion to the couch to eat.
Timothy finished his meal quickly, while Elizabeth showed a rare moment of domesticity.
Leaning back in his chair, Timothy's fingers tapped away at his phone screen as he replied to a few messages from Joe.
Then Timothy turned to look at Elizabeth, his eyes deep and thoughtful. "Elizabeth, even though I don't have the ring right now, can I still propose to you?"
Elizabeth didn't look up, biting her fork. "Sure."
Inside, she was screaming with excitement, though no one could tell.
Timothy's eyes sparkled with amusement.
When was Timothy at his most charming? When he handed her his credit card, when they were in bed, when he pampered her, and now.
"Mr. Robinson will spend his life with you."
He didn't use many sweet words. Instead, he held her face in his hands, and his passionate kiss landed on her forehead, resonating deep into her heart.
Elizabeth's cheeks turned rosy.
This is what it feels like when both partners equally invest in a relationship.
It took her a while to snap out of it.
They drove back to Silverlight City, encountering heavy rain.
For safety, Timothy slowed down the car.
Elizabeth received some information from Lyle.
Lyle: "Mr. Castillo accepted two million dollars from Mr. Potts, under the pretense of celebrating Mr. Sutter's birthday."
The key point was Matthew's birthday celebration.
And Royce Castillo thought it was just a few songs from Jessa, not worth opposing Matthew. Who could have predicted the trouble?
Elizabeth: "Make sure this doesn't happen again. Gather the employees and inform them that Quin Agency will no longer offer services for drinking and singing companions."
Just as Elizabeth finished replying to Lyle, a message from an unknown number popped up on her phone.
Unknown Number: "Elizabeth, it's Natalia. I have a secret to tell you. Will you give me ten million dollars for it?"
Ten million dollars was not much, Natalia thought Elizabeth would surely agree.
Elizabeth had almost forgotten about this matter, but Natalia brought it back up.
Ten million dollars didn't exceed her limit, but she didn't trust Natalia.
She planned to visit the prison in two days to probe Calista about the secret.
At the Johnson Group.
"Why haven't we heard anything today?"
"Miss Penrose and Mr. Robinson left Silverlight City last night, got on the highway. We couldn't keep following them; it would be too easy to get caught."
The voice on the other end of the phone fell silent.
Armando hung up.
He knew what happened at Matthew's birthday celebration at Sunrise Pub last night.
Mindy had already been warned by Matthew; she couldn't appear wherever he was.
Armando knew Mindy's intelligence was lacking.
He called Mindy, asking her to come to the Johnson Group to see him.
Mindy instinctively wanted to ask Sherry for help.
She called Sherry, but there was no answer; Sherry was busy attending an event.
With no other choice, Mindy reluctantly headed to the Johnson Group, praying that Armando wasn't calling her for anything serious.
It was only a half-hour drive to the Johnson Group.
Tom saw Mindy arrive and opened the office door for her.
Mindy walked in.
"Armando, why did you suddenly call me?"
Armando paused his work, his dark eyes fixed on Mindy. "Do you want to study abroad?"
Mindy immediately shook her head at the mention of going abroad. "I don't want to go."
Armando spoke coolly, "This time it's for enjoyment, not like last time. You'll be going to a bustling place with servants to take care of you."
This was also a way to keep Mindy away from Sherry, supposedly for Mindy's own good.
But Mindy wasn't appreciative. "I don't wanna go abroad."
She couldn't go abroad.
Armando's eyes remained indifferent as he looked at Mindy. "Why?"
Mindy hesitated for a while, and just as Armando was losing patience, she mustered up the courage to say, "I like Yosef. Can our family arrange a marriage with the Sutter family?"
She had always liked Yosef.
Armando looked at Mindy with a complicated expression. "He won't marry you."
He knew Yosef well enough.
Yosef didn't want to get married.
Mindy pursed her lips, her pretty face showing a hint of stubbornness. "I'm not going abroad, so don't think about sending me away again."
The office fell quiet for a moment.
Armando spoke, "You don't have to go abroad, but stop causing trouble for Elizabeth and don't stand up for Sherry."
Mindy understood the first part of Armando's message but was confused by the latter.
"Shouldn't you be happy if I help Sherry?"
Armando loved Sherry so much, how could he say something like that?
Armando's voice was cool, "That's all. You can leave now."
Mindy finally felt relieved as she left.
Just as she walked out of the Johnson Group, she received a call back from Sherry.
"Sherry, it's all good. I thought Armando was calling to scold me about what happened at the pub yesterday."
Mindy got into her car.
Sherry took the thermos cup handed to her by Della and sipped some water. "What did Armando want?"
"He told me not to mess with Elizabeth," Mindy speculated on Armando's thoughts. "I guess Armando doesn't want to anger Timothy."
Sherry paused her drinking. "That could be it. Was that all Armando wanted?"
"There's one more thing. I told Armando I liked Yosef."
Mindy had enough sense not to mention Armando's warning about not standing up for Sherry.
She didn't want to hurt Sherry's feelings.
"Mindy, if you really like Yosef, you should try to express your feelings," Sherry gently encouraged her. "If you don't try, you'll never get him."
Just like her, she would find ways to get what she wanted.
Hesitation leads to getting nothing.
She lifted her right hand, looking at the engagement ring on her finger, and smiled.
Whether Elizabeth could marry into the Robinson family was still uncertain.
But in three days, Sherry would be hosting her engagement party.
Mindy thought Sherry was right; she should try to express her feelings.
Timothy and Elizabeth drove back to Faith Residence community, arriving in the evening.
Elizabeth got out of the car and turned to Timothy in the driver's seat. "Goodnight."
Timothy beckoned her with his finger. "Come here for a moment."
Elizabeth climbed into the passenger seat. "What's up?"
Timothy looked at her with a playful smile. "Playing dumb?"
Elizabeth kissed him quickly, then got out of the car and closed the door.
When she got home, she saw Mabel staring straight at her. "Elizabeth?"
Elizabeth's face turned serious as she promised, "I won't break my promise next time!"
Mabel covered her mouth and laughed.
The next day, Elizabeth took some time to go to the hospital to get her blood test report and Yosef's as well.
After leaving the hospital, she went to the prison.
Calista saw Elizabeth, her eyes filled with hate. "Are you here to see how well I'm living?"
Elizabeth didn't beat around the bush. "Natalia offered me a secret in exchange for ten million dollars."
"And you told her the secret."
Calista glared at Elizabeth. "You're talking nonsense. Don't try to fool me. I don't have any secrets about you. If I did, I would have used them to bargain with you already."
Elizabeth observed Calista's expression.
She was now certain Natalia's claim about the secret was true.
The more Calista tried to deny it, the more it confirmed its existence.
"If you say there's no secret, then there's no secret."
Elizabeth left Calista with this infuriating remark and exited the prison.
While driving, Elizabeth called Natalia. "Let's arrange a meeting."
Natalia's lips curled into a triumphant smile. "Alright."
Elizabeth's expression remained calm as she hung up the phone.