Chapter 124
Alexander's sudden return caught Emily completely off guard.
For a moment, she was too stunned to react.
Daniel's gaze shifted between them, his eyes narrowing slightly as he spoke, "What's there to explain? That Emily and I grew up together, or that I was planning to send Victoria abroad?"
Though his tone seemed polite, every word dripped with challenge.
Especially the phrase "grew up together," which landed in Alexander's ears like the most irritating provocation.
Alexander had intended to teach Emily a lesson, deliberately forcing her to call him first.
After dropping Sophie at the Laurent residence, he had purposely driven around for two extra hours, waiting for Emily to break down and call him.
But in those two hours, his phone had rung countless times—none from Emily!
Finally, nearly smashing his phone in frustration, he'd had no choice but to return home.
Who could have imagined that the moment he walked in, he'd hear such infuriating words?
He glared darkly at Daniel, looking ready to strike at any moment.
Eleanor, noticing the tension, frowned deeply. "Alexander, what took you so long to get back?"
"Got held up on the way." His answer was dismissive, yet Emily still made no attempt to speak.
Alexander tugged at his collar as if trying to breathe more easily.
He walked over to Daniel, towering over him with a coldly superior gaze. "Where exactly were you planning to send Victoria?"
"Liraya Island," Daniel replied with a harmless smile, though his eyes betrayed his mockery. "It's perfect for a vacation, as you know."
The words lodged like a stone in Alexander's chest.
He had accompanied Sophie out of spite, wanting to see Emily's reaction.
And the result?
If Eleanor hadn't called him back for dinner, he and Sophie might already be in Liraya Island by now.
He hadn't even eaten yet, but he was already fuming with visible anger.
Victoria, sensing the tense atmosphere but not understanding what was happening, stepped forward and tugged at Alexander's arm. "Alexander?"
"Stop making things up," He snapped.
"What?"
Victoria was completely bewildered by his response.
She had imagined countless scenarios, but never expected this reaction.
Alexander didn't look at her. Instead, his gaze fixed on Emily, emphasizing each word with sharp precision.
"Emily is my wife. She will never have inappropriate relationships with any man." His declaration of ownership revealed his possessiveness.
Emily lowered her eyes, hiding the emotions swirling within them.
Even now, her heart still fluttered at his words, as if possessiveness was somehow a form of caring.
She inwardly mocked herself, maintaining an expressionless exterior.
"Alright," Alexander said, withdrawing his gaze and returning to his usual detached tone. "Let's eat."
Those simple words ended the conversation.
Quentin frowned, about to speak, when Alexander cut him off.
"I agreed to come home for dinner today only because of Grandmother." He helped Eleanor up and walked toward the dining room, completely ignoring Quentin.
Twenty years as father and son had yielded little affection between them, a fact Alexander knew all too well.
But when he was still lying in the hospital, Quentin had already decided to abandon him, bringing his illegitimate son into the Foster family to groom as the new heir—enough to crush what little family feeling remained.
Quentin's face hardened, but he said nothing, simply rising to follow them to the dining room.
Natalie gently patted Victoria's shoulder, lowering her voice: "Don't provoke your brother. He's been in a bad mood lately."
"It's Dad and Daniel causing problems—why is he taking it out on me? Besides, couldn't he use this chance to get rid of both Emily and Daniel? Two birds with one stone—wouldn't that be easy for him?"
Why wouldn't he take such an advantageous opportunity?
Natalie narrowed her eyes, looking toward the dining room with an emotion Victoria couldn't decipher.
"Just stay away from Emily and Daniel."
"Mom!"
"Listen to me. Your brother will handle this situation himself."
Victoria was dissatisfied, but her absolute faith in Alexander's strength kept her from questioning further.
The atmosphere at the dinner table was strained, with everyone eating in silence, barely exchanging words.
Natalie, however, remained composed, seemingly unaffected by the earlier conflict.
"Emily, I heard you've been working at Horizon Pharmaceuticals. Have you decided not to return to the Foster Group?" She took a sip of soup before continuing calmly. "I don't understand the technical aspects, but since you wrote that paper for Cell, you must have done significant preparation. Why didn't you tell Alexander that the investment wasn't suitable?"
In the Foster family, no one except Eleanor showed Emily any kindness.
She had grown accustomed to Natalie's subtle barbs, though she hadn't expected them at this particular moment.
From the corner of her eye, Emily noticed Alexander's hand pause for two seconds before resuming his meal.
Did he actually care about this?
Of course—he was a businessman, always prioritizing profit.
His concern wasn't that she hadn't told him; it was that her silence represented betrayal.
But would he have believed her if she had spoken up?
Emily placed some vegetables in her mouth, chewing and swallowing deliberately before responding. "When I worked at the Foster Group, I was in the legal department at headquarters. I wasn't familiar with the subsidiary companies' operations."
"How convenient," Alexander laughed coldly. "What about all the news flooding the internet—did you not notice that either?"
How could she not have noticed?
To protect herself, she had deliberately avoided all content related to Alexander and Sophie.
If Matthew hadn't told her, she wouldn't have known about Foster Pharmaceuticals' collaboration with Sophie's research lab.
She had no intention of explaining herself and simply lowered her head to continue eating.
Seeing this, Natalie smiled enigmatically and pressed on. "You didn't know about company matters, but you never discussed it privately? Is there a problem in your marriage? It's been three years—you should be thinking about children."
This time, it was Emily's hand that froze.
In three years of marriage to Alexander, no one in the Foster family had ever pressured her about children.
Not out of respect, but indifference.
There was also an unspoken assumption that Alexander would eventually divorce her.
Since divorce was inevitable, why have children?
Now Natalie was suddenly bringing up children in this awkward situation—what was she implying?
While Emily was still processing this, Natalie continued in her unhurried manner, "Better to have them soon. Women in the Foster family don't need careers. Emily, you should focus on preparing for motherhood."
Emily instinctively glanced at Alexander, but his handsome face remained impassive, showing no sign of intervening on her behalf.
Finally, Eleanor spoke up, "The young couple's affairs are their own business—we shouldn't interfere."
She then turned to Daniel, shifting the topic. "Daniel, you're not getting any younger. If you meet a suitable young woman, you should settle down soon. When the time comes, Alexander and Emily can help with the wedding arrangements."
Her words seemed caring, but were actually a warning not to harbor inappropriate thoughts about someone he shouldn't.