Chapter 195
My eyes briefly met George's in the air.
His gaze was as bottomless and indifferent as ever—no guilt, no hesitation.
As if what we were fighting over wasn't the last shelter for Mom and me, but some item that had nothing to do with him at all.
He only glanced at me once before coldly looking away.
Then his thin lips parted, uttering a clear and cruel word, "Fine."
My heart sank hard with that word.
George really knew how to precisely dig into my wounds and viciously pour salt on them.
Hurting me wasn't enough—he had to use this method to hurt my mother too, trampling our last line of defense.
Truly shameless to the core.
Hearing George's affirmative response, Sarah's face immediately lit up with a smile.
She turned to the still-awkward Tony, her tone cheerful, "Mr. Cole, then we'll trouble you to prepare the purchase contract. We'll buy it right away."
She spoke as though the house was already hers.
I let out a cold laugh. “Did I agree?” I cut in sharply. “Aren’t you celebrating a little too soon?”
My voice instantly crushed Sarah's little moment of triumph.
Turning to Tony, I straightened my posture, my tone firm and unwavering. “Mr. Cole, as I said earlier, I’ll pay off this debt. Please process the settlement immediately."
"I don't want certain irrelevant people stepping foot in my home."
"Grace." Mom was shocked by my decision. Forgetting her anger, she quickly pulled me aside, lowering her voice anxiously, "Don't be impulsive. We can figure out the money slowly. Don't act tough just to save face—that's not a small amount."
I knew exactly what Mom feared—that I’d resort to desperate measures, borrowing recklessly from loan sharks or doing something irrational just to win this argument.
I was about to reassure her, to explain that I already had a plan—I could first borrow part of it from Emily and William as an emergency measure, then figure out the rest slowly. I would definitely pay it back...
But before I could speak, George who had been silent, suddenly spoke up.
His voice broke through the anxious whispers between Mom and me, and shattered the brief stillness in the living room.
Everyone's eyes instantly focused on him.
"Someone's living here, and the location is just average," George said to Sarah in a flat tone.
Sarah froze, clearly not expecting him to change his stance so abruptly. Shock flashed across her face, quickly replaced by unwillingness and grievance.
"George." She softened her voice, with a wheedling and pleading tone, trying to salvage the situation. "But my uncle specifically had a fortune teller look at it. They said the scenery here is special and will bring me good luck, beneficial for my future career and development."
She paused, glanced at me, calculation flashing in her eyes, then changed her approach, "Besides, isn't Ms. Brown unable to pay back the money? The bank will take the house sooner or later anyway."
"You can buy it for me then, okay? That way you'd also be helping Ms. Murphy out, letting her get the money to get through this crisis."
Her words sounded considerate—but beneath the surface, they were vicious.
She was certain I couldn't come up with this huge sum, convinced the house would eventually fall into the bank's hands, then George would step in to buy it for her.
She wanted not just the house, but also to maintain her kind and generous image in front of George.
She really had it all figured out.
I coldly watched her pampered and aggressive face, my anger nearly replaced by absurdity.
George didn’t respond immediately. He merely frowned slightly, a hint of impatience crossing his features.
I couldn't help but sneer, my gaze sweeping over Sarah's calculating face, sarcasm unconcealed in my tone, "Some people haven't even learned basic human decency. Even if they moved into a palace with the best scenery, they still wouldn't deserve it."
Sarah's face changed at my words, her chest rose and fell with suppressed anger.
But she didn't dare throw a fit in front of George and ruin the gentle, understanding, refined lady persona she'd carefully cultivated.
She could only bite her lower lip hard, suppressing that resentment. Then she looked at George pitifully, expecting him to stand up for her.
George had no reaction to my sarcasm. He didn't even glance at me, as if I were just talking to thin air.
He simply returned his gaze to Sarah, his tone still flat but carrying an undeniable sense of finality, "I'll buy you a brand new one."
He paused, adding, "Pick whatever location you want, decorate it however you like."
This sentence instantly smoothed over the unwillingness and grievance on Sarah's face.
Her face bloomed into a radiant smile as she clung to his arm, her voice turning cloyingly sweet. "George treats me the best. Buying a brand new one, completely decorated according to my ideas—I don't want it decorated all gloomy and depressing like this place, with no taste at all."
As she spoke, she didn't forget to glance disdainfully at the living room's decor.
Hearing her roundabout insults, getting the advantage and still showing off, I was so angry that I had to laugh.
She had tried everything to drive us out and seize this house. Now that she couldn’t, she resorted to making snide remarks about our decor?
Wasn't this just sick?
How psychologically twisted did someone have to be to do something that hurt others without benefiting herself, just to satisfy her own vanity and malice?
I sarcastically shot back without mercy, my gaze piercing straight at Sarah, "What right does a homewrecker have to criticize someone's decor? Using stolen things without shame and still being picky? How thick-skinned can you be?"
The term "homewrecker" was sharply brought up by me again.
Sarah's face instantly became extremely ugly, like someone publicly stripped naked.
She wanted to argue back, to defend herself, to curse at me, but being a homewrecker was her biggest weakness and original sin.
Especially in this sensitive situation, the more she explained, the more it seemed like a cover-up.
She didn't dare respond carelessly, because responding would be like confirming the homewrecker label.
But not responding—she really couldn't swallow this insult. It suffocated her, and she could only once again look at George with grievance-filled eyes.
George finally frowned slightly at my repeated provocation. He looked at me, his eyes clearly showing displeasure and warning.
But he still didn't speak up to refute me or defend Sarah's honor.
Apparently, he wasn't completely lacking in self-awareness.
He also knew Sarah's status couldn't withstand scrutiny and he was even more aware of how disgraceful his own role was in this matter.
He might acquiesce and indulge, might compensate with money and power, but he couldn't publicly twist the truth and speak up for a homewrecker in front of everyone.
Silence was his only option.
Sarah probably hadn't expected George wouldn't stand up for her this time.
The expectation in her eyes gradually died out, replaced by resentment and embarrassment.
She shot me a venomous glare before turning away, sulking.
Tony and the others watching this farce had quite colorful expressions on their faces—clearly wanting to laugh but not daring to, only able to hold it in desperately.
Tony cleared his throat, trying to maintain a professional demeanor, and said to me, "Ms. Brown, since you insist on repaying the loan yourself, if you can really pay back this money right now, including the principal and accrued interest, we can prepare the release contract now and process the settlement."
"Fine." I answered decisively, not wanting to delay another second.
George had already lost interest in staying. He stopped caring about Sarah's little mood, stopped looking at me, and directly turned around, striding toward the door.
Though Sarah was unwilling and wanted to stay to mock me a few more times, or personally witness my embarrassment at not being able to raise the money, seeing George leave, she could only stomp her foot, glare at me viciously, and quickly chase after him.
The bank staff began efficiently calculating the exact amount and preparing the contract documents.
I walked to the side, picked up my phone, took a deep breath, and dialed Emily and William.