Chapter 80
Several people stared at each other in shock, unable to speak for a long time.
"When did Nora hook up with Michael! That's Michael!" The pink-haired woman was the first to react, shouting in shock with a shrill voice.
"Does James know about this? Nora used to be James's fiancée."
"This is going to be interesting." Someone was enjoying the drama, but no one dared to actually mess with Michael.
"We don't dare mess with Michael, but we can tell James. James hates Nora the most. If James finds out Nora is now hooking up with Michael..." one of them said with a smile, looking extremely cunning.
"I know another secret." The woman who had been dropping off her child smiled. "You definitely don't know this - Michael and Pearl's sister Aria had a thing. They slept together..."
Several people looked at each other in shock. "Really? Isn't it said that Michael is a germaphobe and never touches women?"
"Men are all fake gentlemen on the surface. If Michael really stayed away from women, would he be interested in Nora? Holding her hand? We all think she's dirty, but Michael doesn't seem to mind."
"Well, this is getting really interesting. I've also heard that the Clark family has always wanted to marry into the Smith family. Aria thought she could marry Michael, and now Nora has stolen her spotlight..."
Several people exchanged knowing smiles.
"The Clark family probably wants to kill Nora."
"But Nora is with Michael now. Who dares to touch her? Even James probably wouldn't dare." The pink-haired woman seemed worried.
Nora had found herself a powerful protector.
"How long can Michael stay interested in her? Who is Michael? He's the face of Emerald City's business circle. He'll have to get married eventually. I heard that until he gets married, he can't get his shares of the Smith Group. Do you think he'll marry Nora? Nora is just a plaything. After Michael dumps her, she'll be worse off than she is now."
Several people sneered and got in their cars.
These people loved drama. What united them was bullying Nora, and now Nora had latched onto Michael.
Naturally, they wanted to find every way to make Nora's life even more miserable.
In the car.
Michael sat with a stern face, looking out the window, saying nothing.
After a long awkward silence, Nora spoke softly. "Mr. Smith, taking me away in front of them will cause you trouble."
"Do I need to be afraid of them?" Michael asked.
Nora lowered her head and said nothing.
"Is light food okay?" Michael spoke again, asking.
"Yes, that's fine." Nora nodded.
"Your ear..." Michael stared at Nora's left ear for a long time, then reached out to hold her chin, examining it carefully, frowning slightly.
"My right ear can still hear." Nora explained nervously, afraid Michael would be disgusted that her left ear couldn't hear.
"Did Pearl do this?" Michael knew Pearl didn't have that much strength. One slap couldn't cause this kind of permanent damage unless it was from long-term abuse.
"Not entirely." When Nora was nervous, her palms would sweat and her body would stiffen badly.
Michael didn't ask more questions. Too many questions would only cause more harm.
He could investigate on his own.
"Let's go eat." The driver parked the car. Michael got out and walked around to open Nora's door.
Nora was a bit nervous and waved her hands frantically. "No, you don't have to be so polite."
In Nora's view, Michael being too gentlemanly would give her the wrong idea.
"Mr. Smith, what do you need me to do?" Nora followed Michael with her head down. She wanted to know what she needed to do upfront.
Although she had said she would help Michael deal with James and his mother, Michael hadn't responded.
She didn't know Michael's true thoughts.
"Just eat well." Michael glanced at Nora. David said Nora was severely malnourished. The examination report from Silverlight City hospital showed extremely low indicators across the board, with a severe deficiency in vitamin D2.
Nora felt a bit self-conscious, looking down at herself - thin and weak, nothing like she used to be.
Now, if she were thrown on the street, probably no one would give her a second glance.
Taking a deep breath, Nora nodded. "I'll eat well."
At the table, everything Michael ordered was light, but amazingly, all things Nora liked to eat.
"Have more hot soup." Michael served Nora some soup.
Nora nervously stood up and awkwardly took it. "I can do it myself."
Seeing Nora remain guarded and defensive, Michael said no more.
Defensiveness couldn't be eliminated in a day or two, especially for someone with Nora's highly sensitive personality.
"Mr. Smith, why were you near the school?" After drinking some hot soup, Nora felt warm all over and gathered the courage to ask.
"Just passing by."
"I actually wanted to come find you." Nora kept her head down, almost burying it in her bowl. "How long do you need me?"
Nora wanted a timeframe. She needed to plan ahead.
In case Michael stopped caring about her, she wanted to think of an escape route in advance.
Michael looked at Nora. How long? "Before I get married, I need to have a woman around to temporarily shut up those gossipy executives at the Smith Group."
Michael never dated, had no women around him, no scandals. As long as he didn't marry, Vance's shares couldn't truly come to him, and his inheritance rights would remain in limbo, giving those shareholders something to scheme about.
Not just those shareholders - James and his mother Luna were even more restless.
Nodding, Nora looked up at Michael. "Mr. Smith, do you have any plans to get married soon?"
"If I had plans to marry, I wouldn't have chosen you."
Nora actually knew this clearly. She was just testing the waters.
"Then Mr. Smith, would three years work?" Nora gripped her hands tightly, negotiating terms with Michael.
As if negotiating a business deal, a transaction.
Michael's eyes were deep and he said nothing.
"Within three years, if you want to get married, or if you have a woman you like who can replace my current role, I'll leave immediately. I absolutely won't cause you any trouble. You don't have to worry about me clinging to you. After three years, whether you're getting married or not, could you help me, Samuel, and my brother Jasper safely leave Emerald City?"
Three years - Samuel's condition would be basically stable, and she could escape with Jasper and Samuel.
Never to return.
Seeing Michael remain silent, Nora panicked a bit. Asking Michael not to find other women for three years was indeed unrealistic.
Biting her lip, Nora took out a medical report from her bag - it was from when Royce took her for a checkup in Silverlight City. She had downloaded it from her phone and printed it.
Carefully pushing it in front of Michael, Nora's voice was extremely weak, clearly lacking confidence. "Mr. Smith, this is my medical report. I'm not sick, and I haven't slept with a lot of men."