Chapter 96 We Have Already Registered Our Marriage
Marilyn came out carrying a plate, speaking with sarcastic undertones. "Insurance sales, huh? I heard people in your line all rope in acquaintances to buy insurance, with base salaries of just one or two thousand dollars. How much do you make in a month?"
Arabella was so embarrassed her toes curled. Marilyn's malice was too obvious.
She remembered when she visited Chloe's house—Chloe always greeted her with smiles, never said anything inappropriate, and was so warm she practically treated her like her own granddaughter.
Not wanting to make Alexander uncomfortable, she interjected, "How much we earn isn't important—it's enough that we truly love each other."
Hearing this, Alexander's previously somewhat cold eyes took on a hint of warmth.
Percy tugged at Marilyn disapprovingly. "Exactly. As long as the two kids like each other, that's enough. Why say so much? There are still dishes in the kitchen—bring them out first."
Hearing this, Marilyn immediately bristled. "I'm doing this for Arabella's own good! She has poor judgment with men and got badly burned with the Watson family. She can't be so willful with a second marriage. Mr. Gray is a university admissions director earning over four hundred thousand a year, with a house, car, and savings. How is he not better than some insurance salesman? Dating an insurance salesman—who knows if he'll try to sell us insurance later!"
John played the peacemaker, saying modestly, "No, no, I'm not that outstanding. Actually, Mr. FitzRoy is quite good too—young, with a promising future."
Marilyn immediately put on a smile. "Mr. Gray, you don't need to be modest. You're a hundred times better than that insurance salesman."
Their back-and-forth made Arabella furious. Alexander was an excellent person, yet Marilyn and John were making him sound worthless in front of everyone.
She couldn't quite explain her mindset, but she felt like her treasure was being insulted. And Alexander was enduring this humiliation because of her—she absolutely couldn't stand hearing such words anymore.
She decided to tear off even the last shred of politeness, looking at Marilyn coldly. "Give up that pipe dream. Alex is the only partner I'll have in this lifetime. I'll marry no one but him. Only I can decide my own marriage—abandon whatever schemes you're cooking up.
And don't worry about us selling insurance to you. My boyfriend deals directly with companies—do you know what that means? An entire company with hundreds or thousands of employees all buy insurance through him. Individual customers like you aren't even worth his personal attention."
After a pause, she glanced at John meaningfully. "By the way, he's not just some small-time salesperson—he's his company's top performer, with a house and car. His house is in the city center too. Mr. Gray, may I ask where your house is located?"
John's face showed some embarrassment, and he was rather surprised. He'd assumed this was just a small-time salesman, not realizing he was a top performer.
Though he didn't understand the industry well, he'd heard of top performers—the most profitable salespeople in a company definitely earned quite a bit, at least as much as he did.
Otherwise, how could he afford a house in the city center?
You had to know that he was nearly forty and had only managed to buy a small house in the suburbs, borrowing a hundred thousand for the down payment that he still hadn't paid off.
His job sounded glamorous, but he was actually in debt, paying a mortgage every month with no savings whatsoever.
His divorce happened because his ex-wife was materialistic and left him for having no money.
It was only because Marilyn had praised Arabella as gentle and virtuous that he'd deigned to come over, thinking Arabella would be different. He hadn't expected her to be so materialistic too.
But then he thought again—her boyfriend looked like a pretty boy, yet had achieved such success by thirty. Who knew how he'd managed it? Rich people could be quite perverted.
With this thought, John felt balanced again. He responded with what he considered a gentlemanly smile. "I've relied on myself all these years, so naturally I can't afford anything in the city center. But you can't judge everything by material things when dating. Ms. Bourbon, you should keep your eyes open and not be deceived by appearances."
Marilyn immediately chimed in. "Exactly! A salesperson, no matter how capable, is still just someone who sells things. With the economy so bad now, he could lose his job anytime. How is that as stable as Mr. Gray's work?"
Arabella was so angry she was speechless. She'd thought John was at least steady and polite, but he turned out to be no different from Marilyn.
Speaking so rudely in front of people—truly shameless.
Just as Arabella was about to retort without mercy, Alexander suddenly spoke. "Yes, I'm just a salesperson. My work isn't as prestigious as Mr. Gray's, but Arabella likes me."
He'd actually been enjoying watching Arabella defend him and hadn't taken these two seriously—they were just clowns, not even worth getting angry over.
But seeing them become increasingly offensive, if he didn't speak up, he was afraid Arabella might literally cough up blood from anger.
Alexander glanced at John, then at Marilyn, and smiled coldly. "Besides, we two are already legally married. It's too late to say anything now."
With these words, the entire room fell silent.
Arabella was completely stunned—she hadn't expected him to reveal this!
She'd originally planned to muddle through this situation, then tell her father they'd broken up after some time. This marriage was just a transaction—there was no need for others to know about it!
Marilyn's eyes widened as she stared at Arabella, asking sharply, "Arabella, explain yourself clearly. What do you mean you're already legally married?"
With things having come to this point, Arabella could only admit it. "That's right, we are legally married. From a legal standpoint, we're lawful spouses."
Marilyn swayed and nearly fainted.
John's face turned cold as he stood up, buttoned his suit jacket, picked up his laptop bag, and looked at Marilyn coldly. "Ms. Reeves, since you have no sincerity about cooperation, forget about your son's college admission. I'm not some fool to be randomly deceived!"
With that, he left directly.
Marilyn's face went pale as paper. She hurried after him, saying urgently, "Mr. Gray, that little bitch is lying! She couldn't possibly be married—she never mentioned it before. I was deceived by her too! Don't be angry, let's discuss Daniel's situation some more..."
She chased after John, leaving only Arabella, Alexander, and Percy in the room.
Percy's lips moved as if he wanted to speak but hesitated. Finally, he couldn't help asking, "Arabella, you and him..."
At this point, Arabella had adopted a "whatever happens, happens" attitude. Not wanting her father to worry, she nodded and smiled. "Dad, he's a very good person—steady, motivated, can cook and do housework. Plus he gives me all his salary to manage."
This was complete nonsense, of course, but older generations cared about such things. Hearing this, Percy felt somewhat reassured. "That's good, that's good. You child, why did you even hide this from me?"
Arabella scratched her head embarrassedly. "Well, it hasn't been long since the divorce. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to accept it."
Percy laughed helplessly. "Silly child, as long as you're doing well, why would I object?"
He wheeled himself into the bedroom and came out moments later with a bank card in his hand, which he handed to Arabella with instructions. "Since Alex is a good kid, you two should live well together. Let the past be the past—don't keep looking back. Look forward, understand?"
Arabella quickly stepped back without taking the bank card, saying in surprise, "Dad, I understand everything you're saying, but what are you doing? I can earn money—I don't want yours!"
Percy took her hand and placed the bank card in it. "When we were trying to save your mother, we spent all our savings. This is the compensation money from winning the lawsuit afterward—two hundred thousand dollars total."
As he spoke, his eyes reddened. "When you got married the first time, I had nothing and let you enter the Watson family with such a meager dowry that they always looked down on you. Take this money—it's not easy for a girl after marriage. You'll still need to get pregnant and have children, and there are many places you'll need money. Having money in hand gives you confidence."
After a pause, he smiled again, tears mixed with laughter as if remembering something. "When your mother married me, she had confidence precisely because she had a substantial dowry. She'd argue with me every few days, threatening divorce whenever she got angry. She had quite the attitude."
Arabella also thought of her mother. Her parents had a good relationship all these years—she'd grown up in a happy family and was very fortunate.
Her nose felt sour, but she didn't refuse the money anymore. She didn't lack this money now, but accepting it would put her father at ease, so she'd take it.
After all, this was her father—it didn't matter who held onto the money. It would also prevent Marilyn from coaxing it away.
She put the bank card away. Percy felt relieved and looked at Alexander, tears still in his eyes. "Good boy, take care of my daughter from now on, understand?"
Alexander's expression became serious as he nodded solemnly. "Dad, don't worry. As long as I'm alive, Arabella won't suffer any grievances. Even if I die, I'll have arranged everything for her."
Not only Percy, but even Arabella was confused hearing this. Such a solemn promise was countless times stronger than what she'd heard at her wedding ceremony.
Although she knew it was all fake, she was still moved.
Alexander glanced at Arabella and said gently, "Arabella, go wait in the bedroom for a bit. I want to have some man-to-man talk with Dad."
Arabella was shocked at how naturally he called him "Dad," and didn't understand what couldn't be said in front of her. But Alexander wasn't someone who acted recklessly, so she didn't ask questions and went into the bedroom.
After the bedroom door closed, Alexander crouched in front of Percy and lowered his voice sincerely. "Dad, I'm completely sincere about Arabella. I've had a secret crush on her for many years. I won't hide from you that our marriage registration was hasty—she doesn't like me that much yet, but I'll work hard to prove myself."
After a pause, he continued, "My previous promise to you was serious too. I'll take good care of her. When she accepts me, we'll have a grand wedding. She won't lack anything a woman should have. Until then, I'm afraid of scaring her, so I can only postpone it temporarily. I hope you won't blame me."
Percy looked at him in surprise—he hadn't expected this young man to see through his concerns so clearly and be so honest about it.
Beyond his shock, he felt very comforted. "I believe you. Arabella's good fortune is yet to come."
Seeing the last trace of doubt disappear from Percy's eyes, Alexander finally breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Regarding marrying Arabella, in the entire Bourbon family, he only cared about Percy's opinion. With Percy accepting him, all that remained between him and Arabella was the matter of making her fall in love with him.
Thinking of this, Alexander sighed again. The only remaining problem was also the most difficult one—much harder than earning a hundred billion dollars.
If he could exchange a hundred billion dollars for Arabella's love, he'd definitely agree without blinking.
Unfortunately, his thinking was too idealistic.
Downstairs.
When Daniel returned, he saw Marilyn desperately pleading with John about something. He approached and listened for a while, then became furious with embarrassment. He stepped forward and pulled Marilyn away. "Mom, what are you doing? I'll get into college on my own—I don't need Arabella to do anything for me!"
Marilyn angrily shook him off and immediately launched into a scolding. "Are you stupid? Don't you know what your grades are like? You're already a senior and only just passing—what are you going to use to get into college? If you can't get into college, what future do you have? Are you going to do manual labor under the blazing sun?"
John had already taken the opportunity to get in his car and quickly drove away. Unable to chase him back, Marilyn became even more furious and slapped Daniel hard across the face. "You're more trouble than you're worth! Why can't you be more ambitious? Who am I doing all this for? Isn't it all for you?"
Daniel was stunned by the slap. Though he'd always resented Marilyn's suffocating management style, she'd never laid a hand on him since childhood.
He'd taken to heart what Arabella had told him that day: "Your mother may not be a good person and may have used the wrong methods, but she loves you."
He'd listened to all of it.
During this time, he'd studied hard, thinking that coming home with his report card today would make both Marilyn and Arabella happy. He never expected it to end like this.
Just then, Arabella and Alexander came down from upstairs. After such a scene, they had no mood to stay for dinner. After saying goodbye to Percy, they prepared to leave.
Unexpectedly, they encountered Marilyn and Daniel downstairs.
Arabella looked over, and Daniel's eyes flashed with embarrassment as he looked at her with unspoken words.
Knowing his nature wasn't bad, Arabella had never lumped him together with Marilyn. Not wanting him to feel burdened, she gave him a slight nod.
But she ignored Marilyn and turned to leave with Alexander.
Marilyn shouted angrily, "Are you satisfied now? You've ruined Daniel's entire future! If you'd married Mr. Gray, he could have arranged everything. He already promised me that even if Daniel did poorly on exams, he could still get into his school! My arrangement was perfect—it's all because of you! Everything's ruined!"