Chapter 30 Early Pregnancy, No Alcohol
Hannah stayed quiet for a long time.
The elevator doors slid open, and Cordelia gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "I'm heading out first."
Hannah nodded, watching Cordelia leave.
Once outside the hospital, Cordelia flagged down a cab to take her back to The Stone Manor.At The Stone Manor, Evelyn and Donald were waiting for Alaric and Cordelia to return.
When Evelyn saw only Cordelia come in, a flicker of confusion crossed her face.
She had called Cordelia earlier, and Alaric had been with her.
"Where's Mr. Hughes?" she asked.
Cordelia pressed her lips together. "He had some urgent business to handle."
Donald emerged from the kitchen, still wearing an apron. Hearing Cordelia's words, he nodded understandingly despite a hint of disappointment.
"Alaric runs a huge company now; he's bound to be busy."
"Cordelia, shoot him a message. If he can't make it, that's okay. Work comes first."
Cordelia nodded and agreed quickly. "Sure thing."
She pulled her phone from her bag and, seeing Donald's expectant look, found Alaric's number and dialed it.
But the phone rang from outside the door.
Cordelia paused.
Everyone turned their eyes toward the door.
Alaric walked in, holding a gift box in one hand and his phone in the other. He looked at Cordelia inside the house, his deep eyes showing a hint of displeasure.
Cordelia hung up the phone.
Donald quickly went to greet him. "Cordelia said you had urgent business at the company. Did you handle it so quickly?"
Alaric shifted his gaze from Cordelia and replied politely. "It's done."
Seeing his cooperation, Cordelia breathed a sigh of relief.
Donald laughed heartily, clearly in a good mood. "Knowing you two were coming back tonight, I personally cooked a few special dishes for you."
Alaric stepped forward. "Looks like I'm in for a treat tonight."
Just as he finished speaking, Allegra awkwardly brought a guest in.
"Mr. Stone, Mr. Gray is here."
She spoke cautiously, glancing at Alaric.
Alaric remained calm, lowering his gaze to Cordelia beside him.
Cordelia raised an eyebrow, showing a bit of surprise, but walked over to greet him.
Alaric's eyes darkened slightly.
Donald hadn't expected Dominic to come. Seeing Dominic standing at the door with a gift, he walked over to greet him.
"Dominic, what brings you here?"
Dominic smiled as Cordelia approached, handing her the gift, then smiled at Donald. "I heard from Cordelia that you were discharged today, so I thought I'd come by to see you. The last time I was here, I left in a hurry and didn't get to chat with you much."
Donald smiled politely.
As the host, he naturally invited Dominic to stay for dinner.
"You're just in time. We were about to eat. Join us."
Dominic didn't refuse and nodded. "Sure."
As he spoke, he glanced at Alaric standing not far away.
Alaric remained indifferent, glancing at Dominic before looking at Donald.
"Dad, do we have any wine at home? I'd like to have a drink with Mr. Gray."
Donald nodded and asked Allegra to fetch some.
Dominic paused slightly.
Evelyn raised an eyebrow at Alaric's casual use of "Dad."
An unspoken battle began.
Evelyn glanced at Cordelia, who seemed oblivious to the tension and was helping Allegra find the wine.
Donald invited Alaric and Dominic to sit down.
Once seated, Dominic looked at Alaric curiously and smiled. "Mr. Hughes and Evelyn, are you married?"
Cordelia, who was tasting the wine, nearly choked at Dominic's words.
Evelyn remained calm, sitting in her chair, and replied softly, "No."
"He's my brother-in-law."
Evelyn smiled slightly as she glanced at Dominic.
Dominic looked confused for a moment before smiling. "I didn't know Mr. Hughes was married to Cordelia. She never mentioned it."
Alaric's eyes grew colder.
Though Allegra was a servant of the Stone family, she held an important position.
Cordelia and Evelyn were practically raised by her.
Seeing Alaric's darkened expression, she quickly stepped in to ease the tension.
"Mr. Gray has only recently returned to the country and hasn't seen Cordelia much. She probably just didn't have the chance to mention it."
Dominic nodded slightly. "Probably."
Cordelia placed the wine bottle in front of Dominic and Alaric, then was about to sit next to Evelyn when Alaric grabbed her wrist, signaling her to sit beside him.
Donald watched them, and Cordelia hesitated before finally sitting next to Alaric.
Dominic glanced at Cordelia.
The atmosphere grew tense for a moment.
Evelyn placed a wine glass next to Cordelia and got up to fetch a bottle of red wine.
"You have the day off tomorrow, so let's have a little drink tonight."
Cordelia hesitated. She wasn't in a position to drink.
"Alaric has already had some wine. I need to drive later."
She declined softly.
Alaric raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "A little won't hurt. I'll have the driver pick us up later."
Cordelia couldn't find an excuse to refuse and reluctantly agreed. "Just a little then. I haven't had wine in a while."
Allegra had already opened the wine to let it breathe.
After a while, Allegra poured a small amount for Cordelia.
Cordelia took it, seeing Alaric watching her, and reluctantly took a sip.
She frowned immediately.
"This wine tastes different from the last one I had."
Donald knew nothing about wine, and Cordelia rarely drank.
Only Evelyn knew a bit about it.
"This wine was brought by Alaric. He probably knows more."
Cordelia paused.
Alaric took Cordelia's wine glass and took a sip without hesitation.
"The wine hasn't breathed long enough. So the taste is a bit different."
He placed the glass back in front of Cordelia.
Cordelia bit her lip lightly and then pushed the glass toward Alaric, pouting. "I don't like it. You drink it for me."
Her coy tone pleased Alaric greatly.
Alaric flashed a smile. "Alright, as you wish."
Donald laughed. "Cordelia is just like me, clueless about wine and missing out on the good stuff."
Cordelia sighed in relief.
She wasn't a good drinker, and a glass of wine could make her drunk, affecting the baby she was carrying.
Dominic, sitting to the side, couldn't join in. His eyes darkened, and he gripped his wine glass tightly.