The next morning, Cassidy woke up to find herself alone in bed; Easton had slipped out at some point.
Rubbing her temples as she got up, she felt as though her waist might snap in half. Massaging her sore waist, she headed to the bathroom to freshen up.
When she looked in the mirror, she saw her body covered in kiss marks, fully awakening her. Easton had gripped her waist so tightly all night that he left bruises. No wonder her waist hurt so much!
Cassidy quickly looked away from the mirror and hurried to change her clothes.
It took her forever to find something that covered the kiss marks, and she used makeup to hide the rest. Just as she finished, a servant knocked on the door, saying a group of people wanted to see her.
Who would want to see her so early? Could it be someone from the Cooper family?
Cassidy felt a bit uneasy; Ashton had always handled these things. This was her first time dealing with family affairs since taking over as head of the family.
She quickly calmed down; Easton had agreed to help her last night, and if she ran into any problems, he would surely back her up.
Cassidy went to meet the visitors, who greeted her with malicious smiles, instantly revealing their intent to cause trouble.
"Are you looking for me?" Cassidy asked, her eyes filled with confusion.
"You're the current head of the family, right? We're here to ask for funding! When Ashton was young, our Bute family gave him some money when he was in trouble. To repay us, he always used his private funds to support us. Although he's dead now, the funding can't stop!"
Cassidy remembered this agreement. She never understood why Ashton supported these people. In her opinion, they were nothing but a bunch of greedy bastards.
They had given Ashton $30,000 when he was young, but he had repaid them a hundredfold. Yet, they wanted continuous support.
Cassidy had never given much thought to these matters before. Now that Ashton was dead, no one managed the funding, so they came to her.
"How much do you want?" Cassidy frowned at them; their greedy eyes made her uncomfortable.
They exchanged glances and settled on a number, claiming ten million dollars.
Cassidy laughed out loud at the outrageous amount. Did they think she was easy to bully because she was a woman?
"Are you kidding? I'll give you one more chance, or I'll have you thrown out immediately!" Cassidy's firm tone and cold gaze made them realize she was as tough as her deceased husband Ashton.
They had thought Cassidy wouldn't dare refuse them, but her demeanor shocked them. However, they quickly recovered.
"Ashton used to give us this amount. Are you trying to cheat us now?"
"Ashton was so kind; how could he leave the Cooper family to you?"
"If he knew how you're treating us, he'd be heartbroken!"
They pointed at Cassidy, accusing her of being vicious and tarnishing Ashton's name.
Cassidy grew angrier and found it amusing. Her husband Ashton, the most powerful local mafia king, was kind and gentle only to his family. To outsiders, Ashton was no saint. How could he be kind to these greedy, shameless people?
Cassidy looked at the man who spoke first and sneered, "Do you really think I don't know Ashton's usual funding amount? He's dead now, and you want to cheat me out of a large sum? How funny!"
Her words made their expressions change. Cassidy didn't want to argue further and called the butler to throw them out. She could continue supporting them like her late husband did, but only if they learned respect!
Ryder stepped in to stop the butler. "What's going on?"
As soon as he appeared, the people started complaining to him.
Cassidy, tired of their act, turned to leave.
After a few words from them clarified the situation, Ryder stopped Cassidy. "Cassidy, don't go. I think they have a point."
"If you think they have a point, you fund them!" Cassidy didn't even look at him and was about to leave.
"Are you trying to ruin my father's reputation?" Ryder's loud accusation was heard by everyone.
"This is something Father did while he was alive. Now that he's gone, you don't want to continue? You're damaging the Cooper family's honor! Cassidy, is this how you run the family?" He said this on purpose.
Ryder had never been unhappy with her being the head and wanted to make things difficult for her.
"Ryder, do you know how much they're asking for? And how much Ashton used to give them?" Cassidy looked at Ryder.
She should've been afraid of him; his gaze was terrifying, as if he wanted to tear her apart. But now, feeling Easton's supportive gaze nearby, she turned and walked towards Ryder, questioning him.
Her questioning surprised Ryder, but he wouldn't give up easily.
Ryder shouted, "Cassidy, are you sure you won't continue funding them? Do you want to shame the family? If people find out my father supported them and you refuse, do you know the negative impact on the Cooper family?"
Cassidy laughed, "How ridiculous!"
This was Cassidy's first direct confrontation with Ryder. Her palms were sweating, but she remained calm.
"It seems you've forgotten who we are. Refusing some unreasonable demands from trash will cause negative impact? Are you questioning my decision just because I refused a greedy request?" She stared at Ryder, exuding the authority of the Cooper family head.
Ryder's face darkened. "It seems you don't care about the family's honor!"
"Ryder, what nonsense are you spouting?" Easton's voice suddenly rang out. He approached, his sharp gaze sweeping over everyone.
Easton had done many assassination missions and killed many people. When he walked over, it was as if the Grim Reaper had come to claim souls, making everyone's hearts involuntarily race.
Cassidy felt relieved as Easton stopped beside her, and her nervousness finally eased.
"Cassidy was chosen by our father. Are you defying his wishes? If their request was reasonable, Cassidy wouldn't refuse. But clearly, they're here to cause trouble." Easton looked at Cassidy, waiting for her response.
Cassidy nodded. "Yes, I refused because their request is unreasonable. This isn't funding; it's extortion!"
Easton nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Ryder, smiling as he adjusted his watch. "Ryder, did you bring these people here? Cassidy is temporarily the head, and you're unhappy, so you teamed up with them to take her position?"