In this past month, both the Howard family and the Jones family companies had been struggling. However, the Howard family was faring much better than the Jones family.
The Howard family's foundation was much stronger. If it weren't for the Howard family investing some funds into the Jones family, the Jones family would have declared bankruptcy by now.
After discussing recent events, Mia didn't forget the real reason she came to pick up Emily.
"When you go back, apologize sincerely to your in-laws and promise not to cause any more trouble. Try to get them to invest more money into the family business. Otherwise, if your father's company goes under, our good days will be over too. Do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand. My in-laws are already dissatisfied with me. If the family goes bankrupt, they'll definitely want me to divorce Raphael even more," Emily nodded gravely.
With that, the mother and daughter shared some heartfelt words and returned to the Jones family villa. Garrett wasn't home, so Mia had Emily freshen up and rest for half a day before having the driver take her back.
By the time Emily returned to the Howard family, it was already evening. She walked into the living room and saw the Howard family members dining in the dining room. Mr. and Mrs. Howard only gave Emily a cold glance, seemingly uninterested in acknowledging her, and continued eating.
Raphael, however, did not ignore Emily. He frowned slightly and said in a deep voice, "I remember you left at noon. Why are you back so late? And what's with the injury on your face?"
Although his tone wasn't friendly, Emily still felt comforted by his concern. "My mom was worried about me and took me home. As for the injury on my face, I accidentally bumped into something inside. It's nothing serious."
Emily finished speaking with a gentle smile and greeted Mr. and Mrs. Howard, "Dad, Mom, I'm back."
To her surprise, her greeting did not earn her any kindness from Mr. and Mrs. Howard.
"You're back, so what? What's there to say?" Abigail snapped impatiently before sarcastically adding, "Going in and out of that kind of disgraceful place repeatedly, I don't know where you get the nerve to come back. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were off doing something important."
Emily's face turned pale and then flushed with anger. She bit her lower lip hard and clenched her hands tightly to suppress her fury.
"Abigail, you're right. I haven't behaved well before. I won't act impulsively again," Emily apologized sincerely, which made Mr. and Mrs. Howard and Raphael look at her in surprise.
Given her usual temper, she would have already started arguing with Abigail by now.
Abigail was stunned for a moment but then sneered, "Anyone can say nice things. If we had known you were such a disgraceful person, we would have let Raphael marry Deanna instead. At least she wouldn't be such a headache!"
These words were truly hurtful.
That shameless woman Deanna-how could she compare to Emily?
Emily screamed internally, her fingernails digging into her flesh as her chest heaved with anger. She took several deep breaths to calm herself down.
Perhaps noticing that Emily was on the verge of losing control, Aiden suddenly intervened, "Enough! Talking like this ruins dinner for everyone."
With that, Abigail stopped her tirade.
Seeing this, Emily looked at Raphael for help.
Raphael couldn't ignore her intense gaze and finally spoke up, "Have you eaten yet?"
"No, after I rested, my mom urged me to come back," Emily shook her head, half-truthfully.
In reality, Mia was worried that Garrett would lose his temper at Emily when he saw her. After all, the downfall of the Jones family company happened so quickly because of Emily.
Raphael didn't know this.
Seeing Emily shake her head, he instructed the butler nearby, "Get Emily a set of utensils and tell the kitchen to prepare some of her favorite dishes."
Upon hearing this, Emily's anger subsided significantly. She also became more convinced of what her mother had told her earlier-that Raphael still had feelings for her and that his threats of divorce were because she had gone too far.
However, Abigail couldn't stand seeing Emily sit next to her son and lost her appetite.
"I'm done!" she snapped, throwing down her utensils and leaving.
Emily bit her lip in frustration. Her mother-in-law was truly a snob.
When she was still a celebrity and could bring fame and benefits to the Howard family, this old woman called her a good daughter-in-law at every turn. Now that she had lost her reputation and caused trouble, she treated her with disdain.
Aiden was also displeased with his wife's behavior but said nothing and continued eating.
Raphael remained silent as well but noticed the change in Emily's demeanor. His eyes flickered with a cold light that made it hard to discern what he was thinking.
"Eat quickly; I have something to discuss with you later."