Chapter 259
I never imagined that one day, at an age when I already have kids of my own, I'd be discussing with my mother how much living expenses she gave me back then. Especially with Cora wearing that look on her face—like it was impossible, like I was making it all up.
I sighed helplessly. "This is not that important. I'm not a kid anymore. I don't need your charity."
Those days of begging were too painful. Every time I had to ask Cora for money, it was severe mental torture for me.
"What do you mean charity? If I really hadn't given you money, could you have grown up healthy like this?" Cora was particularly unhappy with what I said.
I looked at her, genuinely puzzled. Honestly, I didn't quite understand—all those things had already happened, and I clearly didn't look like I wanted to make up with her, right? So why was she still so insistent on defending herself?
My cool hand was suddenly held by a warm one. I froze for a moment, turned my head, and met Jason's concerned gaze. Warmth I could not ignore rose in my heart. That tiny bit of confusion Cora had brought completely vanished in that moment.
"None of this matters." I cleared my throat, my eyes sweeping over both of them, "Work or eight hundred dollars a month in support payments? You choose. Oh, and I need to remind you—I refuse to let Cora live in my house. You two should leave soon."
I had made my position very clear.
After struggling with it, Luke finally gritted his teeth and spoke, "Mom, why don't you just sign it!"
Cora frowned, "What do you mean? You think so too?"
"Look at her now—she clearly doesn't see us as family at all. Even if you don't sign, what difference does it make? Might as well sign and get me a stable job." Luke pleaded earnestly, "Mom, you've never worked outside. You have no idea how hard it is to find a stable job these days. Plus I still haven't gotten married, and there's no kid in the family yet."
Cora was persuaded. After hesitating, she finally picked up the pen.
Cora looked at me warningly, "I can sign, but you have to keep your promise and arrange a stable job for Luke!"
"Don't worry, it's all there in black and white in the contract. I have no reason to go back on my word." I said slowly.
Cora clearly didn't trust me. She took out her reading glasses from her bag, put them on, squinted, and stared at the document, reading word by word.
I curled my lip disdainfully and stood up, "Take your time reading. I have things to do."
With that, I went straight upstairs. Actually, I did not have anything to do. I just found her annoying to look at.
I'd stated my conditions very clearly and had no intention of negotiating. Whether Cora signed or not, the result wouldn't change.
Cora was unhappy, "You're just leaving like that?"
I didn't turn back, "Just leave the signed papers on the table. Lila will take care of it."
If nothing unexpected happened, today should be the last day we'd see each other.
The weather was nice today. The sun was warm, with a gentle breeze from time to time. I lay on the lounge chair in the sunroom playing on my phone for a while. Before I knew it, drowsiness came over me, so I put down my phone and took a nap.
When I woke up, Cora and Luke had already left. Jessica was having her tutoring session in her room, Jason was handling documents in his study, and Lila was cooking downstairs in the kitchen.
I went downstairs and asked Lila, "Lila, where is the contract she signed?"
"Mr. Cooper took it to the study. Mrs. Cooper, are you hungry? There's cake here if you want something to hold you over." As Lila spoke, she brought out a small cake from the fridge.
I thanked her and took it, carrying it upstairs. Standing at the study door, I peeked inside. Jason was in an online meeting.
I didn't go in to disturb him. I leaned against the doorway slowly eating the small cake, waiting until Jason finished his meeting before going in.
"Honey, why didn't you call me when you were at the door?" Jason looked up at me and immediately broke into a smile.
I put the cake in front of him, "Nothing urgent. Work comes first."
I paused, then added, "Is that agreement all set?"
"Yes, I already had Samuel arrange it." Jason fed me some cake, "About Luke's job—how about arranging for him to be a security guard?"
My eyes lit up, "Honey, we're totally on the same page!"
Originally, that's exactly what I was considering—having Luke work as a security guard. Stable with guaranteed income. These were all things I'd mentioned to Luke. Perfect fit.
More importantly, in such an insignificant position, even if Luke shamelessly tried to use connections, it wouldn't matter.
"That shows we're in sync." Jason smiled and kissed my cheek.
Samuel was very efficient. That same afternoon, he sent the severance agreement to the law firm for notarization. He brought the notarized documents from the law firm back to the house.
I held the documents and looked at them carefully for a long time, my feelings complicated. For so many years, I'd been trapped in the pain of my family of origin. Unloved, living on eggshells.
I'd wondered countless times whether I was actually Cora's biological daughter. After all, Luke and I were both her children—why was she so biased? Why did she treat me this way?
The dull pain from my youth tormented me constantly throughout those long years. Until I learned the truth about my background. An illegitimate daughter who couldn't see the light of day.
When I learned the truth, I actually felt relieved. So that was the real reason I wasn't loved. It wasn't my fault. I couldn't choose how I was born, but I could do everything possible to walk my own path.
Unfortunately, even so, they still wouldn't let me go.
Now, I was finally free. I, Sue, had completely severed ties with Cora and Luke. No relationship whatsoever.
I stared at the documents for a long time and let out a long breath.
Someone knocked on the door. Jason stood in the doorway, looking at me with a smile, his voice gentle, "Honey, Grandma wants us to come back to the Old Mansion for dinner tonight."
He paused and added, "Grandma and the others know about the agreement. They say it's great news and want to celebrate properly."
I came back to myself and nodded with a smile. "Okay."
When we arrived at the Old Mansion and got out of the car, Kelly came up to greet us warmly. She linked her arm intimately with mine, "You're finally here! We're having a feast today! Linda and the others have been busy in the kitchen for ages. Just watching them made me so hungry! But Grandma wouldn't let me eat—she said we had to wait for you!"
I smiled, "Sounds good."
Jason got out of the car and naturally pulled me away from Kelly, holding me in his arms.
Kelly's lips moved as she muttered quietly, "Jason, how are you any different from the king of jealousy?"
"What did you say?" Jason's gaze swept over to her.
Kelly shuddered and shook her head repeatedly, "Nothing! I just think you and Sue have such a great relationship! You two will definitely grow old together!"
"Do I need you to tell me that?" Jason's lips curved up as he pulled out his phone and transferred a million dollars to Kelly.