Chapter 30 Wife or Shield
The banquet was halfway through.
Emily was listlessly sipping a dessert soup.
This was exhausting enough.
Just as she was about to excuse herself to get some fresh air, she glanced around and suddenly spotted a familiar figure.
Matthew appeared at the entrance of the banquet hall, wearing a charcoal gray suit, standing tall and straight.
He wore a gentle, calm smile as he chatted quietly with businesspeople nearby.
"Matthew?" Emily wanted to stand up, but her wrist was suddenly grabbed by a large hand.
Emily turned her head and met Alex's unfathomable eyes.
"What, trying to meet your lover right under my nose?"
Emily frowned in displeasure and lowered her voice too. "You think everyone's like you and Grace? I'm just going to say hello to Matthew and thank him for his help."
With that, she twisted her wrist, trying to break free from his grip.
"What's there to thank him for?" Alex's fingers tightened. "The Johnson family matter was solved because I asked Luke to step in. What does it have to do with Matthew?"
"Matthew helped too. You can't just erase that because you got involved."
"Emily!" Alex's cold voice dropped lower. "Don't forget your position. At this kind of event, stop flirting with other men, especially Matthew."
In the distance, Matthew seemed to notice them and turned to look their way.
His gentle gaze paused for a moment on their clasped wrists, then he nodded politely.
When he looked at Emily, he even waved his hand.
This was a gesture they'd agreed on as children—if it wasn't convenient to talk, they'd use this signal.
"Alex, let me go." Emily's voice turned completely cold. "We're just using each other. You don't need to control me like this."
Their hushed conversation wasn't heard by others.
To onlookers, their intimate appearance only suggested they had a good relationship.
Little did they know, at these words, Alex's eyes darkened further.
He loosened his grip, his thin lips almost touching her earlobe. "Emily, as long as you're still Mrs. Baker, you must know your place and not bring shame to either family."
His words were like a thorn, piercing Emily's heart painfully.
Looking at the man before her, she suddenly felt he was completely unfamiliar.
True, her father and the Johnson family had received his help, but did she have to trade her freedom and dignity for it?
Emily took a deep breath and held it in after all. She couldn't lose her composure here.
She simply stopped struggling, picked up her spoon again, and stirred the soup that had already gone cold.
Watching her compliant and obedient appearance, Alex's anger subsided slightly, but a strange irritation rose in its place.
What he wanted wasn't this fake docility, but concern in her eyes.
"So you're just going to give me the cold shoulder like this, not even angry anymore?" He sneered.
"Since when do people beg others to be angry at them?" Emily didn't even look at him. "Listening to you doesn't work, not listening doesn't work either—what exactly do you want from me?"
"Stop mocking me, Emily. All you know how to do is make people angry."
What was he getting mad about? Emily couldn't figure it out.
Luke suddenly stood up and patted Alex's shoulder. "Alex, come to the study with me."
Besides that, Luke called a few other people too.
"Alright." Alex stood up accordingly.
It looked like they were going to the study to talk. Emily finally relaxed—at least she didn't have to stay on edge anymore.
She scanned the banquet hall, but Matthew had already left.
Then she took out her phone to check the time and found it was almost eleven.
She was really tired.
Her slender fingers unconsciously touched her lower abdomen, and Emily's face showed a flash of tenderness.
She'd been eating well these days—the baby should be growing healthy.
When Alex came downstairs, this was the scene he saw: the woman sitting under soft lighting, that gentle and peaceful smile on her cheeks, unforgettable.
Suddenly, Emily looked up and saw him standing at the stairway in a daze. She frowned.
Alex coughed awkwardly, pretending nothing happened as he came downstairs. "Let's go."
Emily nodded.
However, Alex naturally reached out his hand, wanting to put his arm around her waist again.
She dodged sideways and walked straight toward the exit of the banquet hall.
Alex's hand froze in mid-air, his expression instantly turning cold.
On the road, neither of them spoke.
The car slowly drove away from the Walton family estate. Emily leaned back in her seat, eyes closed, resting, her voice heavy with exhaustion. "Take me back to the apartment, it's closer."
She was too tired to keep her eyes open and just wanted to rest quickly. Besides, staying up late wasn't good for the baby.
"No," Alex said. "We need to go back to the estate to keep Grandma company."
Emily slowly opened her eyes and looked at him in disbelief.
Couldn't he see how tired she was?
Even the lip gloss couldn't hide her pallor.
After a moment of silence, though, Emily laughed—a cold laugh.
Right, she should have known, shouldn't she?
In Alex's heart, she was nothing more than a shield to maintain appearances and save face.
When needed, she'd be pulled out to perform a loving couple act, maintaining the image of family harmony.
When not needed, she'd be discarded like trash.
But it didn't matter. It would be over soon—just one more month.
With this thought, Emily leaned back against the seat again, closed her eyes, and stopped looking at him.
The atmosphere in the car grew increasingly oppressive.
Only the roar of the engine echoed in their ears.
The moment Alex's brows furrowed, he saw the woman's exhausted and cold profile.
She wouldn't even say one more word to him?
At the banquet, when she saw Matthew, she was clearly so happy. He could tell it was a genuine smile from the heart, but it just wasn't for him.
Alex's grip on the steering wheel gradually tightened, his thin lips pressed into a straight line.
Something seemed to be blocking his heart, making him feel suffocated. He wanted to say something, but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't get them out.
Forty minutes later.
The car pulled up in front of the old mansion.
Emily got out expressionlessly, without any reluctance.
Inside the car, it was deathly quiet.
Alex punched the steering wheel, his eyes full of surging, suppressed anger.