Elsie punched her son in the shoulder. "Humph! You have some balls! Offending Mr. Huo! You need to go clear this up!"
"I already told Debbie about me and Kasie. I figure they can solve their own problems. I'll be there if Debbie needs me," Ivan said.
Elsie rolled her eyes at him and decided to drop it. She was in a good mood now after seeing them register their marriage. "Fine. Do what you want." She turned to Kasie and suggested, "Kasie, how about you come and live with us? Our country is lovely this time of year. Don't worry. You can fly back and see your parents anytime you want."
From the moment Kasie decided to marry Ivan, she figured that her life would change drastically, so she nodded, "Sure, no problem." She was the only child of the Zheng family.
Being a considerate man, Ivan cut in, "You're the only daughter of your family. I think you're well within your rights to ask Dad and Mom to come along with us. They can stay in the villa that...um...Debbie stayed in before the wedding...I mean, the fake wedding. If they don't like it there, we can get another house for them."
Elsie thought his words were reasonable. "Makes sense. Go ahead, convince your in-laws," she ordered her son authoritatively.
Ivan nodded helplessly, "Yes ma'am!"
Seeing how obedient Ivan was, Kasie laughed. "I didn't know you were such a mama's boy."
He shrugged and sighed, "I used to be a cold CEO like Carlos. But after I met Debbie, and later Carlos, I learned that it was better to be nice than nasty."
Kasie laughed heartily. "Come on, honey. Play the cold CEO again. I've never seen you like that."
"No way. How could I ever treat you that way? Was Carlos like that around Debbie?"
"Yeah he did. When he lost his memory."
The three of them chatted casually as they walked to the car and drove to a restaurant. The two families were celebrating the happy news by having dinner together.
During the dinner, Kasie sent a picture of their marriage licenses to Debbie via WeChat. The singer was in a singing class to improve her vocal abilities. She didn't check her phone until after class. At once, she texted back. "Congrats, Mrs. Kasie Wen."
Kasie replied, "Thanks, Mrs. Huo."
"Don't call me that yet. We're still single," Debbie wrote gloomily.
Putting down her chopsticks, Kasie focused on messaging her friend. She replied, "Trust me. If you tell Mr. Huo that your marriage is fake, he'll marry you in a heartbeat!"
"You and Ivan have already tied the knot. Time to tell him the truth, I guess. I'll be busy for a couple days, but after that..." As soon as she sent out the message, she changed her idea. She wrote again, "Never mind! I have a better idea. Let him figure it out!"
Kasie sent a beaming face emoji and wrote, "Whatever makes you happy!
"By the way, what are you up to now?" Debbie asked.
Kasie secretly snapped a picture of Ivan's profile. The man was talking with Mia at the moment. "We're having dinner at a restaurant. To figure out the wedding date."
Debbie's face glowed with admiration when she saw the reply. "I'm jealous, Mrs. Kasie Wen. Tell me when you figure it out. I'll be your bridesmaid.
"Sure. And Mr. Huo can be Ivan's best man. Perfect!"
Debbie chuckled. "No problem. Then get to it!" she teased.
"Okay!"
As she scrolled through the chat log with Kasie, Debbie felt she was even happier than the newlywed couple.
She couldn't help but let out a long sigh. 'Jared and Sasha, now Kasie and Ivan, most of my friends have tied the knot. But there's so much baggage to sort through with me and Carlos.
When can we take the plunge?' she thought sadly.
At the ZL Group
James was escorted into the CEO's office by Frankie. When his eyes landed on Carlos, the old sly fox tried his level best to pull a pathetic face. "Hello Carlos, busy?"
A dash of resentment flashed in Carlos' eyes when he heard it. But it was gone quickly when he raised his head. His face betraying no emotion, he put down his pen and said, "No."
The air between them was tense. After exchanging simple pleasantries, James urgently cut to the chase. "People tell me you have an illegitimate daughter, out of wedlock, right?"
"She's not illegitimate." Carlos shot to his feet from his chair. With his eyes on James, he said firmly, "She's mine and Debbie's kid. She also wasn't aborted, like you said."
James' blood froze in his veins; his heart started beating a mile a minute. The worst had finally happened. 'I know it. That child is trouble. I should've killed her baby when I had the chance!' he thought remorsefully. He forced out a smile. "Oh, really? I thought she got rid of it. She didn't? Well, congrats, you're a dad too. When can I meet my granddaughter?"
"No need. Just sign the divorce papers. I'm flying out to New York to see Mom the day after tomorrow," Carlos said coldly, shooting down James' idea of meeting Piggy.
"Feel free to visit your mom, but I won't sign my name. I won't divorce her. Carlos, I've been working from home. I didn't do anything wrong. Don't split us up, okay?" James begged as he wiped his face in anguish.
After a moment of silence, Carlos opened his mouth again. "I'll drop by Stephanie's parents, too. They deserve that much."
"Why?" James was confused.
The older man didn't seem like a good actor. Seeing his poor performance, Carlos tried his best to not laugh out. "Because I called off our engagement."
"What?! Why? Aren't you getting along? You're going to remarry Debbie, aren't you? I told you not to. Why don't you listen to your old man?" James asked in an agitated voice as he sprung up from the sofa.
Comparing to the elderly man's flustered face, Carlos was unflappable. He lit a cigarette and took a drag before answering, "Stephanie and I didn't hit it off. If you force us to marry, I'm afraid we couldn't even be friends."
"Stephanie is the best woman for you, Carlos. Do you know how much she gave up in order to take care of you? Don't you feel even the tiniest pang of guilt?" Clenching his fists, James managed to brace himself up to confront the cold man. His heart was still pounding fast, but he slowly adjusted his emotions and began to analyze the situation.
'Does he have his memory back? But he looks the same as usual. Maybe he just doesn't have a crush on Stephanie...'
"I'll make it up to her, somehow. But certainly not by making her my wife." Only one woman could be his wife—Debbie.
James plopped back down on the sofa, slumped and defeated. He let out a heavy sigh. "You've grown up. I can't tell you what to do anymore. Do whatever you want. I'm gone."
Carlos simply nodded without saying another word.
He didn't want to waste time talking with James.
After James walked out of the CEO's office, he bumped into a man walking in the opposite direction. They passed by each other. With a quick glance at the man's profile, James suddenly thought this guy was familiar. But he couldn't place the face.
James entered the elevator. The doors closed. The man walking towards the CEO's office turned around and set his gaze on the closed doors of the elevator.
A dash of contempt flashed in his eyes as he thought of James Huo. 'You've been living large for three years. But not anymore.'
Frankie's voice came from behind him. "Mr. Zheng, Mr. Huo is waiting for you in his office."
Tristan came back to his senses and smiled at Frankie. "Yeah, thank you."