Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Holly Adams appeared unsettled by Megan’s personal question. “Well, Miss Yard, it’s not a good idea to ask me that. You will put me in a tight spot.” She had a troubled expression on her face.
“What’s so secretive about it?” Megan blew on her coffee. “Miss Adams, My friends are all single. When they get hitched, I’ll refer them to your store for tailored luxury gowns. Does that sound good?”
“If so, I will be very grateful to you.” Holly bit her lips and answered, “Miss Yard, I will tell you the truth. The man you met in the store today is not the president of JNS Corporation.”
Megan’s eyes widened in surprise, and she sat up straight. “What did you say?”
“Well, I am in a difficult position too. I received orders from our president to put on a show, and I was to introduce the man as our president since no one truly knew the identity of the real president anyway. As for a reason behind this, our president did not elaborate more. I guess the man could be a friend of the president, and the request was a favor.”
Upon learning the truth, Megan immediately felt angered and fooled. They conspired to put on a show! That b*tch, Selena did find a man to fake it, and she made it look real!
“Plus, our president is a female.”
“A female?” Megan was bewildered by the information. Is the president of JNS Corporation a woman?
Holly nodded and reminded her, “Miss Yard, please do not leak this information. Otherwise, I might be fired. I know that they crossed a line today, but I am salaried by our president. I couldn't possibly go against her.”
Megan pursed her lips and smiled. “I understand. Don’t worry. I am sensible when it comes to these issues.”
“Thank you. Please favor Forever Gown in the future.”
Megan left the store with the gown in her hands, feeling as if she was about to explode from anger. I’ve been fooled by Selena over and over. Sure, I’ll take the challenge. Selena Yard, I want to see how far you can go!
At the Yard Residence, Pierre and Selena arrived home and instantly heard the children’s laughter from the room.
“Hahaha, I got the bullseye! Bullseye!” Jameson was running laps around the room with darts in his hands.
“That’s nothing special. I got a few bullseyes in a row. Look at me!” Juniper aimed a dart at the board and threw it out. “Yay! Another bullseye!”
Joaquin stood beside them calmly because he had been getting bullseyes as well.
At the merry sight of the children’s game, Selena flashed a satisfied smile. “Juniper, Mommy’s home!”
Hearing that, Juniper instantly turned around to look at her.
“Come, I’ll give you a hug.” Selena opened her arms and hoped for Juniper to run into her arms like usual. The past few days had been an eternity to her, and gone were the days when Juniper was close to her.
To Selena’s disappointment, Juniper’s expression froze as she threw her darts away and dashed upstairs.
It was a very embarrassing moment for Selena. I thought we resolved the issue. Why is she ignoring me?
As a mother, the most saddening thing is being alienated by my own child. Selena was disappointed and mournful. Jameson commented thoughtlessly, “Juniper doesn’t like you anymore, pretty lady.”
Ever since he got to know Juniper, he started addressing Selena as ‘pretty lady’. She flashed an awkward smile at him and said, “It’s time for dinner. Are you hungry? I’ll cook up something.”
Then, she wandered into the kitchen with a forlorn expression.
Once the kitchen door was closed behind her, hot tears instantly rolled down her cheeks.
Why? Why did it turn out this way?
Jameson stuck his tongue out in a surprised look. “Did I say something wrong?”
“The two of you, stay downstairs and play,” Pierre reminded his sons and headed upstairs for Juniper’s room. When he pushed the door open, he saw her sitting at the balcony with a doll in her arms and her body curled into a ball in a pitiful fashion.
When she heard his footsteps, she looked up at him but soon lowered her head again. He squatted down and asked her, “Are you sad?”
“Mr. Handsome, did I make Mommy unhappy?” Her crystal-clear eyes glistened with a hint of sorrow.
“Why did you ignore your mom?”
She hugged the doll tight, pursed her lips, and turned her focus to the sky. The darkness of the sky seemed to have shrouded the city, swallowing everything underneath it.
“She said I’m a fatherless child.” When she brought up the word ‘fatherless child’, her voice cracked and faded out to an almost inaudible volume.
However, Pierre caught her words, and he could guess what had happened to Juniper. He lifted her from the chair, took a seat on it, and put her on his lap.
In the security of his warm embrace, she could finally smile comfortably.
“I always thought that Daddy must have looked like you—tall, handsome, cool, quiet, and sometimes he’d get angry or look fierce. He must have been the best Daddy in the world. But…”
Once again, Juniper hung her head low, and tears flowed out of her eyes. She could not bring herself to believe that she was a fatherless child or that her mother was an easy woman the way Megan described her.
In fact, she was afraid to talk to Selena. She wanted to ask, but a part of her was scared of facing the answer and fear that she might upset her mom. As a result, she did not know how to interact with her mom anymore and chose avoidance.
Pierre gently wiped away the tears on her cheeks.
“Do you know what the most brutal truth in the world is?”
“Hmm?”
“The most brutal truth is, we can make a choice for everything, but we cannot choose our parents.”
She stared at him with a slightly confused look.
“Do you think your Mommy loves you?” Then, he changed his approach toward her.
“Yes, of course, Mommy loves me; she loves me the most. But, because of me, she went through a lot of difficult times,” Juniper answered without hesitation.
“How about you? Do you still love her?” This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.
“Of course! She’s my Mommy.”
“Okay. If so, why are you still feeling confused? Your Mommy is exactly the person you think she is. The same goes for your daddy. Whatever other people tell you, it’s their problem.”
Juniper nodded earnestly at him.
Time is the best cure for everything. Perhaps, she is too young to grasp the idea now. But I believe that she will understand it someday.
“Mr. Handsome, can you show me magic? Like the last time you did.”
“Okay.”
In the kitchen, Selena held her tears back and made some dinner. Joaquin and Jameson were starving. Once dinner was served, they quickly hopped onto the chairs at the dining table.
“Take your time to finish dinner. I will find your dad.” With that, she went upstairs in search of Pierre.
On the second floor, she overheard some laughter from Juniper’s room and tiptoed over. Through the slightly ajar door, she saw Pierre and Juniper sitting on the balcony. The moment was picture- perfect.