Chapter 68: Chuck’s Show
“Fuck! Don’t get me involved in this shit! I’m not going to your house. Let me go! I don’t wanna be a part of your plan!” Scarlett couldn’t be more regretful. She wished she hadn’t helped him out at all. All she wanted to do now was get out of the car and leave.
But it was all too late. Chuck’s Adlington supercar was already well on its way to Sandler’s villa.
Before Chuck and Scarlett arrived, Francis and the other family members had already finished eating dinner. Francis was in the hall talking to his father and elder brother, George.
“I heard that your company recently nailed down a government project in Riverside City.” The old Sandler took a sip of tea and talked to Francis.
Francis was clearly not paying any attention to the conversation. He didn’t realize that his father had already finished speaking with George and was directing his queries to him now.
“Francis?”
“Hmm, yeah.” He didn’t even know what the question was, but he gave an affirmative answer to the old Sandler. Apparently, he had no interest in elaborating any further.
The old Sandler was lenient and considerate enough, so he stopped pursuing the topic. More importantly, he knew his son very well; their conversation would go nowhere because Francis had no interest in continuing to talk. He could tell that Francis was distracted.
George was the most steady-going one among his three sons, who practically copied his father’s personal development and business trajectory. He entered Wharton Business School and worked for the family company after graduation. Two years later, he married a lady he had met at a charity gala and the girl “happened” to be the daughter of one of his foremost commercial partners. With the help of his successful marriage, he took charge of the company and kept it growing steadily. Eventually, he took over the business from his aging father.
But everyone in the family knew that it was Francis who was the old Sandler’s favorite son. Francis had, after all, established his own business territory with his talent and risk-taking spirit. Even with all his achievements and success, Francis had stayed composed, reliable, maintaining a low profile throughout. Everyone in the family respected him, and the old Sandler was no exception.
But nobody knew that the always composed man had immersed himself in a passionate relationship; he was now thinking of his girlfriend, who had refused to attend a family dinner with him.
When Chuck and Scarlett walked into the house, the old Mrs. Sandler was sitting in the living room, watching TV and chatting with her grandson’s fiancée, Tiffany. The old lady’s hair was entirely silver, but she still managed to look quite young and spirited. She was wearing a crimson Chinese cheongsam, which made her look both dignified and elegant.
“Mr. Chuck is back!” The housekeeper announced loudly.
Chuck guided Scarlett to the living room.
“Grandma, I’m back.” Chuck greeted the old lady.
“Glad to meet you, Mrs. Sandler. I’m Scarlett Morris.” Scarlett beamed at the old lady and said. She had recognized Tiffany at once, but she didn’t bother with acknowledging her or anything. She was worried about herself and secretly looked around several times to check if Francis was somewhere in the house.
Tiffany was shocked to see Scarlett here in her fiance’s home; she was even more startled to see that it was none other than her fiancée who had brought over this girl! But as a lady from a privileged family, she had been taught very well to suppress her emotions; she always acted composed. It was important to maintain a sense of decorum and propriety at all times.
She put on her slick smile and took the initiative to introduce Scarlett to the old lady, “This is Scarlett. She’s one of Chuck’s best friends, and we’ve met at Chuck’s birthday party before.”
“Oh, It’s so lovely to meet you, Scarlett. You’re like a movie star; you’re so gorgeous and beautiful. Come here, Scarlett, sit beside me.” Mrs. Sandler said with a soft, gentle voice.
Scarlett walked a few steps to her and sat down on the sofa. She didn’t know Chuck’s family very well, but she felt like this old lady was kind and friendly.
“I’m sorry if I lost myself a little bit, Scarlett. But I like beautiful girls, and this is the first time that I have seen an actress in person!” Mrs. Sandler took Scarlett’s hand on her palm and looked at her in open admiration.
“Thank you, Mrs. Sandler. I’m so flattered. The pleasure is all mine. You look so elegant.” Scarlett hated socializing, but she said that from the bottom of her heart because she had taken a liking to this woman.
“We’re happy to have you here on Christmas, Scarlett. You look so young, are you Chuck’s colleague or… his high school friend?”
Right then, Tiffany explained, “Miss Scarlett is a college student. Chuck met her at a friend’s gathering. She’s a friend of Jeff Richards, and they…”
“She didn’t ask you!” Chuck’s voice was trembling with anger.
Tiffany knew exactly that Mrs. Sandler had no favorable impression of Jeff Richards, so she had mentioned Scarlett’s friendship with him on purpose. Chuck had gotten really sick of her sarcastic tone and stupid gimmicks.
Admittedly, this was a slick move on Tiffany’s part. But her attempt had ultimately failed because the old lady was excited to engage with Scarlett and didn’t seem to care that she was associated with Jeff Richards at all.All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.
Scarlett sensed that Tiffany was trying to disparage her, and she knew that she had to say something to win the battle back.
“Hmm, yeah, Tiffany’s right. I’m a student from IU, and I major in Russian Language and Literature. I’m really into languages, and I can also speak French, Spanish, and Arabic.”
“Good girl, you’re not only beautiful but also brilliant! I’m so impressed. It would be awesome if you could help my idle little boy to actually try once in a while. He just needs more excellent friends like you!” The lady said with a joyful smile.