"I’m sorry, but I guess I don’t know my place," Eliza Sutton said, her eyes full of mock apology.
"You!" Brenda Preston took a deep breath. "Na your price. I’ll agree to any condition I can et. Then you won’t have to keep clinging to Shane and being a stain on his life!"
Eliza Sutton stroked her chin thoughtfully. "One billion," she said. "Give one billion, and I’ll agree to divorce Shane Lockwood."
"A billion? Are you insane?"
"We’re talking about Shane Lockwood, about the position of Madam Lockwood. I’m only asking for a billion. That’s a bargain. Manager Preston, is it that you can’t afford it, or do you think Shane Lockwood isn’t worth that much?" Eliza Sutton asked, eyeing Brenda Preston skeptically.
Brenda Preston nearly lost her mind under Eliza’s gaze. Suddenly, her head snapped up to look behind Eliza. "Shane, did you hear that? This woman is willing to sell your marriage for a billion!"
Eliza Sutton turned around. She didn’t show the slightest hint of discomfort, even upon seeing Shane Lockwood in his wheelchair right behind her. It was as if she had just been comnting on the nice weather.
Brenda Preston was thrilled. ’What an idiot,’ she thought, but her expression remained neutral.
Brenda Preston said, "Eliza Sutton, you’re such a disappointnt. You have no idea how lucky you are to be married to Shane, yet you have the gall to make such an outrageous demand!"
Eliza Sutton raised an eyebrow, feigning confusion at Brenda Preston’s accusation. "You’re trying to force to divorce my husband, so what’s wrong with asking for a little money?" she said lightly. "And let remind you of sothing else: I never signed a prenup with Shane Lockwood. In other words, half of every penny he earns is mine. Now that I think about it, divorcing him for just a billion would be a huge loss. Maybe I should get a lawyer and we can divide the marital assets."
Brenda Preston’s face paled. "Shane, did you hear her? She’s insatiably greedy!"
"And?" Shane Lockwood’s expression was cold, utterly devoid of emotion.
"Divorce her already! A woman like that doesn’t deserve you!"
"So, Manager Preston, are you ddling in my marriage? Who gave you the audacity?"
Shane Lockwood’s tone was detached, yet his calm words descended with the weight of a mountain, making Brenda Preston’s face go white. Her eyes, fixed on him, were filled with terror.
Shane Lockwood wheeled himself in front of Eliza Sutton and looked up at her. "Let’s go ho," he said in a low voice.
"Okay." Eliza Sutton grabbed her purse, gave Brenda Preston a slight nod, and followed Shane Lockwood out.
Brenda Preston stood frozen, staring blankly as the two of them left. The soft THUD of the elevator doors closing jolted her back to her senses, and a wave of humiliation washed over her.
’Shane actually scolded .’
’This is all Eliza Sutton’s fault!’
’Before she showed up, Shane was always so good to !’
’I’ll never let Eliza Sutton get away with this!’
When the elevator reached the underground garage, Eliza Sutton got ready to leave.
Shane Lockwood stopped her. "Where are you going?"
"Ho," Eliza replied, bewildered. "I’m just a junior employee. What would it look like if I rode in the sa car as a big-shot CEO like you? We have to keep up appearances."
Shane Lockwood was incredulous.
’She must have an ulterior motive,’ he suspected. ’She’s probably just trying to get my attention.’
Shane Lockwood said coldly, "Eliza Sutton, you’d best behave yourself!"
Eliza Sutton: "???"
’Ah, Shane Lockwood’s domineering CEO syndro is flaring up again,’ she realized.
After a mont’s thought, Eliza Sutton said with utmost sincerity, "How about this? I can arrange a ti for you two to go on a date tomorrow. I’ll make sure no one sees you, so Manager Preston’s reputation won’t be affected. Sound good? That way, she won’t find so irritating anymore."
"Care to repeat that nonsense?"
The man’s voice was laced with a threat.
Eliza Sutton imdiately clamped her mouth shut.
"If Brenda Preston gives you any trouble, you don’t have to put up with it."
"She’s a manager, my direct superior. What can I do?" ’Of course, Eliza had no intention of admitting that she was quite enjoying slacking off.’
"Tough. Figure it out yourself."
"Alright, I’ll just call the president’s office then."
Shane Lockwood’s gaze finally fell on Eliza. "So you plan to abuse my authority?"
"Well, I’m still open to taking the money and leaving," Eliza said with great sincerity.
Shane Lockwood’s expression instantly turned dangerous. "In your eyes, am I only worth a *re* billion?"
"President Lockwood, please don’t be so disrespectful to a billion dollars. It would be very sad if it knew you described it with the word ’re.’" Then again, considering Shane Lockwood’s net worth, a billion really was a re pittance. "In that case," she said earnestly, "how about you give a bit more of the marital assets when we divorce?"
Eliza Sutton looked at Shane Lockwood expectantly, waiting for him to nod.
Shane Lockwood’s face darkened. He said with an icy expression, "Get out. Get out of the car right now!"
And just like that, Eliza Sutton was kicked out of the car.
She tutted.
’So ungentlemanly.’
Eliza Sutton went to see Saul Reynolds. It was already late by the ti she returned to the Lockwood Estate.
Mrs. Chandler saw her and imdiately hurried over.
"Mistress, you must be tired from work. I made so pork rib soup in the kitchen. I’ve skimd all the fat off, so you don’t have to worry about gaining weight."
"Thank you, Mrs. Chandler."
"It’s my pleasure." Mrs. Chandler bustled back with a bowl of soup. "The young master was so sad when you weren’t here for dinner. He barely ate anything, and now he’s back in his online classes. He must still be hungry. Mistress, perhaps you could take a bowl of noodle soup up to him?"
Eliza was about to agree when she suddenly rembered Shane’s warning from the previous night, and the words died on her lips.
"You can take it to him. I still have work to do." Eliza handed the bowl to Mrs. Chandler. "Thank you for the soup."
With that, Eliza walked quickly back to her room.
Mrs. Chandler watched Eliza’s retreating figure with a puzzled expression. "What work could be so urgent?"
She muttered to herself, then hurried to the kitchen, thinking about how hungry Emtt must be.
"This isn’t what Mommy makes." Emtt had only just taken a bite when his little brow furrowed. "Madam Chandler, is my mommy not back yet?"
"The Mistress is back, but she has to work late tonight, so I made this for you. Young Master, you should eat a little more. The Mistress would be worried otherwise."
Only after hearing this did Emtt reluctantly finish the small bowl of noodle soup.
The mont his class was over, Emtt eagerly rushed upstairs to find Eliza.
When he got there, Minnie was standing guard at the door.
"Minnie, is Mommy asleep? I want to see her."
Minnie said apologetically, "Young Master, the Mistress is already asleep. She instructed to stand guard and not let anyone in."
"So... Mommy doesn’t want to see tonight either?"
Minnie looked at Emtt apologetically. "Young Master, please try again tomorrow."
Emtt was terribly disappointed, but he didn’t insist. "Okay, I’ll co back tomorrow."
Emtt walked away, crestfallen. His small, retreating figure looked especially pitiful.
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