Chapter 171: A Sense of Crisis
Thomas Sterling’s tone grew serious. "Peter Preston would rather pay the termination fee than work with Ascendant."
Rachel Royce listened, not particularly surprised. ’Peter was never the type to be pushed around.’
"But Raymond Reynolds definitely won’t agree to that."
"Yeah. The two of them are at a complete impasse right now."
"If this keeps up, it’ll just affect the company’s progress."
"Peter Preston is in talks with a car manufacturer about a partnership. The project investnt is as high as ten billion. Director Yates is at Prodigy now. As long as we land the deal, we won’t have to worry about Ascendant. Our company also recently signed a deal with Prodigy for a newly developed ga."
Rachel Royce knew Thomas Sterling was doing everything in his power to help Prodigy.
Hearing him say all this ant there was a chance for everything to turn around.
Rachel Royce felt a small sigh of relief.
The two chatted for a few more monts.
She hung up the phone.
Rachel Royce took lissa’s hand and went downstairs.
On the sofa downstairs.
Tristan Sterling was on the phone. He looked up and saw the two coming downstairs. Rachel Royce was wearing a long blue dress with a white belt, her long hair tied back in a low ponytail. Her fair face was free of makeup. As she lowered her gaze to watch lissa skip down the stairs, the look in her delicate eyes was exceptionally gentle and captivating.
lissa was wearing a blue princess dress today, which made them look like they were wearing a mother-daughter set.
Tristan Sterling hung up the phone.
"Daddy!"
lissa ran down the stairs and threw herself right into her father’s arms.
Tristan Sterling picked up his daughter. "lissa, you look so beautiful today."
lissa bead happily. She knew she was pretty and loved being complinted.
"Then is Aunt Evelynn pretty today?" lissa asked.
Tristan Sterling glanced back at Rachel Royce. Their eyes t for a mont before he nonchalantly looked away and said to lissa, "She’s very pretty, too."
Rachel Royce felt no ripple of emotion at Tristan Sterling’s complint.
The nanny had packed and prepared lissa’s things.
lissa wanted them to take her to Disneyland today. She had just been clinging to Rachel Royce, whining and begging her to co along.
Tristan Sterling took the bag from the nanny.
He picked up lissa with one arm, looked at Rachel Royce, and said in a deep voice, "Let’s go."
The driver had already brought the car around.
Today, Tristan Sterling was driving himself.
When they got to the car.
Tristan Sterling put lissa down and reached out to open the passenger-side door. lissa called out to Rachel Royce, "Aunt Evelynn, hurry up and get in!"
Rachel Royce sat in the passenger seat with lissa on her lap.
Tristan Sterling drove away from the villa.
「anwhile.」
At the Ainsworth family villa.
Claire Ainsworth sat on the sofa, her eyes red from holding back tears, her face full of grievance.
Jane Sullivan walked over. Seeing her daughter’s distraught appearance, she hurried forward, placed a hand on her shoulder, and asked worriedly, "Claire, what’s wrong?"
Claire Ainsworth threw her arms around her mother, leaned on her shoulder, and began to sob.
Jane Sullivan panicked, patting her daughter’s shoulder. "Claire, tell Mom what happened. Did you and Tristan have a fight?"
Claire Ainsworth cried for a while before choking out, "He... he scolded ."
Jane Sullivan took a tissue and wiped the tear streaks from her daughter’s face, her brow furrowing. "What did he say to you?"
Last night, Claire Ainsworth had ordered her bodyguards to drug Rachel Royce, take her to a hotel room, and ruin her reputation.
Rachel Royce’s current appearance and aura made Claire Ainsworth feel increasingly fearful and insecure. Rachel had humiliated her repeatedly, so she was determined to destroy her.
That is, until she received a call from her bodyguards saying Tristan Sterling had taken the woman away.
When she heard this.
Claire Ainsworth was both furious and annoyed.
’How could he have run into her by sheer coincidence? Was his excuse about stepping out to make a call just a lie to go find Rachel Royce?’
The more Claire Ainsworth thought about it, the angrier she beca.
But underneath it all, she felt an unspeakable sense of dread.
Tristan Sterling hadn’t contacted her all night.
She had been on edge the entire night.
This morning, Tristan Sterling still hadn’t contacted her.
She finally couldn’t resist calling him.
He picked up.
He said, "Claire, you went too far this ti."
Hearing his stern tone, Claire Ainsworth felt an even greater sense of grievance and pain. She couldn’t stop herself from losing her temper with him. "Tristan, do you like her now that she’s gotten pretty? She just got plastic surgery! She only ca back to seduce you."
She had always believed that no one in their circle could outshine her, but looking at the Rachel Royce of today gave her an unprecedented sense of crisis.
The woman who used to be so ugly and fat had suddenly returned completely transford.
And of all things, she had to reappear before Tristan Sterling. ’She must have ulterior motives.’
Faced with her grievances, Tristan Sterling didn’t comfort her this ti.
The more Claire Ainsworth thought about it, the more wronged she felt.
"Claire, tell Mom what really happened," Jane Sullivan pressed anxiously. "Is it because of Evelynn?"
Claire Ainsworth bit her lip and nodded. "Tristan is starting to defend her now. Mom, I really don’t want to wait any longer."
Although she was just the pampered princess of the family and wasn’t involved in its business operations, she was well aware that her brother was currently at odds with the Ainsworth Family.
Her brother and Tristan had deep business ties.
As long as the Ainsworth Family’s internal affairs weren’t stable, Tristan wouldn’t easily agree to a marriage alliance.
And now, Rachel Royce’s return was making her more and more uneasy.
"Why is it like this? Can’t my brother and father develop the company together?" Claire Ainsworth beca sowhat agitated.
Jane Sullivan hugged her daughter. "Alright, Claire, calm down first. Don’t worry, Mom will make sure you marry into the Sterling Family with all the splendor you deserve."
Hearing her mother’s reassurance, Claire Ainsworth gradually cald down.
Jane Sullivan held her daughter, her beautiful eyes gradually turning dark and profound.
*
Tristan Sterling and Rachel Royce arrived at Disneyland with lissa.
They used the fast pass lane the whole way.
Accompanied by staff, they moved through the park smoothly.
Rachel Royce went with lissa on the gentler attractions. lissa was more of a daredevil and liked thrilling rides, so Tristan Sterling accompanied her on those.
lissa loved having her picture taken.
Rachel Royce took many photos with her cara, including quite a few of lissa with Tristan Sterling, as well as photos of the three of them together.
’This is to make it up to lissa, I suppose.’
It was ti for the parade of floats.
The crowd was enormous.
Tristan Sterling let lissa sit on his shoulders.
Rachel Royce wasn’t standing very close to him, and a surge in the crowd pushed toward her. Just as she tried to move aside, a sudden force gripped her waist. Before she could react, she was pulled hard.
The next mont.
She crashed into a firm, strong embrace, accompanied by the scent of a man’s elegant, high-end cologne.
Rachel Royce’s body stiffened. She looked up and t the man’s pair of deep, dark eyes. Snapping back to her senses, she lowered her gaze and tried to pull away from his embrace, but the dense crowd surrounded them, leaving her no room to retreat.
The man released the hand on her waist, instead grabbing her wrist and reminding her, "Don’t wander off."
Rachel Royce felt her wrist being held and tried to pull it back, but to no avail.
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