NovelEnglish“Con, I'm your dad. How could | not care about you? | saw the pics you posted on Facebook. | had no idea you'd becsuch a social butterfly after returning home. You even know President Hawthorne from Angie & Co.
Investments.” Angie was a subsidiary company that Aurelia had invested with the other three shareholders of Avery, Arnold, and Leopold.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtLeopold had eagerly bought into the company, backing his wife's venture.
Aurelia wasn’t the one managing the day-to-day. Her real gig was as the design director at Astral Enterprises.
The company’s CEO was Mackie, a former hotshot executive.
Marianne’s eyes darkened just a tad. “What, you want to meet President Hawthorne, too?” Quentin Clark, Marianne’s father, replied, “Look. Building connections is important when you're out there. I'm coming to Elysium tomorrow. Set up a dinner with President Hawthorne, will you? It'll be good to strengthen our ties.” Marianne snorted softly, thinking that unsolicited kindness often had strings attached.
“Sorry to burst your bubble, Dad, but President Hawthorne and I barely know each other. We're not close.” Quentin pressed, “Didn't you get a job at Serenity Films, working as a makeup artist for her brother? How can you possibly not be close?” A hint of sarcasm crept into Marianne’s expression. “I heard you took a pretty bad hit recently and lost four billion, right? The company’s on the rocks, huh? Are you looking for an investment from President Hawthorne to bail you out? Just spit it out, Dad. Why beat around the bush?” Quentin's voice rose with irritation. “I'm still your father. Is this how you should be speaking to me?” “In my heart, my dad died a long tago. And you know what? I think it's great you're going bankrupt. Since you never planned on leavinga dime, preferring your precious golden boy instead, | can’t wait to see him go from rich kid to pauper. Let's see how he can be high and mighty then!” Without another word, Marianne hung up. She’d never forget the vile way they'd treated her, arrogantly ordering her out of the house and claiming all the property without leaving her a penny. Her grandparents had even egged them on.
Her family had always favored sons over daughters and despised her since the day she was born. Her father had a mistress who gave birth to a son. When the grandparents found out, they doted on the boy, forcing her mother into a divorce to legitimize the mistress.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThe evilness of her family was deep in her memory, sickening to even think about.
She returned to her seat and grabbed a beer from the table, taking a huge gulp.
Avery sensed the tension and guessed she'd been arguing with her deadbeat dad.
He served her a slice of lamb. “Ease up on the booze and eat more lamb. Don’t get drunk, or I'll be on the hunt for a new makeup artist tomorrow.” Marianne pulled a face. “Don’t worry, my idol, | can hold my liquor.” Leah overheard the conversation about President Hawthorne and asked curiously, “Your dad wants an investment from which President Hawthorne, Avery?” Marianne confessed, “Nope, it's Aurelia, the big boss of Angie & Co. Investments. My deadbeat dad’s company is tanking, drowning in debt. He saw my pic with Aurelia on Facebook and got the idea to sweet-talk her into investing. Does he think Aurelia would be foolish enough to throw money into his sinking ship in Starfall City? Dream on.” Leah sipped her beer, having thought Marianne was quite a schemer but finding her surprisingly straightforward.
“Really? You want to see your dad go bankrupt?” Marianne nodded vigorously. “Absolutely. | dream of the day. You know what? My dad didn’t have two pennies to rub together when he arrived in Starfall City at first. My mom gave him all her savings to start his business. Once he made it big, he forgot all about my mom and sneaked around with his mistress. And his family are unbearably partial to boys. They doted on the mistress only because the mistress gave them a grandson, while they forced my mom to divorce my dad and kicked her out of the family because I'm a girl. Watching them lose everything and going back to square one? I'd wake up laughing from that dream.”
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