Bethan chuckled softly and retorted in a half-whisper, “How will you do that, Ms. Walter? Are you going to ask your father, who’s stuck in prison, to come after me, or are you going to use your bankrupt family’s money to make my life miserable?”
A flash of anger passed through Alice’s gaze. “Bethan! Just because the Walters are bankrupt now doesn’t mean I can’t make your life a living hell!
“Let me be very honest with you. Yesterday, when your two children were sent abroad… I convinced Brettley to assign some people over to protect them. Do you want to guess how many of these bodyguards are secretly the Walters’ men?”
Bethan faltered at that. “You’ve assigned spies among Brettley’s men?”
“No, I didn’t .”
Alice lowered her voice and hovered close to Bethan’s ear. “Did you forget that Brettley’s father…is my beloved Uncle Adrian?”
Bethan bit down on her lip and glared at Alice. “He wouldn’t dare do anything to his grandchildren!”
Alice snorted in indignation, then straightened up gracefully and said to the rest of the people with a smile, “I always thought Theo was just a famous artist, but I never thought you have such a well- established family business as well!
“You’re so lucky, Bethan! Although…”
She turned around and glanced at Celeste. “The Allens are very fortunate to have Bethan as well. Bethan is a talented jewelry designer, and you own a family business supplying precious ores to jewelry companies. That sounds like fate! “
Celeste was so delighted to hear those words that she grinned from ear to ear. “That’s right! Theo and Bethan are a match made in heaven! “
Alice curled her lips into a faint smile. “If I were you, Mrs. Allen, I’d set a date for Bethan and Theo’s wedding right now. The sooner you settle it, the better, right?”
As soon as she heard that, Celeste immediately exchanged glances with Nathan before shoving a jewelry box into Theo’s hand, and Nathan stood up eagerly. “Since it’s so merry here tonight, I ‘d like to invite Mr. and Mrs. Morrison to be witnesses. Our entire family sincerely hopes that Ms. Bethan will be willing to marry our son! “
“What if…”
Brettley crossed his legs lazily as soon as Nathan finished his sentence. “What if I’m not willing to be a witness to this? In fact, I don’t approve of this marriage at all.”
The entire room grew silent as Brettley’s words hung in the air.
After a long pause, Nathan smiled and said, “What are you talking about, Mr. Morrison? We’re going to become work partners soon. Plus, your wife is close friends with Bethan. Isn’t this marriage meant to be? Why are you– “
“Because, ” responded Brettley as he pointed his bony finger at Bethan, “she’s not a good match.”
The atmosphere in the booth grew so silent that one could hear a pin drop.
The color drained from Bethan’s face, but Theo’s expression did not look good either.
Nathan and Celeste looked at one another, bewildered.
“Brettley.”
Alice frowned and sat down next to Brettley. Then, she lowered her voice and said, “Bethan finally managed to find a boyfriend, and both Theo and his parents seem to be very happy with her…
Why are you saying things like this? Do you know what’ll happen if you break up a marriage?”
Although Alice had lowered her voice and appeared to be whispering in Brettley’s ear, everyone heard her.
At first glance, there did not seem to be anything wrong with what Alice said. However, upon further scrutiny, she implied that there was something wrong with Bethan’s character, which led to her having a hard time finding a boyfriend.
Celeste furrowed her brows at Alice’s words. She lifted her head to glance at Bethan, then at Alice.
Meanwhile, Nathan’s expression darkened. “Mr. Morrison, you claim that Bethan isn’t a good match. Can you elaborate?”
“There’s no reason!”
Theo immediately stood up and interjected, “Bethan works for Morrison Group. Mr. Morrison was just worried that if Bethan and I got married, she wouldn’t want to work for him anymore, and he’d lose a valued employee.”
With that, he opened the jewelry box spitefully, displaying the exquisite, priceless diamond ring within.
Bethan immediately recognized the ring. This was the first ring she had made with her bare hands while she was abroad. At that time, she had sold this ring for an exorbitant price to pay Malcolm back for all the help he had provided her. Therefore, to Bethan, this ring held a lot of sentimental value.
This ring, after all, belonged to Theo…
Bethan could tell that the Allens had prepared in advance before their visit to Banyan City. Not only did they spend a lot of money, but they had put in the effort to track this ring down for her.
Theo’s words managed to convince the Allens otherwise, and Nathan immediately grinned. “Ms. Bethan, please accept this gift. We found out that this was the first ring you ever made yourself, so we tracked it down and decided to give it to you as your engagement gift. We hope that this ring will remind you to always stay true to your heart.”
Celeste smiled at her. “That’s right, Ms. Bethan. The diamond stone on this ring is just as beautiful and pure as you are.”
Brettley snickered as soon as Celeste finished her sentence. “Pure?”
He lifted his head to gaze at Bethan. “Do you think you deserve this?”
Bethan clenched her fists in anger. She knew that Brettley would try to humiliate her at every chance he got! She narrowed her eyes and met his gaze. “Why don’t you tell me what you think, Mr. Morrison? What makes you think I’m not pure?
“Did I cheat on my wife, or did I refuse to admit the truth and instead continue to pretend like I’m a faithful partner?”
Brettley’s expression darkened. He continued to stare at Bethan’s face and snarled through gritted teeth, “
The only thing I know is that a promiscuous woman such as yourself doesn’t deserve to be called pure! “
Celeste and Nathan’s faces paled upon hearing this. They immediately turned around to stare at Theo. “
Theo, this…”
“He’s talking nonsense! Bethan is a pure and honest person! She’s a perfect match for our family! “
Theo clenched his teeth, took out the ring from the jewelry box, and tried to put it onto Bethan’s finger.
However, the more agitated he was, the harder it was for him to slip it onto her finger. Finally, Bethan drew back her hand and said, “Theo, it’s okay.”
“Bethan… “
Theo bit down on his lip and was about to say something, but before he could do so, Bethan stood up. She approached Nathan and Celeste and gave them both a respectful bow. “Theo and I are just dating. I’ve never considered the idea of marrying him.”
As soon as they heard that, Celeste and Nathan turned to one another.
“Besides, Mr. Morrison is right.”
Bethan let out an exhale. “I ‘m not a good match for Theo. He’s such a kind and gentle person; I don’t think I deserve him at all. I thought tonight was just a small family dinner, but I didn’t expect an engagement to come out of this. I’m sorry.”
With that, Bethan turned around. However, just as she was about to leave, she paused as if she had recalled something and took a step back.
“Mr. Morrison.”
Bethan slowly approached Brettley and smiled at him. “Are you happy now?”
Brettley snorted in indignation and gently set down the cup at hand. “Yes, I am.”
Bethan stared at him, and a glimmer of malice flashed across her eyes. A second later, a smack landed on Brettley’s face before he could even react.
Bethan had given him such a forceful blow that his face was struck to one side from the impact.
Bethan drew back her throbbing hand and chided, “
Anyone can think I’m impure and promiscuous, but you, Mr. Morrison? You have no right. “
With that, she turned around to leave.
“Bethan! “
Alice immediately grabbed onto Bethan’s wrist and leaped out of her seat in a fury. “How dare you slap Brettley? Have you forgotten he’s still your boss? You haven’t married into the Allen family yet! “
Bethan flung Alice’s hand away. “If you want to fire me, go ahead! “
She left the room with a huff and slammed the door behind her.
Meanwhile, Nathan and Celeste watched everything unfold in silence.
Theo put down the box and turned around to chase after Bethan, but Nathan stopped him before he could do so.
“What’s wrong with that woman?” he asked coldly.
Theo clenched his teeth. “Bethan’s not that kind of person at all! It’s all just rumors! “
“There’s always a grain of truth in every rumor, ” sneered Nathan. “If she’s genuinely innocent, why would anyone spread lies and rumors about her?”
He pressed Theo’s hand forcefully against the table. “I forbid you from seeing that woman again before we get to the bottom of this! No woman is worth losing so much over! “
On the other side of the table, Alice had found some ice and gently pressed them against Brettley’s cheek. “
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.