Then, once Khloe showed up, she’d make sure to give her a hard time and properly vent her mother’s anger.
The phone rang for a long time before it was finally answered. The moment Khloe’s voice came through, Alicia immediately laced her own with a pitiful, trembling sob.
“Khloe… do you… do you hate me? I thought we were so close. When my brother asked you to look after me, you promised so sweetly. But today, when Mom said you wouldn’t even cook a single meal for me…”
As she listened to Alicia’s performance, Khloe’s eyes remained fixed on the rising and falling stock charts on her computer screen.
“How could I possibly hate you? I’m just swamped today and don’t have time to cook.”
Her tone was steady, calm, and left no room for negotiation-a far cry from her usual self, who would capitulate the moment Alicia turned on the waterworks.
Alicia’s face darkened. “But I have no appetite, and the only thing I can stomach is your cooking. If you don’t come … then I just won’t eat…”
“Then how about this,” Khloe interjected smoothly, “you love lobster bisque, don’t you? I’ll have Trey’s assistant deliver an entire case to you. It’s far more nourishing than anything I could make. And since you’re family, we can just expense it to the company.”
Khloe’s response, so different from her usual meek compliance, made Alicia feel like she’d punched a wall of cotton-all her force was absorbed with nowhere to go.
“Lobster bisque?!” Alicia’s voice lost its fake sweetness, sharpening with frustration. “Khloe, are you doing this on purpose? I said I want to eat your cooking-is that so hard to understand?!”
Her patience finally snapped, her tone hardening in an instant. Today, no matter what, she was determined to make Khloe cook for her.
“Alicia, you must keep your spirits up during confinement. Otherwise, it’ll harm your health.”
Khloe’s tone was light, almost careless-and that calmness only stoked Alicia’s fury.
“Khloe, don’t think you can slack off just because you’re hiding behind my brother’s company. You’re the Fox family’s daughter-in-law. Asking you to cook for me is already giving you a chance. Don’t forget-your position exists because of the Fox family.”
“Oh, right,” Khloe said, as though remembering something trivial. “I heard your husband’s numbers have been slipping badly this month.”
The words hit like a stone dropped into still water. Alicia froze, her retort caught in her throat.
It was true. Stanley had been coming home late, worn out and irritable. His performance was plummeting, and even Trey’s backing couldn’t prop him up forever.
“Khloe, what are you implying?”
“I’m not sure if Stanley ever told you, but half his sales were referrals from me. Lately I’ve been swamped, so even when he came to me, I just didn’t have the time.”
Alicia’s chest constricted.
She suddenly remembered how often Stanley had mentioned Khloe recently-how busy she was, how he hadn’t seen her in ages, how maybe they should invite her over sometime.
Half her resentment toward Khloe came from this very thing: Stanley praised her far too often. And Khloe was beautiful-too beautiful. It was only natural to suspect her husband admired more than just her work.
“Khloe, don’t spout nonsense. Stanley is capable-he doesn’t need anyone to hand him business.”
“Alicia, your husband’s probably just under pressure, which is why he hides things from you. But it’s fine. You can ask him yourself. After all, most of his clients are acquaintances of mine. He wouldn’t deny it.”
Alicia’s face went white, then red. Was Khloe mocking her? Suggesting her marriage was a sham and her husband was dishonest?
Khloe’s voice softened, but her words cut deeper than any blade. “Confinement is difficult, I know. But I’m finalizing a major deal today. If it goes through, your husband’s numbers might recover. Who knows? He might not just keep his job-he might even get promoted.”
Khloe was smiling. Alicia could hear it in her tone. To her, every syllable was steel. Khloe was warning her.
Her lips trembled. She wanted to lash out, but nothing came. Khloe had struck too close.
Whatever Khloe said afterward, Alicia barely heard. She slammed the phone down, stormed into Stanley’s room, and cornered him.
He was enjoying a rare day off, gaming to relax, when her barrage of questions about Khloe blindsided him. Within minutes, they were shouting, hurling accusations and objects, their fight loud enough to draw the servants to the doorway.
“What are you two doing? Have you lost your minds?”
Stella rushed in, quickly dismissing the servants. She pulled Alicia back, terrified that the stress would harm Alicia, especially since her body was still weak from giving birth.
Stanley’s face was ashen. He grabbed his coat and stormed out.
CLAVER
“Stanley!”
Alicia tried to follow, but Stella restrained her.
“What on earth is going on?” Stella demanded.
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.