"Be careful not to break it."
Rosemi was in the midst of instructing a few workers to bring the betrothal gift she had sent to the Parker Residence out of the car and into the house when she barked a reminder at the servants.
These were all expensive items, after all.
Breaking them was almost equivalent to burning money.
She continued to cause a commotion over nothing.
Charlotte was personally cooking lunch to have with her daughter when she heard the noise coming from outside. After she finally couldn't take it anymore, she raised her voice and asked, "Mrs. Sabrina, what is going on outside?"
The servant who was called was feeding Kelly's two Ragdolls as she replied, "I am going to go take a look now, Mrs. Parker."
She then petted the cats and told them in a soft voice, "Enjoy your food, alright? I'll be back in a jiffy."
She had only gone off for a while before she scurried back to the house, exclaiming, "Mrs. Parker, Mrs. Whittle is here to deliver the dowry! She seems very generous with the presents. They look like they are really expensive!"
Charlotte's face immediately turned thunderous as soon as she heard that.
She was baffled by why would Rosemi still stubbornly bring the dowry over when Charlotte had clearly refused her proposal to the marriage between Jackson and Kendall.
Still, she immediately took off her apron and after telling Mrs. Sabrina to take over her task at hand, she hurried outside to the entrance where she proceeded to greet Rosemi.
As soon as Rosemi saw her, a wide grin bloomed across her face and she affectionately called out, "My dear in-law!" The blood quickly drained from Charlotte's face when she heard that.
"Mrs. Whittle, you can't just say things like that! Our families may be acquainted, but we are not in-laws."
Their real in-laws were the Colemans, but it wasn't like Charlotte was at liberty to blurt something like that out.
Just thinking about this made her feel sad for her daughter.
"I brought the dowry here today, Mrs. Parker. See, after you accept these gifts, we can choose an auspicious date for the wedding. And once the big day arrives, we will become official in-laws. I am only calling you that now so that we both get comfortable with it earlier."
"Mrs. Whittle, you—"
"My dear in-law, let's continue our conversation inside," Rosemi abruptly cut Charlotte off as she linked her arm around the other woman's. Rosemi also didn't forget to instruct the workers she brought with her to carry the dowry in.
After saying that, she smilingly brought Charlotte with her into the house.
Her hold was so strong that Charlotte couldn't get away no matter how many times she tried to.
Now that they were already inside, Rosemi brought Charlotte to sit on the couch like she was the owner of the house.
"Oh, my dear in-law. Take a look at the dowry after they bring the gifts in. See if you are satisfied with them. You can tell me if you are not, and I will add more until you are."
"Like I said, Mrs. Whittle, I would like to have my daughter stay by my side for a few more years. Please don't mention the marriage anymore."
How could Kendall marry Jackson when she already was Dylan's wife?
As anxious as she was angry about the situation, she started complaining to herself about how her daughter didn't even bother telling her about something as important as this.
However, as if she hadn't heard a word Charlotte said, Rosemi continued instructing her worker to arrange the gifts in the luxurious hall of the house.
The jewelry was extremely striking that almost hurt to look at.
"These are the keys to a few new cars. This is the key to the villa my boy and your girl will live in after they get married. The renovation is done and it has been aired out. They can move in straight away after the wedding. By the way, my dear in-law, let's go shopping together when you are free. We should get them furniture for their new place so that they don't have to worry about it."
Rosemi spoke like she was a machine gun firing off rounds and rounds of bullets.
Charlotte had opened her mouth many times now, but still she could not get even a word in.
"My dear in-law, these jewelry are my babies. Some of them are new and I am sure your daughter will like them. Look at how they glow under the light. These are all real gold and silver."
Charlotte had a feeling that Rosemi was taking the chance to show off the Whittles' wealth as well.
"Mrs. Whittle!" Charlotte's fale had turned as white as a paper. She didn't even care that she was being rude as she loudly exclaimed and cut off Rosemi's words. "I have told you—my daughter will not marry Jackson. Please take everything back, and never mention wanting them to marry. Kendall still has her reputation to care about. I can't let your son ruin it."
"Oh my! Whatever could you be talking about, Mrs. Parker? What does Jackson have anything to do with Kendall's reputation? She is not even the one I am proposing a marriage to."
Her words only further confused Charlotte, who then asked, "Who would you come here if not for Kendall, Mrs. Whittle? Is it Kelly?"
Charlotte only had two daughters. Rosemi was definitely here for Kelly if Kendall wasn't her pick.
Rosemi smiled when Charlotte had finally figured it out. "Indeed. I am here to propose to Kelly on my son's behalf. Mrs. Parker, you know how many years Kelly and Jackson have known each other. They have always had a good relationship with each other. They also suit each other well. Look at how good they look together. Even though Kelly is not your biological daughter, you have been raising her up like one. I am sure you want to see her have a happy married life as well. My dear in-law, the Whittles are a pretty decent family. Don't worry. We will treat her like our own daughter if she marries Jackson."
Charlotte's expression continued to get darker.
It felt like Rosemi was intentionally poking her where it hurt!
Kendall used to be so in love with Jackson that she took care of him and obeyed him like he was some sort of god.
It got to a point where even Charlotte felt jealous that her own daughter was treating someone else better than Kendall ever treated Charlotte.
Charlotte still remembered how Rosemi had looked down on Kendall, but she must have come to propose because Kendall was the biological daughter of the Parker Family.
But now, Kendall had decided she was marrying Dylan instead of Jackson.
Charlotte had made sure to reject the proposal then. And yet, Rosemi had brought the dowry over and this time, it was to propose to Kelly instead. This was none other than a slap in the face for the Parkers!
Charlotte willed herself to stay calm as she asked in return, "Is this your or Jackson's doing? Why isn't Jackson here today?"
"What difference does it make? We are proposing to one of yours, anyway," Rosemi answered, a hint of guilt laced within her words.
She had taken it upon herself to propose without her husband or son's knowledge.
In fact, she was still bitter about how a village girl like Kendall had rejected her son.
She couldn't help but hold a grudge about how Kendall was blowing her own trumpet by thinking that Jackson was in love with her.
As for Rosemi intentionally bringing over a generous dowry and proposing to Kelly after Charlotte had rejected the previous proposal? All this was an act orchestrated by Rosemi to make Charlotte angry.
"Mrs. Whittle, I don't care if this is you or your son's idea. I have told you clearly that I won't let Kelly marry your son. Please go. Also, take all your gifts away with you. They are taking up a lot of space in my house."
There was no way Charlotte would allow Kelly and Jackson to be together after she found out that they were in love with each other.
Since Kelly had it in her to cheat Kendall, Charlotte wasn't going to let it go and she was going to stop Kelly from being together with the man she loved. Of course, Charlotte wouldn't have minded if Kelly ended up becoming Jackson's mistress.
No matter what, she wouldn't allow Kelly to marry Jackson!
"My dear in-law, why don't you give your husband and daughter a heads-up, and ask for Kelly's opinion on this? Who knows? She just might accept it. You shouldn't break up a couple who is meant to be together. You will get struck by lightning as punishment, you know?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Love Knows No Bounds novel (Kendall and Dylan)
Beautiful story....