Something seemed to have occurred to William, for he then said, “You’ve got to call home. For some things, it may be a mere difference of holding out just that tiniest bit before you score the goal. If you retreat, it’ll then be to no avail, but if you persist, you might just succeed.”
John gaped at him in mild surprise. He initially thought that William was referring to Constance Residence, but from his words now, that didn’t seem to be the case. Lowering the key card, he turned and walked over to William. “I’d like to visit with you for a while.”
Flashing him a smile, William opened the door. The two of them reserved adjacent rooms, so the layout was almost the same; the door opened to a row of similarly designed sofas in the living room. Striding over, John plopped onto the sofa and blurted, “I thought you don’t like Sophia?”
William, on the other hand, slipped off his jacket. “I didn’t quite like her in the past since she always seemed nervous and timid. But on your uncle’s birthday back then, I found her rather pleasant. She might have been bullied too much by your mother those days, but after the divorce, she didn’t have any more qualms, so she let her true self out.”
Walking over, he sat down beside John. “Frankly speaking, I might like Sophia more than Isabelle. It’s not that Isabelle is inferior, but perhaps she’s too good that I just feel that something is lacking.” Heaving a sigh, he continued, “Furthermore, there are too many people in the Bailey Family, and their relationships are just too messy. Take the issue of your divorce coming to light, for instance. The Baileys took advantage of that to make various demands. I actually disdain such people. Undeniably, one might have to resort to trickery in the business world, but when it comes to someone’s personal life, it’s deplorable to do such a thing.”
John nodded slowly. “You’re right, but I initially thought that, like Mom, you disdained Sophia’s background.”
“Hmm, her background, huh?” William pondered for a moment. “Actually, I mulled over this issue at length back when I divorced your mother. Well, how much is a lot of money? Our family isn’t hurting for money. What is our aim when we seek a girl from a decent family background? Her money?” He then continued poignantly, “Marriage is for life. There actually isn’t much need to place constraints on the other person’s background and all if one is already successful. When external factors don’t pose much of a threat to our lives, I think feelings are then the only consideration.”
John stared at him. He has actually changed a lot. In the past, he never would’ve said all that to me. He has probably gained some new insights after breaking free from the chains of marriage. He nodded sedately. “I think Grandma has accepted Sophia as well.”
William hooted with laughter. “Your grandmother likes her quite a bit now. She said that none of us has the kind of liveliness she possesses.”
At this time, something came to mind, so John remarked, “I noticed that Aunt Jennifer is frantic in introducing prospective girlfriends to Dylan. She’s never been in such a hurry before. What’s going on?”
William wasn’t quite certain either, but he answered, “It seems that it was your uncle who brought it up and asked your aunt to settle it as soon as possible. I didn’t ask why specifically, but Dylan is not getting any younger, so it’s indeed time to consider marriage.” After giving it some thought, he then added, “If you hadn’t gotten divorced and had continued your life as usual, you’d probably have a child now. Thus, can your uncle not be in a hurry?”
John pursed his lips. After a long while, he echoed, “You’re right. If I’d continued my life as usual, I’d be a father now.”
The two of them then talked about the business trip for a bit. John was a tad anxious to return, upon which William guffawed. “My plan was to take you away for a breather, but it now seems as though I’d miscalculated. From your look of things now, you don’t appear at all keen to leave.”
John merely chuckled without saying anything. Then, he returned to his own room.
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