Theodore's face remained expressionless, but the veins on his neck were throbbing violently. A simple 'yes' encompassed seven long years.
Life is short. During these seven years, he asked himself countless times whether her departure was a misunderstanding, but it had been too long. Even if this misunderstanding was solved, he could not go back in time.
He even felt there was an even greater distance between him and Everleigh as he found out the truth. He never thought he was the source of this misunderstanding.
Everleigh was so calm to a point that she seemed distant. No one knew better than her what Theodore was thinking about.
The guilt and helplessness she felt in the past seven years returned to him. He must have experienced what she did to be able to empathize at that moment.
Theodore asked coldly, "If I did not ask you, were you ever going to tell me?"
Everleigh frowned her brows and asked impatiently, "Did you ask me to come here just to ask me this?"
Her impatient tone and indifferent expression brought a sense of piercing pain, and whoever heard it was a victim of it.
The restaurant was extremely quiet.
Theodore's eyes were filled with resentment, unwillingness, and guilt. They drowned into the sea like a storm and eventually sank without a trace.
Adults were best at saying things they didn't mean.
Theodore stayed silent. His voice was still low but it sounded weak. "I'll take care of what happened last night, and it won't happen again in the future."
Before Everleigh could respond, the waiter came to serve the food. "Sir, Madam, this is your barbecued ribs."
The smell from the dish permeated the air. The taste and smell of that dish brought back memories.
Back when Everleigh was still studying at Ocpeace Medical University, her goal was to work in the city hospital after graduation. That was why Theodore had often brought her there. He would order barbecued ribs every time.
At that moment, the barbecued ribs on the table were a sight for sore eyes.
Everleigh clenched her fists and felt forlorn.
"Let's eat," Theodore looked at her. His stern face had a rare tenderness to it.
Everleigh was startled and came to her senses after that. She picked up her bag and said, "No, thanks. I still have things to settle in the hospital."
She stood up and left the table after she spoke. She took two steps and stopped. With her back facing Theodore, she said, "By the way, I hope you can do as you promised. If you can't, I hope you can remind those people to stop looking for the wrong person. I no longer stay in Splendid Apartment."
Those words were like a slap to Theodore's face. Only he could hear how loud it was.
The seven years of resentment could change its course. It had become a complete joke.
After Everleigh left the restaurant, her face looked ashen under the sun.
The fragments of her memory stirred in her mind as if they had been put into a washing machine. They buzzed and were torn into pieces. The more she tried to forget them, the deeper they got.
Suddenly, her face warmed up. She touched it and tears gushed out of her eyes. She could not stop her tears, no matter how hard she tried.
If she left a second later, she was afraid that she would cry before Theodore. Just like what Christopher said, she was not as strong or as decisive as she thought she was. Her heart would go soft each time Theodore gave her an apologetic look.
"Mom."
Mrs. Godfrey was stunned as she heard the voice behind her, but soon she calmed down. She picked up a flower from the table and cut off the extra branch with a pair of scissors. She calmly said, "Why are you here at this hour? Don't you have any meetings this afternoon?"
"I have something to ask you."
"What is more important than meetings?"
Theodore stood behind the sofa and said in a cold and deep voice, "Seven years ago, before I returned to Godfrey Group, what did you do?"
"Click!" Mrs. Godfrey accidentally cut the flower in her hand off and it fell onto the carpet. The petals scattered all over the floor and it could no longer be used.
She frowned and her face suddenly darkened. "What do you mean by that?"
Suddenly, the atmosphere stood still. George wiped his sweat and carefully gestured to all the maids to leave the living room. The living room immediately went silent and one could even hear the sound of the wind passing through.
Mrs. Godfrey put down the scissors in her hand and turned around from the sofa. Her poised face was as cold as ice and her gaze deepened. "Theodore, don't forget, you are where you are today because of me."
There was no trace of guilt in her voice.
Theodore remembered that Madison was a straightforward person.
He clenched his fists. Under his thick, black eyebrows, his eyes were chilling. "If I wanted the Godfrey Group, I can have it even without your help."
Mrs. Godfrey's face changed. "What did you say?"
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