Chapter 52

Elodie dashed out of the kitchen, apron still on.

"Charlotte, you're back! I'vre been so busy cooking for you, I didn't even notice you come in."

But Charlotte could see right away that Elodie's hands were spotless, not a drop of water on them. Clearly, she hadn't been cooking at all.

Charlotte's heart sank a little.

Everything had signs, she just hadn't noticed before. She'd been too naive,always getting played.

"I'm not here to eat. If there's something to discuss, let's get to it."

Charlotte brushed Elodie's hand aside, her voice calm.

Her cool reaction left Oliver a bit confused, but he stuck to the plan.

He said to Elodie, "She always makes me mad. She didn't even tell the family about divorcing Frederick. Does she even see me as her father?"

Elodie tried to calm him down.

"Don't be so angry. No matter what, she's still our child. Even though Charlotte is older than Juniper, she's still a kid. What's there to be mad about?" Charlotte turned to her, her gaze icy, like she was looking at a stranger. "You don't want him mad at me, so you think this is all my fault?" Elodie looked at Oliver, helpless. She couldn't understand why Charlotte had suddenly become so sharp.She used to be so easy to control.

Elodie said, "Charlote, you've got it wrong. How could I say that?"

"Alright then, tell me, who do you think is at fault?"

Charlotte pressed on, not letting up, forcing Elodie to choose.

"I..."

Elodie was speechless.

Just then, Juniper walked out of the kitchen.

"Charlotte, you're finally home. I know you're upset, but we're family. No matter what, I'm always here for you. You can throw a tantrum or be willful at home because we're your family."

Juniper moved gracefully, stepping forward to hug Charlotte.

Charlotte dodged her.

"Who told you about my divorce with Frederick?"

Not many people knew about her plan to divorce Frederick today,but it seemed like quite a few actually did.

Oliver, Elodie, and Juniper exchanged glances. Oliver quickly interrupted Charlotte's thoughts,taking control of the conversation."Why do you care how we found out? What I want to know is whyyou didn't discuss it with the family before divorcing Frederick. What did I tell you last time?"

At that moment, Charlotte wanted to rip off their fake masks and expose their true selves.

But she needed to keep them calm for now, to uncover the truth.

Charlotte didn't argue with Oliver.

"Since you know about my divorce with Frederick, you should also know why. Frederick wanted the divorce. What could I do?"

"Not being able to keep a man means you lack the ability. If you had followed my instructions, you wouldn't be in this mess."

Oliver sighed, clearly disappointed. "Do you have any idea how much our business has thrived since we linked up with the Percy Family? Even if it killed you, you shouldn't have divorced Frederick. If I'd known you were this useless, I would've had Juniper marry him instead."

Charlotte couldn't help but laugh at his words.

She didn't expect Oliver to finally spill his true feelings after holding back for so long.

Charlotte played along. "Yeah, why didn't you have Juniper marry him back then?"

Originally,they didn't let Juniper marry him because they were worried she'd suffer.The Percy Family was a mess at the time, and Frederick had been in a car accident. Some even said he might be on the verge of death. But after she married hím, Frederick not only survived but was healthier than most.

Hearing Charlotte's words, the three of them had mixed expressions on their faces.

If they had known Frederick would be fine, such a good thing would never have fallen to Charlotte.

Oliver snapped, "When you were first brought back, your mother and I felt guilty and wanted to make it up to you. That's why we gave you the marriage that was originaly meant for Juniper. Because of you, Juniper is still unmarried."

Charlotte raised an eyebrow. "If that's the case, why not let Juniper marry him now? She's younger than me; Frederick would surely like her."

"Really?"

Juniper couldn't hide her excitement at Charlotte's words.

But she quickly composed herself and said with displeasure, "Charlotte,what are you saying? Frederick married you,so he's my brother-in-law.How could I marry him? Besides, he brought another woman into the house to humiliate you. Such a man is indeed very excessive."

"You even know about that. Seems like you pay a lot of attention to the Percy Family."

Charlotte looked at Juniper with a scrutinizing gaze.

Juniper was momentarily uneasy but quickly regained her composure. "You're my sister, and our parents care about you so much. Of course,we pay extra attention to your situation, fearing you might be bullied byoutsiders."

"I see."

Charlotte smiled coldly.

Elodie stepped in to smooth things over.

"Alright, let's not talk about this. Let's go eat. I've been busy all afternoon preparing this meal."

"She was abandoned by Frederick, and she doesn't even deserve to eat at home."

Oliver said, and Elodie immediately took over.

"Speaking of which, the president of Skyreach Group mentioned to me before that he has a good impression of Charlotte. Maybe we can arrange for them to meet. Who knows, it might work out."

"If he really likes Charlotte, that would be great. But I'm afraid he won't."

Oliver's words were still full of suppression and pressure.

Charlotte just wanted to laugh upon hearing that.

She finally understood why they were so eager to bring her back today.

They had learned about her divorce with Frederick and couldn't wait to set her up with someone else.

The president of Skyreach Group was over 50 years old.She had seen him at a banquet with Frederick before. Due to his excessive indulgences,he appeared at least 10 years older than his peers.

Such an old man, and Oliver was worried he wouldn't like her.

It was simply ridiculous.

"Then you handle it. If Charlotte refuses, you'll regret it."

Oliver threatened Elodie, but his eyes were fixed on Charlotte.