Chapter 346
Standing Before Love
âDid you see Mrs. Waltonâs expression?â Myra felt that she had become quite mean but she couldnât help gloating upon recalling Shellyâs expression earlier. âDid you know that she rang me a while ago and said she wanted to meet me? I didnât agree to meet her though, so I reckon she must be quite pissed off with me. Furthermore, seeing me walk in with her daughterâs beloved man today must be quite upsetting for her!â
Perhaps it was because Myra was bored from staying home all the time so now that she was out in public, she behaved quite mischievously.
Tony looked into her sparkling eyes and his lips curved into a soft smile. However, he raised his eyebrows quizzically. âShe called you?â Obviously, Myra had initially kept this a secret from him.
Just then, it hit her that she had spilled the beans. Blinking, she looked at Tony with an innocent look and placed her head on his shoulder. âTony, you were quite busy with work previously, so I didnât bring it up as I didnât want to bother you,â she murmured coyly. âBesides, she requested that I meet her alone. Iâm not that stupid and I obviously wasnât going to meet her.â
Upon hearing that, Tony hummed. âFrom now on, no matter who from the Walton Family asks to meet you alone, just say no, or you can let me know and Iâll go with you.â Tony caressed her head. Ever since Myra became pregnant, she seemed to be regaining her childish side. Occasionally, she would flirt with him and he enjoyed this side of her immensely.
Myraâs face flushed in response to his actions and she glanced at him from the corner of her eye. In all honesty, she had noticed on the way that there were plenty of envious looks being shot at her from the young ladies in the room. As a woman, she felt an inflated sense of self-esteem from all the looks thrown at her.
The dinner party was about to start when they entered the venue. As such, Tony had barely spoken a few words to some of his acquaintances before the party started.
Myra noticed Kris was wearing a sweeping, floor-length gown and she had her arm hooked through Gideonâs. Currently, she was standing alongside the Walton Family on the make-shift stage as they expressed their gratitude to all of the guests present.
Today, Tony had rejected Cameronâs request for help. Obviously, Kris would jump at the chance to help settle the issue for Cameron and right now, the Walton Family was her only avenue. However, Tony was quite confident that the Walton Family would not help Cameron, and he reckoned the answer would be revealed tonight.
Myra tried to question him further out of curiosity but he only responded with a mysterious look and refused to say anything else. As such, she had insisted on attending the event; she was keen to know exactly why the Walton Family would renege on their promise to help the Stark Family.
Myra pinched him lightly on his arm. âAre you sure?â
Tony raised his eyebrows in response. âAre you doubting me?â
âWell, not exactlyâ¦â Myra was aware that Tony usually handled things quite well. She was just slightly curious about what would happen next.
She rubbed her belly and raised her head to look at the man standing next to her as she mumbled, âIâm a little hungryâ¦â Myra hadnât eaten much for dinner. She just had some soup before heading out with Tony so naturally, she was feeling hungry by now.
Tony quickly guided her toward the buffet table close by. He saw that there was Myraâs favorite matcha-
flavored cake on display, so he immediately reached out and clumsily took a slice of cake for her.
Myraâs eyes held traces of a smile as soon as she saw his actions. Meanwhile, Tony also chuckled upon noticing her half-lidded eyes as she waited for him to serve her. He held onto the piece of cake and brought it close to her mouth.
Myra wasnât sure whether he did that intentionally, but that piece of cake he took was gigantic so she had to open her mouth quite wide just to take a bite of it.
She glared at the man who was currently pretending to stay calm and thought to herself, Well, I guess I no longer need to maintain a perfect image! She opened her mouth and took a bite of the cake. After that, she childishly shot a look at Tony as if to say âthis is who I am, so what can you do about it?â
Currently, Tonyâs expression was full of indulgence. However, before he could say anything, a voice rang out from beside them. âMyra, I canât believe what Iâm seeing! Did you just open your mouth wide to take a bite of the cake?â The voice was a familiar one and it belonged to Estelle.
Myra paused midchew and her expression became awkward. She then turned around gradually and saw Estelle. The latter had her arm hooked through Shawnâs as they made their way toward Myra and Tony. Estelle winked at Myra as soon as she reached her. âTsk! Is it necessary for the public display of affection? Honestly, you must have come here to flaunt on purpose! Everyone here knows that the daughter of the Walton Family, Gemma Walton, is in love with your beloved Director Hart, but look at you! Youâve given no regard to anyone and flaunted his affections for you in front of everyone. Thatâs like a tight slap across the face for everyone in the Walton Family!â
Myra was generally quite used to Estelleâs sharp tongue, but she felt quite mortified at this point. She then made a move to get out of Tonyâs embrace but he moved his hand and pulled her back into his arms. He turned his eyes on Estelle and glanced at her mildly, as if in warning.
Upon seeing that, Estelle pouted her lips in response. He really dotes on Myra as if sheâs a child. Gosh, I didnât even say anything rude but heâs given me a warning look.
âShawn, this isnât fun! I thought you said that there would be something interesting here tonight? If this is it, then donât even bother to come and see me for the following month!â Estelle turned around and vented her frustration on Shawn.
Shawnâs face remained impassive. However, Myra could clearly tell that his eyes shone warmly as soon as his gaze met Estelleâs. Upon seeing that, Myra lamented in her heart, Estelle really is clueless!
Sheâs so lucky to have him but when will she realize this?
âI came here tonight for that too,â Myra murmured to Estelle.
The latter raised her brows and glanced at Tony before turning to look at Shawn too. âIâm not too sure what these two cunning siblings are plotting but Myra, Iâve received the news regarding the Stark Groupâs problem. Is everything alright?â
Myra shook her head as she recalled Tonyâs words. âItâs fine. At the very least, things are fine for now.â
Estelle was relieved to see that Myra wasnât too concerned about the situation.
Since the four of them had bumped into each other, Estelle was keen on catching up with Myra. As such, the two siblings could only watch on helplessly. However, in the background, Tony heard every single word that Estelle said, and the topics she brought up were significantly explicit. Tony narrowed his eyes upon hearing that and he vowed to keep Myra away from Estelle from then on.
As for Shawn, he was generally quite used to Estelleâs flamboyant style. However, he couldnât help but grit his teeth in frustration too. He was fine with her behaving this way in front of him but not in public, and he had the sudden urge to lock her up.
â¦
On the other hand, Kris enjoyed herself as she flitted around the ballroom. Initially, due to the issues with the Stark Group, she couldnât quite bring herself to attend this party jovially. However, in the afternoon, practically everyone present right now had received the news; the Walton Family would lend a helping hand and fill the deficit of the Stark Groupâs troubled project. As for the actual deal that happened behind the scenes, that was obviously confidential. From Krisâ happy smiles, everyone deduced that perhaps she would tie the knot with Gideon quite soon and enter into the Walton Family.
In reality, most of the young women attending were quite envious of her too.
Kris had released the news to the public as soon as Gideon had promised to help the Stark Group. Dad has promised to give me ten percent of his shares in the Stark Group once all this is settled. Although thatâs not as much as what Myra owns, thatâs a sign of his recognition. After all, he has never gifted her any portion of his shares as a reward.
All of a sudden, Kris felt her stomach churn and as a wave of nausea hit her, her expression immediately took a turn. After using the pregnancy test kit the other day, she found out that she was indeed pregnant. She had then discreetly went for a check-up at the hospital and the results indicated that she was eight weeks pregnant. Upon getting the news, she checked the calendar and realized that this child was not Gideonâs. She was, in fact, pregnant with Haydenâs child.
In truth, Kris couldnât fathom how she got pregnant despite religiously taking birth control pills. This child had stubbornly been conceived and she was currently quite torn, but there was no way she could keep this child right now because this would complicate everything for her. However, she was just too busy recently to arrange for a secret abortion.
She had intended to wait until everything regarding the Green Palms Project was settled before going for the abortion. Nevertheless, her child seemed to be kicking up a fuss today.
Presently, Shelly, who was standing next to her, was the first person to notice Krisâ unusual pallor.