Chapter 166: If Miss Lockwood Misunderstands, Who Can I Complain To?
Chapter 166: Chapter 166: If Miss Lockwood Misunderstands, Who Can I Complain To?
Nathaniel Sloan’s face was calm, but his gaze carried an invisible pressure. He walked up behind Estelle Lockwood, gently enveloping her with his protective presence as if he were her guardian.
Ethan Sloan’s face stiffened, and he shot a fierce glare at his assistant. ’Nathaniel’s here, so why didn’t anyone tell me?!’
"Nathaniel, I’m just trying to do what’s best for Miss Lockwood."
"Father is right. Getting married only to be abandoned would certainly make one a laughingstock."
Nathaniel drawled, "But you might have gotten one thing wrong."
"Right now, Estelle is the one who finds me wanting, not the other way around. So, when people talk, the one being abandoned will be your son. The one losing face will be the Sloan Family."
"Everything for the honor and reputation of the Sloan Family. If that’s the case, then I have all the more reason to marry Estelle, rather than follow your example—cheating after getting married and helping the mistress take over. Wouldn’t you agree?"
Nathaniel threw Ethan Sloan’s words right back at him. Ethan’s throat tightened, and his breathing grew ragged. "Nathaniel Sloan, you’ve gotten bold!"
Nathaniel gave a faint nod. "If there’s nothing else, Father, please get some rest for the next few days. You still need to deal with the trouble Laura Jennings caused. I imagine many people at the company oppose you continuing as chairman."
"Instead of spending your time meddling in my marriage, perhaps you should handle company affairs. Wouldn’t you agree?"
Ethan Sloan trembled with rage. ’This son of his had never listened to him, not since he was a child. He’d always been more outstanding than him, too. When the old man was choosing an heir, he even planned to skip him entirely and hand the Sloan Family directly over to Nathaniel!’
’And now, he couldn’t even control Nathaniel’s marriage? He was his son! Without him, there would be no Nathaniel Sloan! Why on earth wasn’t he eternally grateful?!’
"Fine. Fine! Just don’t blame me when people say you have terrible taste—that you’ll fall for any woman you see!"
Nathaniel’s composure was unshaken. "It doesn’t matter. No matter how bad my taste is, it could never compare to yours. You even took a liking to Ms. Jennings. When people talk about it, they’ll just think we are indeed father and son, with our taste being a family trait."
Estelle Lockwood: "..."
Ethan Sloan clutched his chest in a fit of rage and staggered a few steps. His assistant quickly helped him upstairs.
Estelle Lockwood clicked her tongue in amazement. "So, the ’devoted father and filial son’ image the Sloan Group markets to the public is all a sham, huh?"
Nathaniel was noncommittal, calmly retorting, "Did you really think something like familial affection exists between me and the Sloan Family, Miss Lockwood?"
Estelle Lockwood was at a loss for words.
Before she could say anything, Nathaniel suddenly explained, "The heiress of the Yorks that Chairman Sloan mentioned is a friend that Zane Grant and I grew up with. She went abroad to study years ago and has already returned. She has a fiancé."
Estelle Lockwood raised an eyebrow. "Why are you explaining this to me?"
Nathaniel’s gaze shifted slightly. "Because I am still in your probationary period, Miss Lockwood. If I want to make this official, of course I have to explain things. Otherwise, if you get the wrong idea, who would I plead my case to?"
Estelle Lockwood didn’t seem to care. ’As long as Ethan Sloan disapproves of me, he’ll keep finding ways to introduce all sorts of heiresses to Nathaniel.’
Still, Nathaniel’s explanation made her heart skip a small beat.
’In the past, Nathaniel would never have explained such things. But now...’
"Miss Lockwood, there are no other women. Don’t believe him."
Sunlight filtered through the treetops and the windowpane, illuminating Nathaniel Sloan’s face and causing Estelle Lockwood to be momentarily mesmerized.
His warm, masculine scent washed over her, and Estelle Lockwood stammered, "I-I know. I didn’t believe..."
"Thank you for being willing to believe me."
His lips drew closer and closer. His fingertips gently pinched her earlobe, and for a moment, Nathaniel’s breathing quickened. His eyes grew deep, their intensity almost suffocating—
"Ahem, Nathaniel," Iris Sloan interrupted awkwardly.
Estelle Lockwood snapped back to her senses and pushed Nathaniel away.
Iris Sloan coughed a couple of times. "Zachery and Mia are fussing about going home, so you two should head back. Don’t worry about things here at the Sloan residence."
Estelle Lockwood wiped her mouth forcefully. "Okay. Where are Mia and Zachery?"
"They’re already in the car."
Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, Estelle Lockwood rushed out without even sparing Nathaniel Sloan a glance.
Iris Sloan dropped her smile and said teasingly, "Gotten smarter, have we? You finally learned how to use your words?"
Nathaniel nodded, accepting her critique. "Yes. I lost too much by not speaking up before. After all, a mouth is for more than just eating and breathing. It can be used for speaking, too."
Iris shivered at his deadpan humor and waved her hand dismissively. "Alright, alright, just keep it up. You know, you’re quite a bit like my sister-in-law... It makes me seriously doubt you’re Laura Jennings’s biological son."
The sister-in-law Iris was referring to was, of course, Ethan Sloan’s original wife—the former Mrs. Sloan, who was now such a taboo subject in the Sloan Family that her name was never to be mentioned.
"Oh, right. The Lockwood Family might cause trouble for Estelle soon. She still hasn’t returned to their family home, and they’re under a lot of public pressure."
Nathaniel nodded. "I’ll keep an eye on it."
...
「Two days later.」
Star Group.
Star had recently landed a major collaboration with the York Family, one of Crestfall’s old, established powerhouse families. It was Star’s biggest project of late, and the entire company was buzzing with activity.
"The York Family will probably have their Young Miss York handle the negotiations for this collaboration," Penelope Sullivan said thoughtfully. "I don’t know why, but she’s the one who participates in all of their public activities. It’s like the family’s Young Mr. York is living in total obscurity."
Estelle Lockwood suddenly wondered, ’Is this Young Miss York the same person as the Heiress of the Yorks that Nathaniel mentioned?’
Henry Kendrick knew some of the inside story. "There’s a lot of drama in the York Family. Young Mr. York is the son of Chairman York’s previous wife. The current Miss York’s mother, his stepmother, is a ruthless woman. There’s no way she’d let the first wife’s son get a share of the inheritance."
’I see...’
Estelle Lockwood nodded. ’Wealthy families really are complicated.’
When it was time to get off work, she had walked about two hundred meters from Star Tower when a figure suddenly darted out in front of her and collapsed stiffly to the ground!
Before Estelle Lockwood could even react, the old man on the ground was clutching his leg and crying out, "Young people these days! Why don’t you watch where you’re going? Didn’t you see me standing right here? You just plowed right into me! Are you trying to kill me?!"
The surrounding pedestrians turned to look.
Estelle Lockwood stopped in her tracks, narrowing her eyes at the old man on the ground.
’Such an obvious setup... and he was trying to pull it on her?’
The old man ignored her, ranting, "You have to take me to the hospital! Are you just going to hit someone and not take responsibility? I can see you’re dressed nicely; you’re clearly not poor. How can someone who looks so respectable have the gall to abuse an old man like me? There’s no justice in this world!"
The old man lay on the ground, wailing his heart out, attracting an ever-growing crowd of onlookers who didn’t know what was really happening.
"You all be the judge!" he cried to the crowd. "This woman pushed me down, and she won’t even help me or apologize! What has this world come to?"
Someone immediately chimed in self-righteously, "Miss, if you’ve done something wrong, you should have the courage to admit it. You knocked this man over and haven’t even offered an apology. Is that acceptable behavior?"
"He should go to the hospital for a check-up," another person added. "An old man like him could suffer from a lasting injury. I just saw you walk out of Star Tower. You’re a Star Group employee, right? If you don’t take responsibility, I’ll report you to your company right now!"
Seeing the passersby take his side, the old man’s wails grew even louder. "There’s no justice! Young people these days have no respect for their elders! Do you just want me to die?!"
They were blocking the middle of the sidewalk as more and more people gathered to watch. Even a traffic officer in the distance had started walking toward them.
Estelle Lockwood calmly and unhurriedly took out her phone to call the police, but just then—
"Stop spouting nonsense! You’re clearly the one who tried to stage a fall on this lady. I recorded the whole thing!"
A woman stepped forward from the crowd.