Looking back now, that missing toy that Selah talked about was probably the pair of jade lions. Selah saw them as especially important and when they went missing, she was upset for days.
George felt shocked at this memory and his wrist shook unconsciously while pouring tea. He didn't even notice the scalding hot water spilling onto his handback.
George's peripheral vision scanned Malaya wondering how she managed to take the jade lions from Selah. He knew that Malaya and Selah had never given each other presents. The only possibility was that Malaya stole them from Selah.
The thought made George feel sick, but he couldn't bring himself to ask. After all, family secrets were meant to be kept hidden.
Layne was a shrewd person and could tell from their reactions that something was off.
Layne decided to let it go and make a new pair for Cheyenne when he had time.
To ease the tension in the room, Malaya put on her role as a dutiful wife and mother, warmly greeting Layne, "Mr. Edwards, you must be hungry since you came so early in the morning."
"I'll go to the kitchen and give some instructions," she said, getting up and walking towards the kitchen as if escaping.
Cheyenne was about to say that it wasn't necessary, but Malaya had walked away. She couldn't help but furrow her brows. 'Is Malaya trying to please my grandfather?'
After about half an hour, all the valuable antiques were finally loaded onto the car. George watched as they were secured and gave an embarrassed smile.
In his mind, he complained that Cheyenne was too petty. Her last name was Lawrence, not Edwards. These things wouldn't be lost even if they were stored in the Lawrence Villa. He didn't understand why she had to take all of them away!
The car drove away.
Cheyenne wanted to leave with her grandfather, but George insisted on him staying for dinner so she had no choice but to stay temporarily and have breakfast with this group of people.
The gorgeous restaurant had a retro European decoration style; even the plates were exquisitely expensive. At a huge round table sat Layne in first place, George on his left side and Cheyenne on his right side.
Malaya could only sit next to George as second best option."
Nora was staring at Cheyenne with disgust, but the latter didn't seem to care. She even flashed a sweet smile at Nora, which only made Nora more angry and think indignantly, 'With old Mr. Edwards backing her up, it's no wonder she is so smug today. She's just annoying to look at! Her mother has been dead for over a decade and now there is no relationship between the Lawrence family and the Edwards family. I really don't know why Father and Mother need to fawn over old Mr. Edwards!'
It was really strange that they asked Cheyenne and Layne to stay for breakfast, which ruined my appetite!
Just as she was wondering about their motives, Malaya lifted her cup of tea and offered it to old Mr. Edwards.
"Mr. Edwards, I offer you this tea as a thank you for taking care of Cheyenne all these years. Her mother died young and she's such a poor thing," said Malaya with false sincerity.
Cheyenne almost choked on her dumpling after hearing that statement, feeling disgusted with Malaya's hypocrisy.
Layne stood up impassively, his clear eyes fixed on Malaya. "Cheyenne is my granddaughter-in-law, it's only natural for me to take care of her. In fact, I should be thanking you!"
Layne took a sip of his tea and placed the cup back on the table. In the meantime, Malaya nudged Nora with her elbow while Layne was talking to George.
Leaning in close to Nora's ear, she whispered softly, "You should get up and offer a toast to Grandpa."
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: She Became Rich After Divorce (Cheyenne and Kelvin)