"Did you not catch what I was saying, Ms. Gallagher?" Jasper leisurely pulled out a napkin and began to dab at Noella's hands.
"Sorry about this, folks. Our Noella was raised in the countryside and doesn't know much about manners—completely spoiled by us, I'm afraid. I'll give her a talking-to when we get home."
Though he mentioned discipline, there wasn't a hint of genuine regret on his face! Clearly, he was just standing up for his own.
Christina's face was a mix of purple and red with anger! Noella had declared that she'd have Millie's back, making it clear that nobody else had the right to badmouth her!
Randy, ever the sly one, just took an extra moment to glance at Millie, absorbing the scene.
"Christina, apologize."
At the patriarch's command, Christina, however reluctantly, stood and gave a bow towards Millie. The humiliation was palpable. Christina's face was stained with drops of red wine, and tears began to stream down her cheeks.
"Millie, Ms. Schnabel, I'm terribly sorry! I know I was wrong!"
Millie covered her mouth, feigning surprise. "Oh my, Christina, what happened to you? Such a well-bred lady, why is your face all covered in wine?"
It was too much to bear! Unable to handle the humiliation, Christina covered her face and ran off in tears!
Morgan wanted to follow and comfort her but was stopped by a sharp glance from Carolyn, forcing him to sit back down.
Randy, trying to lighten the mood with a half-smile, said, "Ms. Schnabel, Mr. Schnabel, we should definitely get together more often. The Gallagher family has many young folks who might just get along with you. It's easier to talk amongst peers, after all."
Carolyn seized the moment, smiling. "It's all Christina's fault, really. She's always been too blunt, but she means well. Morgan, apologize to Millie and Ms. Schnabel for your sister."
Standing with a wine glass in hand, Morgan began, "My sincerest apologies. I'll make sure Christina learns from this. To show my sincerity..." Without another word, Morgan downed five glasses of vodka in quick succession!
Even Jasper was taken aback! Was this Gallagher lad... a bit too naive? Since when did people skip the small talk and dive straight into heavy drinking? And that wasn't just any drink—it was high-proof vodka!
After his fifth glass, Morgan's face was beet red, clearly not handling the alcohol well. Carolyn's eyes widened in shock.
"Morgan! You can't handle your liquor! Why on earth would you drink so much!?"
She didn't actually want Morgan to drink. She was hoping he'd just make nice with the Schnabel family—having Millie pleased was half the battle won, after all.
Morgan belched loudly. He seemed unable to focus his gaze, looking around the room before slumping back into his chair.
Carolyn asked with concern, "Morgan? Are you alright?"
Morgan nodded and then shook his head. After a moment's silence, Morgan burst into tears.
"Mommy, I don't want to go to school or take over the family business. I want to be an actor! Why doesn't anyone support me? I'm not cut out for business. I don't want to compete with Millie. If she hadn't shared her food with me as a kid, I would've starved! When I was studying abroad, it was Millie who sent me money. I couldn't even earn my tuition. Those thugs always picked on me, knocking on my door at night! You don't know how hard it was for me out there! I'm not meant to be a Gallagher. Mommy, I can't do this anymore!"
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