Girl Get Rid Of That Jerk (Williams and Shawn)

"Allie, it's over," Joshua's voice was low and slightly raspy. "Chris is gone. It's all over."noveldrama

Allison's heart skipped a beat. "Are... are you okay?" she asked, her voice tinged

with worry.

There was a brief pause.

Then Joshua's voice came through the line, "I'm fine."

Thank goodness. Allison let out a relieved sigh, her heart settling back to its normal rhythm. She had been so anxious about Joshua getting hurt while dealing with Chris in New York.

"Alright, I'll hang up now. It's dinner time," Allison said, trying to sound casual.

"Allie, wait for me," Joshua's voice was soft.

Allison didn't respond, just ended the call. Her mind was spinning, even though the whole Chris situation was finally behind them. But what about Grandma Emily? And now Javier was upset with the Fisher family too.

She couldn't just brush aside the past hurts and start fresh with him.

"Allie, dinner's ready," Linda called, snapping Allison out of her thoughts.

"Coming," Allison replied, pushing her worries aside as she headed to the dining

room.

...

Ever since finding out Kate was pregnant, Cindy had been over the moon. Shawn hadn't told her about the trouble brewing at Reynolds Corporation yet; he was hoping to fix things before breaking the news.

Blissfully unaware of the impending crisis, Cindy continued living like a glamorous socialite, decked out in jewels and glowing with happiness.

That afternoon, Cindy went shopping with the housekeeper to pick up some nutritional supplements for expectant mothers. She also had the housekeeper grab top-notch organic veggies and a free-range chicken from the members-only supermarket. She was planning to make a hearty chicken soup for Kate.

When they got to Kate's apartment, Cindy was all smiles, holding Kate's hand and peppering her with questions, her concern quite evident.

But Kate wasn't in the best mood, responding with half-hearted nods and smiles.

Cindy figured Kate's mood swings were just due to pregnancy hormones and didn't think too much of it.

She asked the housekeeper to put away the supplements and said, "Mrs. Wang, could you start on that chicken soup for the young lady?"

The housekeeper replied, "Yes, ma'am."

The term "young lady" was something Kate used to dream of hearing. Yet now, it just added to her stress.

She didn't get the whole business side of things, but she'd heard whispers that the Reynolds Corporation was drowning in debt, teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.

If she married into the Reynolds family now, she'd be saddled with a mountain of debt, possibly for life.

"What's the matter, Kate? Not feeling well?" Cindy asked, noticing her unease. Kate gave a nonchalant "Hmm."

"Pregnancy can do that to you. Sometimes you feel low or irritable, and it might even lead to

depression," Cindy said warmly, holding Kate's hand in a motherly. gesture. "When I was pregnant with Shawn, I had my mood swings too. Why don't you move in with us? Having the staff around to take care of you would give me peace of mind."

"No, thank you, Cindy." Kate gently pulled her hand back. "I'm used to living here,

and I'm worried I won't adjust well to a new place."

Cindy didn't think much of it and nodded. "Sure, stay wherever you're comfortable. I'll have Mrs. Wang come over every day to look after you. Dif you can make room for her here, she could stay. I'd feel much better knowing someone is here foE you since Shawn is so caught up with work."

Kate's eyes darted around as she took this in, deciding to dig a little deeper. "Cindy, how's the company doing lately?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Cindy was a bit thrown by Kate's sudden question.

Kate continued, "It's just that Shawn's been hard to find lately. I've been to the office a few times and he's never there. Is everything okay at the company?"

Cindy was a full-time housewife, blissfully detached from the outside

world. Her days revolved around

shopping spa treatments afternoon

teas, and the occasional card game. She had no clue about the

company's current situation.