Chapter 375 The Cold Shoulder
Whatever it was that Kurt did, five companies simultaneously terminated their contracts with the Huttons’ business in Saspiuburg, resulting in a massive loss of hundreds of millions. Benjamin and Sean were so horrified by the news that they decided to return to Saspiuburg on the earliest flight. Eleanor, however, chose to remain in Beshya on the pretext that she had not enjoyed herself enough.
Since the company’s affairs were of top priority, Benjamin and Sean had no choice but to let her be. “Amelia, take good care of your mother,” Benjamin reminded before leaving. “Don’t let her hang around questionable people. Otherwise, I won’t give you your allowance.”
“I got it, Daddy,” Amelia replied, though somewhat annoyed.
When Benjamin and Sean finally arrived at the airport, they ran into Kurt, who had been patiently waiting for them the entire morning. “Mr. Hutton, this is what you get for finding fault with Amelia Winters. Getting those five companies to terminate their contracts with you is just a little gift from me. It’s my way of letting you know that Amelia isn’t someone you can push around. Your family may be wealthy, but you’re insignificant to her, so please stop parading around like some big shot. Nobody gives a damn about the Huttons.”
Upon hearing that, Benjamin scowled in frustration.
Sean, on the other hand, had a look of blank bewilderment. “I’m sorry, mister, but has there been some kind of misunderstanding between us? I don’t think my family has ever worked with you.”
“Why don’t you ask your father? I’m sure that’ll clear things up,” Kurt replied as he shot a glance at Sean.
Alas, that only earned Kurt a death glare from Benjamin. “Sean, let’s go!”
Even though he was still as confused as before, Sean quickly kept up with his father.
Behind them, Kurt smirked, happy that his plan had gone swimmingly.
“Dad, what’s going on? Who’s that guy?” Sean asked. “I’m sure we’ve never worked with him before, so why is he making things difficult for us?”
“He’s one of the people around that b*tch! It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have underestimated them. Because of her, our family hasn’t had a day of peace in the past twenty years. And now she’s back to torture us even further! She’s nothing but a jinx! I should’ve been more heavy-handed back then instead of just giving her away.”
Sean’s brows knitted into a frown. “Dad, there must be some kind of misunderstanding.”
“What misunderstanding? She’s a jinx! There’s no doubt about that!”
Plucking up his courage, Sean continued, “Dad, I’ve been noticing how agitated you get every time you talk about her. It isn’t like you at all. Does her presence affect you that much, or are you afraid of her?”
“What? Why would I be afraid of her? Who told you that crock of sh*t?” Benjamin thundered as he stared daggers at Sean.
“Dad, calm down.”
Not wanting to say any more, Benjamin crossed his arms and lapsed into a sulky silence.
Sean, too, knew better than to continue pushing his father’s buttons and held his tongue for the rest of their journey.
Meanwhile, Kurt was about to leave the airport when he received a call from Tiffany.
“Hey, Kurt, have the Huttons left?”
“Yes.”
“What was that old man’s expression like?”
“Terrible.”
Hearing that, Tiffany burst out laughing, delighted that they had managed to get back at Benjamin.
“Well done, Kurt! You’re more than qualified to be Amelia’s guardian angel!”
When Kurt didn’t respond, Tiffany went on, “Keep it up. I have faith that you’ll one day win her over.”
“I don’t need that. I only hope that Amelia let me stay by her side to protect her.”
“Come on, Kurt. Are you contented with just that? As long as she’s happy, that’s all that matters? Don’t you want more?”
Once again, Kurt stayed silent.
“Fine. I’ve put in so much effort to bring the two of you together, but no one appreciates it. You don’t seem anxious about it, and Amelia doesn’t seem to feel anything for you. That’s it. I’ve had enough. You can continue to torture yourself in this fruitless relationship because I’m washing my hands of the both of you,” Tiffany whined.
Kurt’s gaze instantly darkened as he tightened his grip around the phone.
“I’m hanging up now. We’ll talk more later.”
After ending the call, Tiffany set her phone aside and carried Tony in her arms. “Tony, do you like your godfather?”
“Do you mean Daddy?”
“Yes. Do you like him?”
“Of course! I like Daddy the most!” Tony answered with an enthusiastic nod.
“In that case, do you want him to be your real father?”
Naturally, Tony didn’t understand what Tiffany meant. “But Tiffy, Daddy is already my daddy.”
“Ah, what I meant was to let your godfather marry your mother. Only then will he legally become your father.”
After giving it some thought, Tony finally smiled and clapped his hands in glee. “Yes, okay!”
Tiffany whispered something into his ears before adding, “That’s settled then, Tony. Next time, compliment your godfather more in front of your mother.”
Just then, Amelia carefully walked into the room by feeling her way around. “Tiff, what nonsense are you feeding Tony now?”
Tiffany instantly jumped with fright at the sound of that. When she realized Amelia was not mad at her, she heaved a sigh of relief and rushed forward to hold the other woman. “I wasn’t telling him any nonsense, Amelia. We were only having a lovely chat. You can ask him if you don’t believe me.”
“Okay, calm down. I was only asking. Must your reaction be this big? If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought you did something bad,” Amelia teased.
Tiffany chuckled in response. “Babe, you know what? That insufferable Mr. Hutton has gone back to Saspiuburg with his tail between his legs.”
Amelia’s face fell almost immediately when she heard that. “Tiff, we have nothing to do with the Hutton family. I don’t want you to provoke them.”
“Listen, he got what he deserved for the way he treated you. Just because we chose not to cross the line doesn’t mean we’re afraid of them. Since he’s so sure that you have an ulterior motive for getting close to his family, we’ll show him what we’re truly capable of!”
Amelia frowned, clearly in disapproval of Tiffany’s actions.
“Tiff, I don’t want to be too involved with them, and neither do I want any of you standing up for me. In any case, the Huttons and we have nothing in common. It’d be best for us to go on our separate ways once they return to Saspiuburg.”
“Babe, that’s a good idea, but don’t forget that it takes two to tango. Mrs. Hutton is so passionate about you that it’s bordering on obsession, while Mr. Hutton hates you to the core. Given that they have such extreme attitudes toward you, what makes you think it’d be easy to get rid of them?” Tiffany explained. “Besides, don’t you want to find out about your true identity? Don’t you want to know why the Winters have been treating you so poorly all these years?”
Amelia could not help but let out a bitter chuckle. “So what if I know the truth? What difference would it make? The Winters have made me feel like a stranger in the family, and there’s nothing I can do about that. But now that I have Tony and my loved ones, I no longer have to worry about those who don’t matter to me.”
“Is that true, though? Are you sure you won’t hold on to the past anymore?” Tiffany questioned as she looked Amelia in the eye.
Alas, Amelia had no answer to that.
“Listen to me, Amelia. I know you still bear a grudge. If Mrs. Hutton is truly your birth mother, then you should take the chance to ask her why she lost you all those years back. Only by doing this can you let go of the past. Isn’t that a better idea?”
After a long silence, Amelia finally spoke up. “Tiff, I’ve got a good life now. Whether she’s my birth mother or not doesn’t matter to me anymore. We’ll let nature take its course. If she wants to acknowledge me, I won’t reject her. But if she doesn’t, I’m not staying around to be snubbed by them.”
“All right then,” Tiffany replied softly. Deep down, however, she knew her friend was merely putting on a facade. There was no way Amelia could forget how the Winters family had treated her in the past. Even though they had brought her up and even sent her to university, the constant cold shoulder they gave her was far more damaging than anything else. It was a form of emotional abuse that stayed with a child for life, to the point where it might even negatively impact their outlook on life.
Suddenly, Tony’s voice broke the silence. “Mommy, don’t be sad. You have me.”
And just like that, his sweet, innocent words broke the tension in the room.
