Chapter 14 That Bastard Son of Nicole’s Must Die
Upon returning home, Nicole thought back on what had happened, which made her even angrier. To think that he still refused to believe me after I showed him my work badge! In the end, though, she decided to forget about it. After all, she would be meeting Colton again at F&M Apparel’s annual dinner several days later. With Zachary testifying for her by then, there was no way Colton would still be doubting her identity.
Compared with the angry Nicole, Hayden was in an unusually bright mood today. He was sitting on the sofa, watching TV with all smiles on his face.
Curious, Nicole darted a look at her son. “What’s the matter? You look so happy.”
“Nothing.” Hayden shook his head while shifting his gaze from the TV to his mother. What I said today will definitely make Colton do the DNA paternity test. That way, I’ll have a father—and a handsome and powerful father at that! Most importantly, I’ve looked into Colton’s relationships over the past few years. He’s never had any woman around him other than Queenie Anderson, whom he’s always kept at arm’s length regardless of the occasion. I’d say that such a chaste man is barely good enough for Mom.
Nicole didn’t think much about it either; she just assumed that Hayden had just watched something interesting on TV. Looking at her son, she asked, “Zachary will be coming in a few days. You wanna meet him?” She remembered Zachary telling her that he would arrive in the country a day before the annual dinner, and Hayden had always been on friendly terms with him.
“Zachary? You mean Mr. Yates?” Hayden’s eyes lit up, and he sat up at once. “Is he coming here specially to see you, Mom?”
Nicole corrected him, “Nope, he’s not coming here to see me; he’s coming here to attend F&M Apparel’s annual dinner.”
“Oh.” Hayden’s face fell with a hint of disappointment, and his initially glittering black eyes dimmed. Sinking back into his seat, he looked at Nicole with his cheeks puffed up, muttering, “It was all your fault, Mom. It’s been two months since Mr. Yates left after you turned him down so resolutely last time.”
Seeing how her son spoke for Zachary, Nicole wanted to laugh and frown all at once. Pressing her hand down on his head, she replied in all seriousness, “That’s plain nonsense! Zachary went abroad to study the market!”
Hayden snorted childishly before whispering in an almost inaudible voice, “I’m not talking nonsense!”
Nicole decided to be the bigger person by not arguing with her son. She grabbed her son, asking, “Do you wanna attend the dinner with me, then? If you don’t, then I won’t be taking you with me.”
“Yes, I surely do!” Hayden quickly replied. It’s a must to keep on good terms with such a rich and powerful guy, of course, he thought. In reality, in the eyes of Hayden, Zachary was his No. 1 candidate for his father. Even though Zachary wasn’t his real father, the former was outstanding in all respects. It’s too bad that Mom is as obstinate as a mule; she keeps thinking that she isn’t good enough for him because she has a child. But now that I’ve found my real dad, who is in no way inferior to Mr. Yates, I’d consider him qualified to be my dad.
…
Meanwhile, Queenie had been in a state of tumult these days, having heard from one of her acquaintances that Colton wanted to do a DNA paternity test for him and a kid.
The first thing that came to her mind was that bastard son of Nicole’s. Did Nicole find out that the boy was Colton’s son?! She only felt her head being hit directly by a dizzy spell. Everything went black before her eyes, and her limbs went cold. If the results of the DNA paternity test come out, my happy life will be coming to an end!
Holding a bowl of freshly prepared lobster bisque in her hand, Lydia York, Queenie’s biological mother, took a step forward and asked with concern, “What’s wrong with you, Queenie? You look so pale.”
Queenie turned to look at her mother. Well, with things as such, I guess I have no choice but to tell Mom the truth…
After Lydia listened to Queenie’s story, her eyes widened, and the bowl of lobster bisque in her hand dropped to the ground with a clatter. “What?! You mean Nicole bore a son for Colton?!”
“What should we do now, Mom?” Queenie was so anxious that she nearly burst into tears. “You know how things are for the Andersons. Without the Gardner Family, our debtors would definitely pile on and demand that we pay off our debts. Once that happens, it’ll be the end of us!”
Of course, Lydia knew about that as well, which was why she was so panicked at the moment. The Anderson Family had been reasonably wealthy in the past, but three years ago, William had been duped by his business partner, causing him to be debt-ridden. However, since Queenie was Colton’s fiancée, the debtors dared not go to the Andersons to demand that they pay off the debts, leaving the matter in a precarious state of equilibrium.
Lydia panicked immediately at the prospect of losing everything she currently owned. Shortly after that, however, she regained her composure, saying, “Don’t worry. It’s not too late as long as Colton hasn’t seen the test results.” Her eyes narrowed with a flicker of sinister malice. “However, that bastard son of Nicole’s must die…”
