Chapter 1908 Benefits
Janice’s second attempt at disguising her fury behind a smile was more successful. “I know I used to be resentful of Wilbur and Maya. As Dad said, we should let bygones be bygones and look forward to the future. I am now Nicholas’ fiancée and the mother of his child. It would not be proper for me to think of Wilbur that way anymore. My grudge with Maya is now a thing of the past.”
At a reciliatory gesture, she got to her feet to refill Maya’s glass of wine. “Please don’t trouble yourself, Janice. I can do it.”
“Not at all,” Janice insisted. “You must have servants at home during mealtimes, don’t you? Let me serve you tonight. Think of it as a chance for me to apologize for what transpired before.”
“But you’re pregnant!” exclaimed Maya in disbelief. “It’s not good for you or the baby to be on your feet so often!” The men glanced at each other uncomfortably as they observed the tension in the air from the increasingly formal gestures of accommodation between the two women.
Rodney felt that if Janice was as sincere as she portrayed herself to be, she would finally take up some responsibility for the sake of her unborn baby. Once the child is old enough, I’ll send her away with a large sum of money and hopefully never hear from her again.
Wilbur’s involvement with Maya turned out to be another advantageous occurrence for Rodney. The possibilities of what he would be able to achieve by exploiting the connection to the Seet family sent a chill of delight down Rodney’s spine.
As unnoteworthy as Nicholas’ wedding to Janice is, the boy must learn to push his advantage and make the best of it if such an opportunity presents itself. D*mn it. He should have married a girl from a rich family to provide at least one useful connection for our family! What would I do with a daughter-in-law from an unknown family? I have no use for somebody with a worthless last name! However, it’s not necessarily a failed marriage if Janice proves herself to be meek and docile.
Wilbur frowned as he watched the exchange between the women. This sudden change in Janice’s attitude points to a future benefit she hopes to reap for herself. She’ll cause harm to Maya if I’m not careful around her.
Contrary to his brother, Nicholas appeared excited at the prospect of Janice having something up her sleeve that she would not hesitate to deploy to achieve her quest.
What if the child turns out to be as ruthless as her? I surely hope not!
That unpleasant thought forcefully reminded Nicholas of how he and his mother had treated his brother. Janice is treating Maya in the exact same way as how we used to treat Wilbur.
Mabel had caused the death of Wilbur’s mother in an attempt to become the new Mrs. Simpson. From the moment she was made Rodney’s legitimate wife, Mabel had put on the facade of a loving stepmother to safeguard her reputation against the ruthless manner in which she had ascended to her new position.
In actual fact, Mabel had always borne resentment toward her stepson.
The fear of Wilbur’s knowledge of the true circumstances surrounding his mother’s death had always haunted Mabel. On more than one occasion, Nicholas had caught his mother wishing for an accident that would claim his brother’s life and secure his silence.
What about me? I’m exactly the same as Mom. Wilbur is always outdoing me at work in one way or another. I have to pretend to be his obedient little brother despite my grudge against him for fear of affecting what Rodney thought of me.
In order to avoid a confrontation with Wilbur and make the situation unpleasant for his mother, Nicholas decided to bite his tongue to preserve Mabel’s untarnished facade of the perfect stepmother.
It seems that I share more similarities with Janice than I would like to admit. In an ironic twist, we are a match made in heaven after all. Even if the baby does not inherit any of Janice’s awful qualities by some miracle, it will still turn out to be a degenerate if it’s anything like me.
“Does it taste good, my dear sister-in-law?”
“Please don’t call me that,” muttered Maya with discomfort. “Just call me Maya, will you?”
As one, the men were brought out of their reveries.
“Let her,” cried Rodney, delighted by the official recognition of his connection to Maya. “You’re going to be her sister-in-law when you marry Wilbur. We might as well start getting used to it!”
“I’m flattered, but as long as we aren’t married, I would like to be addressed as Maya.”
“It doesn’t matter what I call you. I already feel as if we know each other better!” Janice chirped.
“What about you two, Maya?” Rodney interjected. “When are you planning on getting married? Janice and Nicholas are already engaged. When are you going to get that done?”
“A wedding is not to be taken lightly,” replied Maya politely but evasively. I still want to observe the Simpsons before I commit!
“That’s right,” added Wilbur. “We’ve been too busy filming the show and managing the company as of late to give planning a wedding much thought.”
