Chapter 353 What Adults Do
Erica ran down the stairs in the clothes she had slept in and told her mother about the news. Naomi was stunned as well, but her astonishment was quickly replaced by worry as she muttered, “Anastasia has her way with men. Who would’ve thought she’d have some tricks up her sleeves? I can’t believe she managed to bag Elliot in such a short time.”
“Mom, now that she has Elliot on her side, will we still be able to get our hands on Dad’s company? You know how greedy she is, and with a bigshot like Elliot backing her up, she would be trampling all over us if she were to take Dad’s company as well!” Erica pointed out belligerently.
Naomi snorted. “Anastasia has always hated me, and now, she finally has all her cards lined up. It’s only a matter of time before she shows her hand and gets revenge on us. We can’t afford to sit here and wait for our deaths.”
“I totally agree, Mom. We can’t just let her take everything away from us. We have to think of a way.”
“Erica, Alex is our safest bet right now if we want to take the company for ourselves. This is your chance. I’m sure he wouldn’t turn you down if you were to ask him to join us for dinner tonight,” Naomi suggested. The time for her to strike was now, and Alex was going to be one of her most vital pawns in this game of chess.
Erica, on the other hand, was angry and upset that she was saddled with her father’s subordinates while Anastasia got to date a fine specimen like Elliot. She didn’t think this was fair, but she had no choice other than to go through with Naomi’s plans.
At that moment, she remembered Hayley and wondered if she had heard the news. She’s been getting mooching off the Presgrave Family all this while, and she really likes Elliot too. I bet she’s furious right now!
Erica had no idea that Hayley had gone abroad to undergo plastic surgery. This was a secret that Hayley intended to be tight-lipped about, and she couldn’t afford to let anyone know what she was doing.
When Erica returned to her room after her conversation with Naomi, she dialed Hayley’s number, growing exasperated when she saw that the line couldn’t get through.
Meanwhile, Hayley was recuperating from the major procedure that she had just undergone in Hogland. The anesthetics had yet to wear off, and she was still asleep at the moment. She had no idea of the crushing news that would greet her when she woke up later.
She had done plenty of changes and tweakings to her features that put her through unbearable pain, but the man she was so hopelessly in love with had announced his relationship with a woman who was her arch-nemesis.
Over at Bourgeois, Elliot’s car pulled into the basement parking lot, and Anastasia opened the door to get down from the vehicle the moment it rolled to a stop. However, she had only just stepped out when the man next to her pointed out sourly, “I’m good enough to be in paparazzi shots with you, but not enough to show up at work alongside you, eh?”
Anastasia stopped in her tracks, and sudden realization dawned upon her as she said, “Sorry, I forgot about that.”
Elliot sighed, for he wasn’t sure what to do with her. He couldn’t believe that someone who took her work and life so seriously would treat their relationship with considerable laxity.
He marched up to her and grabbed her hand. Then, he led her to the elevator without another word.
For some reason, she felt like her heart was suspended on a tightrope, ready to take the plunge and fall freely into her stomach at any given moment. She had yet to get used to such public displays of affection with this man.
Sure enough, the moment she arrived at the department of design, the employees lingering outside the elevator lobby instantly caught sight of her and Elliot holding hands. She flushed and turned to him. “I’ll be going to my office,” she said quietly.
With that, she turned to walk into the office under the envious gazes of her co-workers.
“Hey, Anastasia.”
“Good morning, Anastasia!”
“You look so pretty today, Anastasia!”
“I love your purse, Anastasia.”
The way to her desk was paved with endless compliments as the girls in the office greeted her with unprecedented enthusiasm, but she regarded them with the same smile that she would any other day. She never cared about how others looked at her, and she still maintained her indifference even though they were throwing compliments in her direction to get in her good books.
Not long after, Felicia turned up at her office and braced her arms against the desk as she eyed Anastasia’s outfit meaningfully. “Oh, someone didn’t change out of their clothes! I’m guessing you had a pretty good night.”
Anastasia blushed as she pleaded, “Please don’t make fun of me, Felicia.”
Knowing how shy Anastasia was when it came to the subject of men, Felicia stopped teasing her. “Okay. I’ll stop, but I will still congratulate you for bagging President Presgrave! Also, those pictures are more than enough to make a woman jealous!”
Anastasia was amused and embarrassed at the same time. The pictures were going to be the bane of her existence for a while.
Upon noticing the flustered look on the younger woman’s face, Felicia pointed out comfortingly, “We’re all adults here, and whatever you did in those pictures is completely normal. There are plenty of young couples in the park who go twice as hot and heavy as the both of you, and the only difference is that you were caught by the paparazzi. I don’t know any young couples out there who haven’t done all this lovey-dovey stuff.”
