Catherine shifted her gaze to Clarissa, worried that the latter might get upset.
Unexpectedly, Clarissa cast a soft smile. “Jenny, please accompany Grandma to her room and let her have some rest. I’ll inform you when dinner is ready. I’m going to spend some quality time with my cousin.”
Jenny left with Catherine upon hearing that.
With that, Clarissa and Mimi were the only ones left in the living room.
Clarissa stared at Mimi and scoffed, “How should we bond with each other?”
“Clare, wouldn’t it be great if we keep in touch all the time? Actually, we were pretty close when we were young. I don’t know why we ended up like this.”
“Oh, really? I remember nothing about that. What I remember is you snatching whatever that belonged to me.”
Mimi never expected that she would hold grudges. Suddenly, the atmosphere became awkward.
“Clare, I was childish back then. Kids tend to behave like that. Please forgive my childish acts. Unlike you, I had a hard life when I was young. Your family always got you delicious food and lovely toys. I was just jealous of you since my family was poor. But now that we’ve grown up and you’ve become even richer, I guess you won’t hold grudges anymore, right?”
“Why should I listen to you?”
Crossing her legs, Clarissa glared at Mimi in a condescending manner, which made her feel uneasy and guilty.
Moreover, Mimi knew she couldn’t afford to cross the woman before her, even though the latter was purposely giving her a hard time.
“Mimi, are you saying that you could just snatch my things because you didn’t have them? What about now? I have more while you have even lesser. So based on your logic, you can once again claim my belongings as yours and I’m supposed to tolerate your ignorance? Am I right?”
“Clare, stop kidding. I’m not that kind of person.”
“Mimi Lester!”
Clarissa’s tone turned cold. “Stop pretending! We both know exactly what kind of person you are. Like I told your mom earlier, I don’t give a damn about you lot, including Aunt Gloria. It’s too late to make up to me now. Besides, I know what you’re up to, so stop putting on a show here. The only connection between us is Grandma. However, her relationship with all of you has nothing to do with me. I think I’ve made my point perfectly clear.”
Without waiting for Mimi’s response, Clarissa stood up and stared into her eyes. “Mimi Lester, you’d better show yourself out before I do it myself.”
“Clarissa Quigley, how dare you do this to me?”
Mimi couldn’t contain herself anymore as Clarissa’s words had shredded her mask into pieces. Overwhelmed with rage, her face contorted with anger.
Her eyes were filled with greed, hatred and jealousy.
Mimi pointed her finger at Clarissa.
“Clarissa Quigley! We’re your family. Do you think you can cut ties with us just because you’re married to Mr. Tyson? You—”
“Yes, I’m cutting ties with you.”
Clarissa cut Mimi off before the latter could finish her sentence.
She continued, “I’m cold-blooded and vicious in ways that you can never imagine. Do you want to experience that side of me?”
“Don’t… Don’t you dare!”
Upon hearing her words, Mimi was scared stiff.
Clarissa raised her brows and said in an icy tone, “You can try me.”
“Clarissa, Grandma won’t forgive you for this. You should know that she cherishes Mom and me a lot…”
“Haha!” Clarissa gave a chuckle before she continued, “Are you sure? Grandma couldn’t care less about your family. All these years, has she been concerned about you guys?”
Deep down, Mimi was aware that Grandma didn’t like them since she had been treating them indifferently.
As Mimi glared at Clarissa with rage, she desperately wanted to slap the latter hard across her smiling face. She was blinded by hatred and jealousy. Why does Clarissa have such a pretty face? Why does this woman have everything I want? Why is she the one who gets to marry Matthew Tyson?
Mimi was envious of Clarissa’s seemingly perfect life.
However, Clarissa wasn’t swayed by Mimi’s threats at all.
Mimi thought Clarissa and Catherine would soften their stance against her family out of pity for her mom, who was hospitalized. However, things didn’t work out the way she wanted as Clarissa cut them off without a blink.
“Clarissa Quigley, you’re such a cruel woman!”
However, Clarissa merely cast a bright smile at her. “Thanks for your compliment.”
After giving Clarissa a death stare, Mimi left the house reluctantly.
Catherine didn’t bring up Mimi for the rest of the night. She sided with Clarissa as she believed in her granddaughter.
After all, Clarissa and Catherine had a strong bond as they had been living together for many years. Clarissa was the one who took care of Catherine throughout the years. On the other hand, never once did her own daughter take care of her. She could’ve sued her daughter, yet she couldn’t bear to do it. Besides, Catherine knew Clarissa had done her utmost in helping the family since it was Clarissa who helped them clear the medical expenses.
“Grandma, you should stay home and have some rest since you hurt your legs. Don’t worry about Aunt Gloria. She has undergone surgery, and she’ll be fine after taking some rest,” suggested Clarissa.
Catherine nodded in agreement with her granddaughter.
The next day, Mimi showed up in Zen Highlands again.
However, Clarissa had instructed Julia beforehand not to let the Lesters in. She also told her to keep it from Catherine.
Mimi’s limbs were frozen stiff after standing outside Zen Highlands for a long time in the chilly weather. Still, she wasn’t able to set her foot in the compound.
The guard even chased her out without hesitation.
Mimi couldn’t help but curse all the way as she left.
Meanwhile, Gloria who was in the hospital kept bragging that her daughter was going to marry the richest man in D City. It was as if she desperately wanted everyone to know her connection with the Tysons. After she was mobile again, she brought it up whenever she met a new face in the hospital.
Gloria was showing off as though she was the one who married into a wealthy family.
Some people believed her words, but some didn’t.
Regardless of the credibility of her words, Gloria’s exaggerated behavior just made her and her family a laughing stock.
As people started gossiping, word got out quickly.
It was a small world, after all. Eventually, the Tysons would get to know about the gossip with their unbelievably wide connection. For instance, they might hear it from Shermaine’s friend or Sienna’s friend.
In other words, it was just a matter of time before the Tysons caught snippets of the rumors.
…
Catherine occasionally met up with Ryler whenever she was in D City. Coincidentally, Ryler was attending a business event in D City. Knowing that Catherine was currently there too, he freed up some time to pay her a visit at Zen Highlands.
It had been a long time since they last met each other, so Ryler offered to treat Catherine to a meal. He had always treated Catherine like his own grandmother.
Delighted to see Ryler, Catherine went out with him for a meal.
Hence, Clarissa had no choice but to tag along.
Matthew knew Ryler was only doing that to display his filial affection for Catherine. However, he couldn’t contain the hint of jealousy in his voice when he spoke with Clarissa.
“Clare, who do you think Grandma likes more? Ryler or me? And who matters more to her?”
Clarissa couldn’t help but giggle.
“Are you still not over it? You’re the most important person to me. Are you satisfied now?”
“So are you saying I’m beneath Ryler in Grandma’s heart?”
Matthew sounded even more jealous as he figured out the implied meaning of her words.
Clarissa patiently consoled him, “I didn’t mean that. You’re her grandson-in-law. So of course you matter more to Grandma. She even likes you more than me. Don’t you feel that Grandma treats you better? She always asks about you, ‘How is Matt doing? Is he tired? Has he taken his meal?’ See? You hold a special place in her heart. I should be the one who gets jealous.”
Matthew’s chuckle came from the other side of the phone. “Clare, you know exactly why I’m jealous.”
Catherine had always hoped that Ryler could be her grandson-in-law. In fact, it was not merely Matthew’s speculation—he heard it directly from Ryler.
Although he appeared to pay no heed to it, he was actually bothered by the fact that Catherine was more fond of Ryler than him.
Clarissa pursed her lips in annoyance. “Get over it. Stop being so petty, or else I won’t talk to you anymore.”
“Alright, I’ll stop. Don’t be mad at me anymore. Enjoy your meal, and I’ll have mine at the cafeteria.”
There was an undertone of sadness in his words. He’s doing that on purpose!
Clarissa chuckled in amusement. “You’re so childish! I’m done talking to you!”
Unperturbed by his act, she ended the call before Matthew could say another word.
Nevertheless, a smile lit up her face as she headed back to the private lounge.
Meanwhile, Ryler was chatting with Catherine. The latter was Ryler’s fangirl, swooning over the character he played in his drama. The two of them were having a good time.
Clarissa didn’t join their conversation. Instead, she ate her food in silence while thinking about Matthew.
“Clare, I’m attending an event this evening, and Grandma seems to be interested. I’ll bring her along to the event. It’ll take only half an hour. After that, I’ll show Grandma around. You don’t have to join us if you’re occupied. I will take good care of her. Is that okay?” Ryler requested.
Looking at her grandmother’s excited expression, Clarissa smiled and agreed to Ryler’s suggestion.
After lunch, Clarissa helped Catherine get into the car. As soon as they were gone, she hurriedly left as she couldn’t wait to see that childish man who pretended to be pitiful.
