Chapter 779 Deception
Colin gently placed her on the bed, and Edith fell into an even deeper sleep.
The next day, Edith woke up and found herself in a hotel. She quickly checked her clothes and, after confirming they were intact and she felt fine, she breathed a sigh of relief.
'How did I get to the hotel last night?' Edith wondered.
Edith sat on the bed, trying to recall. She remembered calling for a designated driver. No, she met Colin.
'Could it be that Colin brought me to the hotel?' Edith thought.
Edith looked at the empty suite, feeling a bit down.
After asking the front desk during checkout, she confirmed her suspicion.
After Sophia greeted her last night, someone contacted Edith today to discuss a collaboration with the Astor Group.
Edith had no reason to turn down business that came to her doorstep, so she quickly tidied herself up and went to the office to prepare for the meeting.
For several days in a row, the Astor Group received orders worth millions of dollars. Jasper was shocked to see the company's revival.
Edith attended one party and brought back so many orders!
She had networked so much before, but it had never been this effective.
'Could I be betraying him?' She wondered.
After finishing a meeting, Edith returned to her office, her happy expression turning cold upon seeing Jasper.
"Get out!" she demanded unceremoniously.
Jasper sat in Edith's office chair, legs crossed, scrutinizing her, "Edith, I warn you, we are still not divorced. If you dare to have an affair, I won't let you off!"
Hearing Jasper's words, Edith felt a visceral disgust. "Jasper, do you think everyone is like you, playing around outside?" Edith checked her phone calendar. "Have you had your physical this year? Haven't caught AIDS yet?"
Jasper grabbed the documents on the desk and threw them at Edith, but she was prepared and dodged swiftly. "Bitch, even if you bring in so many orders, it doesn't help. I am the largest shareholder of the Astor Group. Eighty percent of the profits from these orders will be in my pocket."
"No matter how hard you work, you're making money for me, so what's there to be proud of?" Jasper sneered.
Edith's hands clenched into fists, her head slowly lowering.
Seeing that he had subdued Edith, Jasper felt much better.
He stood up, car keys jingling in his hand, and stopped halfway to the door. "By the way, my mom has already found a child. In a few days, you and I will go to adopt."
Edith said nothing, and Jasper didn't need her response; he was merely informing her.
After Jasper left, Edith called her secretary in. "Replace that chair."
The secretary seemed used to this and immediately called someone to replace the chair, then picked up the documents from the floor and put them back on the desk.
Edith sat in the new chair, rubbing her temples.
Jasper was right; all her efforts now benefited Jasper.
Knowing this, she still had to fight for the Astor Group.
After working non-stop for several days, Edith finally got off early one day and returned home to find her mother, Una Astor, had already prepared dinner.
"Edith, how's the company doing lately?" Una asked worriedly.
"Orders are up, don't worry." Edith replied.
Una sighed in relief. "That's good. The Astor Group is your father's lifelong effort; it must not collapse."
"I know, Mom. Let's eat." Edith didn't want to discuss the Astor Group with Una.
Una sighed, her eyes reddening again. "Edith, we owe you. You've suffered all these years."
Edith had a good appetite, and Una's cooking was delicious, but after a few bites, she lost her appetite. "Mom, please don't say that. It's all in the past. We need to look forward. Don't worry, one day, I'll regain control of the Astor Group, and the Murphy Family won't be able to control us."
Una placed a chicken wing on Edith's plate. "Alright, I won't say it anymore. You finally came home early today, so rest early tonight."
"Okay." Edith nodded.
After Edith's father passed away, Una fell seriously ill and had been recuperating at home, living off Edith's salary and the meager dividends from the Astor Group.
Their former large villa had been replaced with a small apartment.
A simple two-bedroom, one-living room setup, which Una had decorated warmly. Every time Edith came home, Una would have a meal ready for them to eat together.
Though still married to Jasper, Edith had to visit the Murphy Villa weekly to put on a show for outsiders, maintaining the Murphy Family's facade.
Every time, Edith found it laughable.
Jasper's affairs with men were widely known; did the Murphy Family still have any facade left?
Everyone knew her marriage to Jasper was in name only.
However, for her position in the Astor Group, for the meager shares she held, and to regain control of the Astor Group, Edith had to cooperate with the Murphy Family.
One day, Edith and Jasper went to the orphanage to complete the adoption process.
Edith was very reluctant.
Growing up in a morally deficient family was worse for a child than not being adopted at all.
Seeing the children in the orphanage, their eyes filled with longing for family, was heartbreaking.
The Murphy Family had considered adoption two years ago when Jasper was diagnosed with low sperm count and poor quality, leading to low probabilities of success for IVF.
Jasper was the only child of the Murphy family. Since Edith married in, they had been pressuring her to have a child. However, three years passed, and Edith showed no signs of pregnancy.
The Murphy Family solely blamed Edith, putting all kinds of pressure on her.
In three years of marriage, Jasper had never had a sexual relationship with her. Initially, Edith was pleased, as she had no feelings for Jasper and didn't want to deal with marital relations. But as the Murphy Family's pressure increased, she gradually sensed something was wrong. Upon investigation, she discovered Jasper liked men and that she had been deceived into a sham marriage.
She told her parents, hoping to use this to divorce Jasper, but her father was so angered that his illness relapsed, and he didn't survive.
The adoption process was completed, and Edith accompanied Jasper to take some photos with the child, which the Murphy Family would later publicize online.
When they left, the child went with them to the Murphy Villa, but Edith returned to her small home with Una.
It wasn't that she was cold-hearted and didn't care about the adopted child, but the Murphy Family wouldn't let her, and she had no ability to.
After taking a bath, Edith buried herself in the bed, curling up into a ball, as if only this way could she feel at ease.
She held her phone, thinking about being taken to the hotel that day.
She texted Sophia.
Edith: [Sophia, do you have Colin's number?]
Sophia sent the number directly.
Edith: [Thank you.]
Staring at the digits, Edith hesitated for a long time before dialing.
"Hello." Colin's gentle voice was as pleasant as ever.
Edith's nose suddenly tingled, and she wanted to sniff but feared Colin would hear, so she held back.
"It's Edith."
"What's up?"
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