Chapter 286 Investigate Further
Sophia leaned in, eyebrow raised, teasing him. "What, you ain't down for marriage?"
"I got someone in mind, not your niece," Jerry shot back at Neil, peeking inside. "Hope, she in there?"
I was hiding behind the door, out of his sight.
Seeing Sophia's smug grin, I couldn't help but chuckle. Just as I was about to say something, Sophia called out, "Hope, my dear niece, come on. Jerry's looking for you."
I could almost picture Jerry's confused face.
I got up and walked over. Jerry's cool, dry hand grabbed mine, then he looked at Sophia, rolled his eyes, and smirked, "Since when did Hope become your niece?"
Before I could say anything, Madison wrapped her arm around my shoulder, noticing Neil and Sophia teasing him, and laughed, "Because Hope is my daughter; what do you think?"
Jerry suddenly stood up straight. Before he could dig deeper and confirm the truth, his usual chill vibe softened a bit, and he obediently said, "Ms. Ortiz, you're not joking, right?"
"It's true, Jerry." I squeezed his hand and explained, "It happened yesterday, but you didn't come back last night, so I didn't get a chance to tell you."
But honestly, even if I had the chance, I probably wouldn't have said anything. I promised to keep it a secret for a bit to make Sophia happy.
Madison looked at him and smiled. "So, from now on, you don't need to call me Ms. Ortiz, call me..."
Jerry quickly said, "Mom."
We were all stunned.
Neil discreetly gave him a thumbs-up.
I quickly tugged at Jerry's hand. "She meant for you to call her Madison!"
Jerry tried to play it cool. "It's okay, with our relationship so solid, calling her 'Mom' is just a matter of time."
Sophia laughed at his attempt to please Madison. "Do you want to call me aunt?"
Jerry gave her a sidelong glance. "Then get remarried to Neil first."
Sophia crossed her arms and looked at him leisurely. "Oh, you used to worry he'd bully me, and now you're hoping we get remarried?"
Jerry chuckled, "Isn't this because you want me to call you aunt?"
After chatting for a while, Neil brought up Madison's plan to announce my identity at the dinner.
Neil wasn't on board. "Madison, it was hard for you to find Hope. Shouldn't we hold a more formal dinner? In the name of the Ortiz family or in your name, so everyone can see how much we value Hope, and no one will dare to mess with her in the future."
"I've thought about that too." Madison looked serious, holding my hand. "But I can't wait to let everyone know who my real daughter is. I don't want her to suffer another day of injustice."
Neil, sitting in the leather seat with a stern face, exuded a strong presence but showed a unique gentleness towards the younger generation. "Hope, what do you think?"
They were both thinking about me, just with different approaches. When my family considered my feelings so thoughtfully, I felt a newfound sense of security unlike any I had ever known. It was a feeling completely different from what a lover could provide. This was probably the magic of blood relations.
I smiled. "I'll go along with whatever you decide. Whether it's sooner or later, it doesn't change the fact that I'm Madison's daughter, and that's enough."
"Madison," Jerry took over the conversation with a smile, speaking methodically, "As far as I know, Sarah is still joining Living Dreamscape, and you haven't announced your relationship with her publicly yet."
He speculated, "She probably doesn't know either, right?"
"You're right." Madison nodded, curious about his intention. "Go on."
"Why don't we..." Jerry glanced at me before continuing, "investigate further."
He added, "I investigated Sarah's background two years ago. She's an orphan with no power or influence. How did she know you were looking for your daughter and appear in front of you?"
Madison nodded. "I've already got someone digging into who she was hanging with before."
"That's a tough trail to follow," Jerry said, confident. "When you went to find Hope yesterday, someone must've seen it. They'll cover their tracks before we can dig deeper."
He added, "Let's chill for a few days. When their guard's down, we can follow the clues."
"But my mom and I have been hanging out a lot lately," I pointed out. "Wouldn't that make them more suspicious?"
The person behind this had moves like the one from two years ago, and they were slick. Their schemes ran deep, and they wouldn't drop their suspicions easily.
Neil squinted. "Madison, how about we first announce Hope as your goddaughter? This way, we can protect her openly and have a reason for your frequent interactions."
"In that case, Hope..." Madison really wanted to announce my identity tonight, but if the person behind this wasn't caught, who knew what might happen.
She looked at me, worried I'd be upset.
I smiled, agreeing with Jerry and Neil's idea. "Mom, I think Neil and Jerry are right. Compared to whether we can live peacefully in the future, how and when my identity is announced isn't that important."
The person behind this had too much power. But even now, we couldn't figure out their purpose. Twice in a row, they haven't gained any benefit, and the only thing affected was my identity.
Madison took a deep breath. "Alright, I'll announce it later that I'm recognizing you as my goddaughter!"
"I can brag about it for a while," I joked, and just as I finished speaking, my phone rang. It was a call from Elissa; she had arrived at the hotel.
I finished the call and got up to meet her. Before leaving, I gave Jerry an encouraging look.
Even sitting on the sofa, Jerry didn't lean back as casually as usual, looking very well-behaved.
Sophia teased him, saying he finally had someone to be afraid of.
I left the lounge and walked toward the elevator.
There were more guests now. Dressed up as I was tonight and coming out of Madison's lounge, I attracted quite a bit of attention.
A few playboys even came up to ask for my contact info, which I politely declined.
Just as I was about to leave the banquet hall, I saw Kimberly.
I was sure Juniper hadn't sent an invite to the Harris family.
At that moment, a celeb with millions of fans came over to talk to me, "You're absolutely stunning. Your vibe is truly one of a kind, even in the entertainment world. Aren't you the popular designer, Ms. Borgia? You're quite close with Ms. Ortiz, right?"
His attitude was super humble. Even though I knew his intentions, I replied politely, "Thank you, I am. I'm quite close with Ms. Ortiz."
Unexpectedly, before I could finish speaking, I heard a mocking voice. "Hope, to make yourself seem more noble, how shameless can you be? Quite close? You're just a designer; who do you think you are?"
The socialite standing next to Kimberly, who I didn't recognize, was holding Kimberly's arm. "Kimberly, do you know her?"
"Just barely." Kimberly's tone was indifferent, hiding the jealousy in her eyes, and she sneered, "Just someone whose dad doesn't love her and has no mom. Two years ago, she even tricked my grandma into treating her like a granddaughter. Now she's trying to climb up to Ms. Ortiz. This kind of person is not in the same league as us!"
"Such a schemer?" The socialite looked me up and down with disdain. "You dare to climb up to Ms. Ortiz? Even we, the Parker family, have to show utmost sincerity to work with Ms. Ortiz. Who do you think you are?"
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
