Chapter 434 Speak Freely
Luann understood, after all, Alvin's face was like an open book.
"Please, Luann. I swear I won't cause any trouble. I'll just stand quietly by your side," Alvin pleaded, clutching her sleeve and giving it a little shake.
Luann tried to reason with him, "I don't think Elodie would be into someone like you."
"How will I know if I don't try? Maybe she does like my type," Alvin argued.
Luann rubbed her forehead, feeling a bit helpless.
Joshua chimed in, "Don't bring him along; he'll just be a pain and ruin your night."
Alvin shot back, "You're just jealous 'cause I have a girl I like and you don't."
Joshua scoffed, "I could easily outdo you."
Alvin challenged, "Then show it."
Luann quickly cut in, "Alright, Alvin, you can come with us."
Alvin was puzzled, "Who do you mean by 'us'?"
Luann replied, "Yeah, Myron will probably come too."
Myron didn't have much going on, so he'd definitely tag along. Plus, Luann had always been curious about his life abroad. With all the chaos on Upper West Side, she hadn't had the chance to ask.
Alvin swallowed hard. "Okay."
After dinner, since they'd all had a few drinks and couldn't drive, they decided to either walk or grab a cab.
Luann strolled down the street. The sky was still light, casting a soft, golden glow. She was a bit tipsy but not dizzy; in fact, she felt pretty clear-headed.
Suddenly, an angry voice shouted, "Watch where you're going!"
"I'm sorry," another voice came through.
Luann looked over and saw Madeline frantically picking up scattered vegetables from the ground.
Luann quickly walked over and squatted down to help. Madeline looked up, eyes welling up. "Luann?"
Luann smiled gently. "Long time no see."
Seeing Luann's gentle smile, Madeline's pent-up emotions burst out, and tears started flowing.
Luann was at a loss. "What's wrong? Don't cry." She quickly put the items back in the bag, picked it up with one hand, and helped Madeline to a bench by the roadside.
Madeline cried uncontrollably. Luann took out a tissue from her bag and handed it to her, then went into a store to get two cups of coffee.
"Luann, I really..." Madeline started, but didn't know where to begin. These were the Gilbert family's issues and had nothing to do with Luann. Now that she had her own family, she shouldn't burden her with these troubles.
"Take your time," Luann said, gently patting her back to calm her down.
Madeline cried for about ten minutes before gradually calming down. Her chest heaved from intense sobbing to a calm state, but her eyes were still filled with sorrow and sadness.
Luann asked, "What happened?" Back when she was with Wilber, she often saw Madeline and Micah, and they seemed to have a great relationship.
Madeline hesitated for a bit. "It's some family stuff."
Luann sat in front of her, patiently waiting for her to continue.
Madeline struggled with her emotions for a while before finally speaking, "Luann, I know you have a happy family now, and I shouldn't dump this on you. But I really..."
Luann said softly, "Why would you think that? No matter what, you've always been good to me. Go ahead, I'm listening."
Madeline took several deep breaths. "Juliet is pregnant."
Luann wasn't surprised by this news because she already knew.
"She's carrying Wilber's child, and they already got their marriage certificate."
Luann's eyelid twitched, showing some confusion and surprise. "Got their marriage certificate? How come I didn't know about this?"
It wasn't that Luann was self-centered, but given Juliet's past behavior, anything related to Wilber would have been flaunted in front of her to provoke her. But the marriage certificate got handled so quietly.
Madeline explained, "Because Juliet signed with some entertainment company that doesn't allow her to date, let alone get married. So, we kept it just among the Gilbert family members. You know, I've never liked Juliet. If it weren't for her, you and Wilber wouldn't have broken up, and you would be my daughter-in-law now. Since she is carrying a child, I offered to take care of her. But unexpectedly, Juliet accidentally fell down the stairs and had a miscarriage. She even said I pushed her."
"Luann, how could I do such a thing? Now Juliet is holding onto this and wants to divorce Wilber. He doesn't want to see me now, and I'm an outcast in the Gilbert family." Madeline added.
After hearing this, Luann slowly furrowed her brows. She asked, "You said Juliet had a miscarriage? When did this happen?"
"Before the charity gala."
Luann gently shook her head with a hint of sarcasm. If she hadn't accidentally found Juliet's miscarriage report, she might have been fooled by her.
Madeline continued, "To appease Juliet, Micah said he would give her five percent of the Gilbert Group's shares, but she demanded thirty percent. This morning, I had a fight with him over this."
Luann's eyes narrowed. "Thirty percent? She really dares to ask!"
She thought, 'Juliet wants to marry Wilber so badly; why would she suddenly get rid of the child? Either she fears the child will hinder her career in the entertainment industry and chose to abort it, or the child has developmental issues, and the doctor advised against keeping it. Or the child isn't Wilber's. But no matter what, Madeline isn't to blame.'
Luann asked, "So, did you agree to give Juliet the shares?"
Madeline said bitterly, "Yes, the transfer contract should be signed by now."
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