Chapter 470 Those Words Are Really a Bit Hurtful
Susanna was chillin' with Lillian at the dining table when she suddenly got this weird shiver down her spine and her eyelids started twitching.
She thought, 'Aaron's already bounced from Philly, so everything should be cool, right?'
She rubbed her temples, feeling like something was about to go sideways.
After they finished eating, Justin strolled into the hall and asked, "Y'all done eating? I'm starving."
Aviana chimed in, "Aren't you on some diet? If you eat this late, won't you pack on the pounds? Watch out, the director might chew you out again."
Justin's face went pale as he said, "Aviana, cut me some slack. My manager's been on my case all day, watching my every bite. I finally found a way to sneak home. Can't I just grab a bite?"
The butler nearby, looking all concerned, said, "You're already so skinny, you don't need to diet. I'll whip up your favorite pasta."
Justin, with tears in his eyes, said, "Alright, you're the best."
Susanna noticed Justin had indeed dropped a lot of weight, but he looked even more dashing.
Still, he did look a bit too thin. Being an actor these days is rough; they eat less than girls.
Lillian, looking all worried, ran up to Justin holding a pastry, saying, "Uncle Justin, try this, it's super yummy."
Justin eyed the dessert Lillian handed over and swallowed hard, saying, "I'm on a diet, can't do sweets."
Lillian said, "But you're not fat at all, a little bit won't hurt."
In the end, Justin couldn't resist and took a bite, feeling instantly better.
Edward, holding Lillian, glanced at Justin and said, "Aren't you busy? How come you have time today? Did you come back just to sneak some food?"
Ouch, that stung a bit.
After finishing the pastry and downing a glass of warm water, Justin said, "I need to talk to Susanna about something."
Seeing Justin's serious face, Susanna had a hunch about what he wanted to discuss.
She quickly stood up and pulled Justin to a quiet spot outside, asking, "Is it about Aaron?"
Anything about Aaron was a no-go in front of Edward. If he found out, she'd get an earful.
"Yeah, you nailed it. It's about Aaron. You went to the Thornberry family's signing ceremony, and the reporters are all over your connection with him. They know he's Lillian and Charles's dad, so the media's gearing up for a big reveal. It's already blowing up."
Hearing this, Susanna whipped out her phone and checked. Sure enough, some media outlets were already hinting they knew who her ex-husband was.
But it was just a teaser, not naming names yet.
Susanna's mouth twitched as she said, "The media's fast. Don't they ever take a break?"
"Don't sweat it, for now, it's just gossip. Every year there's some rumor about who your ex-husband is, and a lot of folks think this is just more fake news. We still have a shot to fix this. My manager gave me the heads-up, so I came back early to get the scoop."
Susanna spilled the beans about everything that went down at the signing ceremony today.
She paused and said, "Aaron's already jetted back to Lindwell. As for the reporters, just give 'em a heads-up to keep their mouths shut. I don't want the media digging up my past with Aaron; it's ancient history."
Justin nodded and replied, "Yeah, I figured the same, so I've already tipped off the media. At most, they'll hint they know who your ex-husband is without dropping Aaron's name."
"Perfect. Justin, I'll leave the headlines to you."
"No biggie. I came back to handle this anyway. But Susanna, what's the deal with you and Aaron? He's playing bodyguard now. Are you catching feelings?"
"Come on, how could I be swayed by something like that? Compared to the crap I went through giving birth, this is nothing."
"Good to hear. I was worried you might forget Aaron's got a shady side and isn't right for you. If you really wanna date, we can help you find someone better."
Susanna quickly shook her head and said, "Nah, I'm not even thinking about relationships right now. Being single is way more chill and happy."
After all, Charles's health was still shaky, and she had no time for romance.
That night, Susanna told stories to Lillian until she knocked out, then headed back to her room.
Susanna opened her phone and saw the media's coverage of Roman and Kayle's drama.
The headlines were all about Roman scheming against his three ex-wives to snag huge assets, totally trashing the Thornberry family's rep.
Because the Thornberry family was hogging the headlines, even though the media had a scoop about her ex-husband's identity, it didn't get much traction.
Seeing this, Susanna let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness Roman and Kayle were taking the heat.
The next day, Susanna went to work like usual.
She drove to the office solo, and the weather was awesome.
Finally, her life was back to normal, without stressing about Aaron popping up and finding out the bone marrow secret or Charles's existence.
When Susanna got to the office, her secretary came up to her and said, "Ms. Jones, the Abbott Group hit us up again about teaming up on the Lindwell estate project. What do you think?"
Susanna remembered that when she and Aaron flew to Philly, Aaron had mentioned this. If she chose not to team up with Aaron, he’d definitely mess with her hotel's growth in Lindwell.
Knowing Aaron, he’d totally pull something like that!
She gritted her teeth and said, "Alright, let's consider teaming up with them. Get the planning department to draft some detailed agreements."
"Ms. Jones, will you be the one to negotiate with the Abbott Group when the time comes?"
