Chapter 81 The Family's Opposition
Katniss's breath caught, her fingers gripping the bag strap tight. She blurted out, "This book..."
"What's up?" Tristan asked, weighing the book in his hand. He smirked and said, "Just something to kill time."
With that, he turned and shoved the book onto the top shelf of the bookcase, finding a random spot for it.
Katniss opened her mouth but didn't know what to say, just watching him stash the book away.
Lost in thought, she plopped down across from him, ready to jot down notes for the meeting.
This video call was with a bunch of execs, including Tristan's parents.
Katniss could barely make out a face on the screen that kinda looked like Tristan's—it was his dad.
On the cold screen, neither father nor son showed any emotion. From the start, it was all business talk.
During the two-hour meeting, she never saw Tristan act like a son, just a business partner.
At the end of the meeting, Tristan said, "Goodbye."
A slightly cold female voice came from the other end, "Wait, everyone else leave. I need to talk to him alone."
There was a faint noise from the computer, and within seconds, it went silent.
Katniss suddenly felt she should leave too, quickly closing her notebook and heading out.
Tristan glanced at her from the computer, then quickly looked away.
Their conversation didn't last long; Katniss even suspected they just seriously said goodbye and then hung up the call.
She had just reached the corner of the stairs when she heard Tristan coming out of the study.
"Recording pen," Tristan said. The light hit him, and as he walked closer, his features became clearer.
Taking the recording pen used for the meeting from his hand, she softly said, "Thanks, Mr. Forbes. Should I head back now?"
Tristan, with his hands crossed on the stair railing, looked kinda off. "Go ahead," he said.
A bit surprised, Katniss had thought he might ask her to stay the night, given how obvious his interest had been during the day.
But she said nothing, nodded slightly, and then turned to go downstairs, grabbed her car keys, and headed straight back to Oakwood Hills.
She still had to prep course materials for Kieran, and as soon as she got home, she spread out a pile of books and got busy. It wasn't until the early hours that she finished and sent the materials to Kieran.
Still wide awake, she decided to organize the meeting content to hand over to Tristan first thing in the morning.
Opening her notebook and listening to the recording, she typed out a detailed meeting summary report on the computer.
Then she realized that during Tristan's chat with his parents, the recording pen had stayed on, catching only a few ice-cold, clipped exchanges.
"I heard Bella's back. Your grandmother called me. She and I agree, you can't be with her," Tristan's mom said.
"I agree with them," Tristan's dad chimed in.
Then Tristan's flat voice came through, "I can handle my own business."
"Without our blessing, she won't marry into the Astor family. Your grandmother only arranged for you to marry that woman out of spite. Now that Bella's back and has apologized, the goal of your marriage has been accomplished. Get the divorce done quickly. Your grandmother's old, and your father and I can't stay abroad forever. Don't forget there are people waiting for you here—Eudora's almost done with her studies; she's now not only distinguished but also of marriageable age," Tristan's mom said.
Her voice softened a bit but still had that no-nonsense tone.
Tristan just said, "If you want to come back, do as you please, but leave me out of it." Then he hung up the call.
The three of them talked about marriage like it was a business deal. It ended in a standoff, so when she got back, Tristan seemed in a foul mood.
He probably wanted to marry Bella but was up against the whole family, and from what his parents said, they had other plans for his marriage.
Whether Tristan chose or his parents arranged it, that person would never be her.
Katniss's lips twisted into a bitter smile.
At least they were in love but couldn't be together, which was painful. On the other hand, her feelings for Tristan were one-sided and filled with pity, which was nothing more than wishful thinking.
Taking a deep breath, she got up, hit the bathroom, took a shower, and went to bed.
Tossing and turning, she couldn't sleep. It was nearly dawn when she popped a sleeping pill and set seven or eight alarms on her phone, worried she wouldn't wake up in time for work in the morning.
She couldn't remember when she had bought the bottle of sleeping pills, but now half the bottle was gone.
Severe sleep deprivation made her look like a mess, and because she woke up late, she didn't even have time to put on light makeup.
Early in the morning, Tristan sent a message telling her to go straight to Synergy Global Corporation. When she got there, she found out that Tristan had gone to the Forbes Mansion to pick up Adelaide.
Bella had also shown up unusually early and had been in Tristan's office since she arrived, serving Adelaide tea and trying to cozy up to her.
Katniss didn't have time to worry about Bella because as soon as she walked into the company, she noticed everyone giving her weird looks.
"Katniss," they greeted her like usual, but their eyes darted away. After saying hello, they bolted, like she had the plague or something.
She furrowed her brows as she got to her desk, and just as she sat down, there was a knock on the door.
Looking up, she saw it was Jessica.
Before she could say anything, Jessica pushed the door open, glanced outside to make sure no one was around, closed the door, and quickly walked over. "Such a big thing, why didn't you tell me?" she asked.
Katniss asked, "What happened?"
"See, you don't treat me like family. Not only did you not tell me, but even when I ask, you still won't spill it," Jessica said, clearly annoyed. "How long have you been pregnant?"
'Pregnant?' Katniss looked shocked, her mouth hanging open. "Who told you I was pregnant?"
Jessica sat down across from her, leaning in. "Don't worry about who told me. Just tell me what you plan to do with the baby."
The whole company knew, so whatever Katniss said now would be pointless.
She didn't feel the need to explain, so she simply said, "I'll only say this once: I'm not pregnant. Mind your own business and watch your words. Don't spread rumors."
Those people would definitely try to get info from Jessica, given their relationship.
Seeing Jessica's unhappy face, she added, "If I find out you're spreading rumors, don't blame me for being rude."
When she got mad, Jessica was still pretty intimidated. She immediately put away her displeasure and forced a smile. "Got it. Take care of yourself. I'm leaving."
From her words, it was clear she still didn't believe her. Katniss raised her hand to pinch her brow, unable to focus on work.
Jessica didn't immediately go back to her department after leaving Katniss's office. Instead, she ducked past her window and ran to Bella's office.
Bella happened to be coming out to pour tea for Adelaide.
"How did it go? Did she say what she plans to do with the baby?" Bella hurriedly asked.
She had spent a long time trying to dig up dirt on Katniss's terminally ill mother but found nothing, so she had to find another way to stir things up.
Jessica shook her head, saying, "She wouldn't admit it in front of me."
Bella was a bit exasperated and stomped her foot. "I don't believe she would disregard her own reputation."
"She's with Mr. Forbes for the money. Even if she is pregnant, the chances of keeping the baby are slim. Besides, now that the whole company knows, she has to deal with it quickly," Jessica said.
"Keep an eye on her for me, so she doesn't do anything behind my back." Bella smiled at her. "If she leaves, Tristan and I will get married. Then, both the secretary and assistant positions will be promoted from within the company."
The hint was clear as day. Jessica thought it would be awesome if she could rake in the kind of cash Katniss did, pulling in hundreds of thousands a year.
"Don't worry, Miss Astor. I'll keep a good watch for you!" Jessica said.
But as soon as she promised Bella and got back to her desk, another thought popped into Jessica's mind.
After all, Katniss was carrying a precious life within her. It would be going too far to dispose of the unborn baby so heartlessly.
The media occasionally reported rumors of Tristan cheating with Bella. If it got out that Katniss was pregnant, Tristan would definitely freak out.
She was a bit scared, but the thought grew wildly once it took root. She had to think it through!
Katniss took the processed documents to the secretary's office and saw that the secretary's chair was empty. She grabbed a passing employee and asked, "Where's the secretary?"
The female employee, Christina Peterson, had been with the company for over ten years and was still unmarried.
Three years ago, if Katniss hadn't parachuted into Synergy Global Corporation as a special assistant, Christina would have been the most likely to get promoted.
So Christina didn't like Katniss, but Katniss did her job well and had a good reputation.
Christina had been holding in her resentment for three years without a chance to vent it. Today, she finally saw an opportunity.
"Katniss, do you need something from the secretary?" Christina asked.
"Delivering confidential documents," Katniss said succinctly. "Have her come to my office to get them when she returns."
Christina grabbed her and said, "The secretary went to deliver documents to a client and won't be back until the afternoon at the earliest. Why don't you give them to me? I'll pass them on to her."
Katniss had to go out with Tristan in the afternoon, but the documents needed to be processed by the end of the day. She felt a headache coming on.
"Katniss, don't you trust me? You can seal the documents," Christina turned and took a seal from the cabinet, specifically for sealing manila envelopes. It was a one-time seal that would show if it had been tampered with.
Katniss didn't stand on ceremony, following company protocol. She put the documents in the manila envelope and sealed it.
"Thank you. Make sure to give it to the secretary as soon as she returns," Katniss said.
After Christina promised, Katniss returned to her office.
In the afternoon, when it was time to go out for a business meeting, she went to Tristan's office.
She first greeted Adelaide, who was sitting on the sofa. "Mrs. Forbes."
"Yes," Adelaide responded, glancing at Bella, who was serving tea. "Bella, look at them. After spending so much time together, they even have similar manners, don't they?"
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