Chapter 703 Sooner or Later, We'll Be Family
Isolde's eyes welled up with tears. "Mrs. Lewis, I guess I'm just not meant to be your daughter-in-law."
"Don't say that, sweetie. You're a good kid, and your luck will turn around," Ember reassured her, then called Harold over.
Harold showed up but kept his distance from Isolde, clearly wanting nothing to do with her.
Ember grabbed his hand and put it in Isolde's. "Harold, I have one wish, and you won't grant it. So, I want to make Isolde my daughter. She can be your sister, okay?"
"Mom, I already have a sister, Hermione, remember?" Harold was exasperated.
Ember wasn't even that old, so why was she acting so confused?
If she really wanted another daughter, why didn't she have another kid back then? With modern medicine, she could've had a test-tube baby and even picked the gender.
She had previously drugged his tea and locked him and Isolde in a room together. Even though nothing happened, it was still super awkward. Now she wanted them to call each other siblings? Wasn't this making him embarrassed?
"Hermione calls me Aunt Ember, it's different. Harold, I'm not forcing you to be with Isolde, just let me acknowledge her as my daughter, and you as her brother. Is that so hard?"
Ember was about to start crying again.
"Mom, if you want to acknowledge a daughter, go ahead, but I don't need another sister. From now on, we'll each go our own way." Harold usually gave in to Ember, but he couldn't agree with this.
Ember didn't push him further.
She just wanted an excuse to keep Isolde around, giving them a reason to interact.
Now that Harold had agreed, he couldn't just send Isolde away.
Ember kept complaining about headaches and hunger, forcing Harold to stay in the ward.
It wasn't until the next morning, seeing the dark circles under Harold's eyes, that Ember finally let him go. "Alright, go home and get some rest. You don't need to visit today. With Isolde here, you can relax."
Harold finally left.
Behind him, Ember smiled with satisfaction. By now, Desiree must have been trashed by netizens.
There was no way they could be together now.
But Ember didn't expect Liam and Tessa to fight back, with Daryl helping out.
He went online and exposed Harold's affair, causing Desiree to miscarry, and hired marketing accounts to spread the love story between Harold and Isolde.
When the news broke, the Lewis family was all in the hospital with Ember, so no one noticed the online chaos.
It wasn't until Harold got to the office that his secretary rushed over, looking frazzled. "Mr. Lewis, what do we do about the online backlash? Someone just threw rotten eggs at our building."
The situation had blown up so much that even the employees' commutes were disrupted, not to mention the hit to the company's image.
"What public opinion?" Harold felt his head was still in a fog, thinking it was just some competitor's smear campaign.
The secretary filled him in on all the details.
Harold's first thought wasn't about his own reputation but about Desiree. "Desiree hasn't done anything wrong. She doesn't deserve this. Who's behind it?"
Even if Desiree had been with another guy, as long as he was decent, Harold would just be upset, not blame her.
Desiree was amazing, and it was his own shortcomings that hurt her, leading to their split.
"I don't know. A netizen posted a video, and then all the major marketing accounts picked it up. It blew up on Twitter. Then the Sandvik family hit back," the secretary explained.
Without hesitation, Harold said, "Get someone to clarify this immediately. Send lawyer's letters to those accounts. If they keep spreading lies, we'll take legal action."
Then he turned and walked out, desperate to find Desiree and see how she was holding up.
The secretary rushed to handle the clarification.
But Daryl was keeping a close eye on the online buzz. He wasn't about to let this blow over easily.
Since Harold wanted to clear things up, Daryl would make sure it backfired.
Meanwhile, he went to Liam and Tessa, badmouthing Harold. "Desiree is just too naive. You raised her so well, she hasn't seen the dark side of the world, so she didn't see through Harold right away. And Harold is really ruthless. They were married once, how could he be so heartless?"
"Harold won't stop until he ruins Desiree," Liam fumed, slamming the table in anger.
When Harold had visited their home before, Liam hadn't seen this side of him.
Now Harold's small company wasn't even listed yet. If it ever got listed, wouldn't he go after the Sandvik family next?
"You stay with Desiree. I'm going out to handle this," Liam said, unable to contain his anger.
He got up and stormed out.
Tessa hurried after him. "Where are you going? Don't be impulsive. I don't feel safe with you going out like this."
"Mrs. Sandvik, I'll go with Mr. Sandvik. You stay home and rest. I'll keep things under control," Daryl said, standing by Liam and reassuring Tessa.
If they went together, it would be hard for Daryl to manage both. If they confronted Harold and something slipped, all his plans would fall apart.
But if he tried to stop them, he might delay things but not forever.
After thinking it over, Daryl decided to go along and play it by ear.
Tessa trusted him completely now. "It's good to have you with him. Otherwise, I'd be really worried. Daryl, we're really troubling you too much."
"Not at all. We'll be family soon enough," Daryl said with a broad smile.
He figured that once this mess was over, his relationship with Desiree could move forward quickly. With a few more gestures, they might soon be able to be together..
The thought of marrying and having kids with Desiree made him incredibly excited.
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