Filed to story: The CEO’s Wife Is a Secret Boss Novel (Allison & Jeremy) Free Online
“Mandy!”
Alyssa and Jeremy, their concern evident, hurried after Mandy. They witnessed the entire altercation unfold before them.
“Madam Mandy, how could he treat you like that?” Jeremy’s eyes ablaze with anger, his body tense with indignation.
Mandy offered a wry smile and shook her head, trying to downplay the situation.
But Jeremy’s fists clenched, his resolve evident. “I’ll find him and make him pay for this!”
“Don’t, son!” Mandy interjected, grabbing Jeremy’s arm. “This isn’t your fight. You have a reputation as the president of the Walsh Group to uphold. It’s not worth tarnishing it over a petty man like him.”
This time, she addressed him not as “Mr. Walsh” but as “son”.
Jeremy’s entire body buzzed with energy, but he now felt even more upset for Mandy. “Mandy, you’re Lyse’s family, which makes you my family as well. I can disregard my reputation, but I cannot bear to see you suffering so!”
Jeremy’s heartfelt words made tears flood Alyssa’s eyes. She hugged him tightly, her heart feeling so warm inside.
Mandy was choked up with emotion. She did her best to smile and said, “Thank you.”
“Don’t worry, Mandy. I won’t let you suffer in silence.” Alyssa’s eyes glinted as she spoke, “If I don’t teach Dominic a lesson after this… I’ll change my last name to his!”
Jeremy looked at Alyssa curiously. She must’ve gone silly with anger. If she changed her last name to Dominic’s, she’d still be a Taylor.
Mandy said gently, “Lyse, your father is still ill and in an unstable state. He nearly relapsed because of the commotion earlier, so it’s best you don’t take any rash action these days so as to not upset your father. You can discuss things with him once he’s all better.”
“I really don’t understand what Winston is trying to do, Mandy!” Alyssa exclaimed angrily. “He’s clearly tolerating Dominic’s vile behavior! He was never so blind in the past!
“Is Winston going to allow Dominic to take all the company’s profits like some leech all because he is his own brother? Blind loyalty is as good as supporting injustice!”
“Winston is not foolish. He’s only doing this because of your mother!” Mandy said hurriedly, not able to stand Alyssa’s misunderstanding toward Winston, who loved her deeply.
“My mother. What about my mother? What does she have to do with Dominic?” Alyssa demanded, grabbing Mandy’s arm.
Mandy’s lips pulled tight.
Alyssa was still a young child when Jennifer passed away, and with Winston intentionally keeping certain things about Jennifer from everyone, Alyssa knew very little about her own mother.
So, to Alyssa, her own mother was a beautiful mystery.
Now that she’d finally found a chance to know more about Jennifer, she was definitely going to pursue it!
“Tell me, Mandy!” Alyssa was incredibly panicked. “Why. Why don’t I have the right to learn about my own mother? Don’t you think that’s too cruel a fate to inflict on me?”
“Dominic Taylor saved your mother’s life.”
Both Jeremy and Alyssa were stunned. “What?
“There’s no need to be so surprised. That’s the truth of the matter. You could say it’s fated to be.” Mandy slowly walked over to a nearby chair and sat down, reminiscing about the past.
“What I know is limited as well, although it’s more than what Colene and Lyla know since I spent more time with him earlier. As far as I know, your mother was a foreigner.
“I knew not where she was from. Winston cherished and protected her greatly. Her background and identity is perhaps the Taylor family’s greatest mystery.”
“Mom was a foreigner?” Alyssa was stunned. So was Jeremy.
But neither Alyssa nor her four brothers appeared to be of mixed blood, which meant Jennifer must still share some local blood.
“Dominic had a deep-sea fishing hobby. He saved your mother 30 years ago while out at the Northurian Sea,” Mandy said, sighing softly. “I don’t know how exactly he did this. All I know is that your mother was found battered and bruised on shore, clothes torn, and barely breathing… like a beached mermaid.
“Regardless of whether Dominic decided to save her on a whim or he did it out of lust, he was the one who brought her back home to Belbanks. It was because of Dominic’s act of saving Jennifer which led to her meeting Winston. Only then were you and your brothers born.”
Alyssa listened to Mandy’s words, eyes slowly tearing up.
Battered and bruised…
Barely breathing.
What suffering did her mother go through to have nearly lost her life in a foreign country?
Jeremy held on to Alyssa’s trembling hand, asking Mandy curiously, “During all the years Mrs. Taylor was here in Belbanks alone and after giving birth to so many children, did she never once thought to contact her own family or return to her home country?”
Mandy shook her head, eyes downcast. “No, not once. Winston even changed Jennifer’s lawful nationality and gave her a new identity, cutting her off entirely from her past.”
Both Jeremy and Alyssa were even more confused now. What did Jennifer undergo to be willing to hide her identity and permanently part ways with her home country?
Alyssa was all the more curious about her mother’s identity now.
“I don’t have answers for whatever more you might want to ask, Lyse. Your father has also privately reminded me on countless occasions to never tell you this information about your mother,” Mandy said.
She then held Alyssa’s hand and pleaded tearfully, “I don’t know why Winston is doing this, but you must trust him. He truly did love Jennifer and loves you in turn.
“All he does, he does for your well-being, nothing else. So, Lyse, just pretend I never told you about Jennifer today. Don’t ask Winston about it. Okay?”
Alyssa loved her mother deeply, but she didn’t want to trouble Mandy, so she could only nod tearfully.
Winston’s health had once again deteriorated due to Dominic’s actions, just as he had started to show signs of improvement.
Fortunately, Julien arrived in time to check up on Winston and gave him some medications to stabilize his condition.
When Julien returned to his office and shut the door, he slumped back in his chair, exhausted to the max. As Winston’s primary doctor, he was under great pressure.
Winston was his lover’s father, after all. Who could understand the pressure of having to execute your job well in front of your future father-in-law?
Julien splayed himself on the desk with his mouth crumpled up grumpily. Julien had helped Winston whenever the latter had a sudden and dangerous decline in health, saving him from death’s door countless times.
It had been three whole days of no sleep and long hours spent standing on his feet, making him both exhausted and hungry. But Jonah, heartless as he was, only worried over Winston and never once checked in on Julien.
Julien, accustomed to wine and the company of men, had always navigated life effortlessly, winning over whomever he pleased. But encountering Jonah changed everything, as Julien found himself in uncharted territory, experiencing the discomfort of being outplayed by another man.
“I hate you, Jonah Taylor!” Julien growled, nearly shattering the surface of his glass desk with how hard he slammed his hand on it. Aggrieved tears welled in his eyes. “I swear that this is the last time I’m helping you! I’m not going to help you anymore, even if you beg me to¡ª”
Someone knocked on the door just then.
Julien quickly dried his tears and wiped his nose with some tissue before opening the door.
Jonah’s handsome, smiling face came into view the moment Julien opened the door.
“Julien.”
Julien’s heart raced, and his grip around the door instinctively tightened.
Jonah’s gentle call of his name had made him instantly slip into a daze.
All of Julien’s anger had dissipated in an instant.
“You must be exhausted from the past couple of days of working. You haven’t had dinner yet, have you?” Jonah held up a plastic bag in his hand.
He continued, “I remembered that you mentioned you don’t usually eat carbs. Instead, you have fried chicken to reward yourself when you’re under a lot of stress and tired. So I’ve brought you some fried chicken. I don’t know what flavor you like, so I bought several.”
Julien swallowed hungrily.
In the end, he still let Jonah enter the office.
But to save his pride, Julien put on a poker face and sat back in his chair, refusing to look at Jonah. “There’s no need to be so polite, Mr. Jonah. Helping the sick and injured is my duty as a doctor, so I’ll always perform to my best.”
“Is someone angry?” Jonah asked instead, ignoring how distant Julien was being.
Julien blinked quickly. “W-Who’s angry here? Not me.”
“If you weren’t angry, why were you crying?”
Julien’s heart pounded wildly, and his cheeks flushed. He instinctively glanced at the mirror on the wall.
In the reflection, Julien’s lips were pulled tight and cheeks extremely flushed, looking like someone’s angry wife.
Jonah chuckled silently and took out the boxes of fried chicken, arranging them in front of Julien. He even set the utensils and tissues down neatly by the side.