"Yes, Mr. Crawford is still busy upstairs," answered Aunt Neile.
"Then I'll go upstairs for a bit.” Nina rose to her feet and made her way up the stairs.
She headed to the bedroom where Luke was. She knocked on the door without going in.
Luke lifted the cup of Americano and glanced at the person standing at the door. He spoke
in a cold voice, "What's the matter?"
"There's something I'd like to know. I heard Luca say that she'll go back to Crawford Manor
with you tonight, is that true?"
"Yes." Luke withdrew his gaze and continued to look at the computer screen. After putting
down the cup of Americano, he typed on the keyboard for a while.
"I don't care what you guys have been keeping from me, and I don't care how Old Master
Crawford feels about whatever's going on between you two. But with this whole scandal
thing, Luca might feel that she's being treated unfairly if you take her back there. You'd
better make sure to protect her,” said Nina.
Even though Bianca was Luke's legal wife, Nina became unconsciously protective of Luca
after getting to know her.
It was contradictory, but Percy had also advised her to follow her heart. Therefore, Nina
followed her own feelings.
She did not want to see Luca being bullied.
Perhaps it was because Luca had helped her before. That was why her heart leaned
toward her...
That was what Nina thought.
"I'll always protect her," affirmed Luke as he voiced his commitment.
Furthermore, this promise would last a lifetime.
As Nina listened to Luke's firm commitment, she nodded in silence.
It was hard to doubt him through the way he presented himself. When he said he would
always protect Luca, there was a sincerity in his eyes that made skepticism nearly
impossible.
Then, Nina turned around and headed downstairs. When she came down the stairs, she
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtsuddenly realized Luke said that he would always protect Luca.
What about Bianca?
As Nina thought of Bianca, who had lost her memory and was still living abroad, she felt as
though she was betraying her friend. It left an uneasy feeling in her heart.
However, she did not dwell on it for too long because no matter what she thought or did, it
would not affect the relationship between Luca and Luke, nor would it bring back Bianca's
memories.
When she realized that she would be late if she did not leave soon, she quickly put on her
mask and hurriedly left. ...
Old Master Mallory, with an unwilling expression on his face, brought Karen to Crawford
Manor.
Old Master Crawford was slightly surprised that the two of them would come. He
wondered if Luke had been careless in his actions, allowing Karen to find new evidence in
just one night.
Otherwise, why would Karen bring Old Master Mallory here?
However, the thought only flashed across his mind before Old Master Crawford quickly
denied it. If they were here to hold him accountable, the look on their faces would not be
like this.
The expression on Karen's face was as though everyone here owed her millions of dollars.
It was full of unwillingness.
It seemed that Luke was still reliable in handling things. After all, if Old Master Mallory and
Karen were not here to accuse anyone, the only possibility was that they were here to
apologize.
Karen had caused a scene at Crawford Manor twice, and Luke sent those things to Old
Master Mallory. No matter how hard Old Master Mallory tried to turn a blind eye toward
what Karen did and the evidence provided to him, he would lose all face if he did not bring
Karen here to apologize.
Old Master Crawford was pretty sure they did not come here to cause trouble. His mood
brightened up at once, and he asked Mr. Griffin to get him a cup of tea.
The fragrance of the tea filled the air. Before taking a sip, Old Master Mallory already knew
that Mr. Griffin had brewed a fine pot of tea at Old Master Crawford's behest.
Old Master Mallory enjoyed good tea, but it was not the time for tea tasting now. Of
course, he was not in the mood either.
After all, Karen had embarrassed him!
"Mallory, why didn't you give me a heads up before coming? If you had, I'd have someone
fetch the stored morning dew water. It's crystal clear and enhances the tea's flavor even
more," Old Master Crawford said with a serious expression on his face.
He intentionally brought up the fact that Old Master Mallory did not give him advance
notice.
"Sorry, Crawford. My daughter-in-law wasn't being considerate. I forgot to arrange a time
with you in advance," apologized Old Master Mallory, knowing that his unannounced visit
was quite impolite.
Still, impolite or not, what was done was done. Now, he had to go along with Old Master
Crawford's words. After all, an apology was necessary, and the relationship between the
two families needed to be maintained.
He could not afford to let what Karen did ruin the years of collaboration between the
Mallory and Crawford families.
"Oh, no big deal. It's just a pity. Good water is as important for a good brew as the tea
itself, but it's too late to have someone bring it over now. We can only use this spring
water. Hope you don't mind," replied Old Master Crawford as he slightly lifted his hand.
Mr. Griffin understood immediately. After the tea leaves were steeped, he poured in some
boiled mountain spring water and prepared a cup for each of them.
"Crawford, you're splitting hairs with that talk. Even though I haven't sipped the tea yet,
the aroma alone is incredible. This is good tea. How could I mind? I should thank you for
letting me enjoy such fine tea today!" Old Master Mallory held the teacup and leaned in to
take a sniff.
The aroma traveled through his nasal passages, instantly refreshing his mind.
Old Master Mallory knew this tea was excellent and took a careful sip.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmMeanwhile, Karen sat there, still wearing that unwilling expression. She did not touch the
tea that Mr. Griffin served. She was not showing any respect.
Setting down his teacup, Old Master Crawford deliberately asked, "Karen, why aren't you
having tea? You don't fancy this type of tea?"
Karen wanted to answer that she indeed did not like it.
However, she had not even tasted it yet. How would she know if she liked it or not? If she
said that, she would be blatantly going against Old Master Crawford.
If Old Master Mallory were not here, she might dare to defy this old man. However, with
Old Master Mallory here, she could not act rudely even if she was not happy about it. She
shook her head.
Old Master Mallory shot her a glare. They came here to apologize. Who was she giving this
attitude to?
"Crawford, young people nowadays prefer coffee. They're not into tea. Don't mind her. She
doesn't have the palate for such good tea.”
"Haha, that's true. Nowadays, young people like to use coffee to perk up. But what they
don't know is that tea has more magical energizing effects than coffee. And good tea is
way more expensive than those so-called good coffee beans."
Old Master Crawford went along with him. As he finished, he went straight to the point.
"Mallory, what brings you here today?"
Old Master Mallory was still pondering how to bring up the matter.
He did not expect Old Master Crawford's words to give him an opportunity to get straight
to the point.
Old Master Mallory's expression turned serious as he placed his teacup and glanced at
Karen. "Say what needs to be said right now."
Karen was startled for a moment. Was he asking her to apologize right away?
Was he not going to speak up for her?
Karen's hands clenched into fists.
Old Master Crawford listened to their conversation and watched them, pretending not to
understand. He asked, "What's going on here?"
Old Master Mallory knew that making Karen apologize was impossible. He glared at her
again, then turned back to Old Master Crawford with a smile on his face. "Crawford, I
brought Karen here today to offer up an apology."