Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion >>
Danika smiled faintly. She didn’t think that Marigold would be so honest. She even spoke about her position in the family. She couldn’t help liking her.
“Alright. I’ll ask for help when I need it,” Danika said.
They talked merrily. Gilbert seemed to notice Marigold’s presence next to Danika. He excused himself from a few guests and turned toward them.
Marigold instantly grew anxious. She stood up at once. “He’s coming. I’m going to leave now. You have to help me!”
“Alright.” Danika wasn’t expecting Marigold to be so afraid of Gilbert. It seems that he had admonished her before.
When Gilbert walked over to Danika, she noticed how dark his exp**ssion was. He swept his gaze over their surroundings, as if he were looking for someone, then retracted his gaze quickly.
“What did she say to you?” He looked at Danika, his voice cold and frosty.
Danika at once pulled him down to the seat next to her. “What are you so mad for, Gilbert? She’s just a girl. What is she going to say?”
“I’m afraid that she’ll hurt you,” Gilbert said. His gaze was deep. “She’s one of the Wagners. She looks innocent, but she has a complicated history. You can’t believe a word she says.”
“She’s not here for me. She’s here for you, Gilbert.” Danika was exasperated. She had no idea why Gilbert would be so serious. Marigold didn’t look like a thug, no matter which way she looked.
“Me?” Gilbert frowned. It took only a moment for him to figure something out. His face turned even sourer than before.
“She likes you, but you already know that.” Marigold had turned to Danika for help because she most definitely had already told Gilbert about how she felt but was faced with his rejection.
Gilbert scoffed. “Likes me? Who knows if it’s a trap set by the Wagners? They’ve always done underhanded things to achieve their goals.”
Were the Wagners that pathetic? Before Danika could think of a reason, Eustace walked over. “That’s not right of you to say, Gilbert. Who hasn’t done underhanded things in the business world? And that includes you.”
Marigold stood next to Eustace, her eyes reddened. Evidently, she had heard Gilbert’s words.
“I quite forgot that you’re close with the Wagners, Mr. Quincey, especially with Paul Wagner. People even say that you’re like brothers. Of course you’d stick up for them,” Gilbert said sarcastically. His words implied that he turned up his nose at the Wagners, and now, even Eustace.
Eustace didn’t deny it and said, “So what if we’re close? Do you have something to say?”
“What can I say?” Gilbert sneered. “There’s a saying, birds of a feather flock together. With all that time spent with Paul, I fear you’ve become like him, Mr. Quincey.”
“How could you say that about my brother, Gilbert? What has he ever done?” Marigold couldn’t bear to hear this anymore. Out of the Wagners, she and Paul were the closest. She couldn’t bear to hear someone else speak ill of him.
Gilbert glanced at her coldly. “Your brother? You should be asking about what he hasn’t done. How do you think he inherited the Wagners? He has blood on his hands. What’s the difference bet**en him and the devil? And you dare to ask me what he’s done.”
Marigold wasn’t well-versed in what her family did. She didn’t know how Paul took charge of the Wagners, either. She just thought that he was amazing. But now, hearing what Gilbert had said, she felt shaken.
One was her brother, and one was her crush. For a moment, she didn’t know whom to trust.
Eustace glanced at Gilbert and then said to Marigold, “Even if there’s blood on your brother’s hands, it’s the blood of the damned. He has done nothing wrong.”
As Paul’s good friend of many years, Eustace understood him well. At the same time, he worried about him. Out of all the Wagners, only Marigold treated Paul as her own brother. If Paul had a soft spot, it would be his sister. Eustace thought that if Marigold were to take someone else’s side and snub him, Paul would go crazy.
“Alright. I understand.” Marigold nodded. She wouldn’t actually be swayed by Gilbert’s words and turn on her brother.
Danika listened to everything that they said. She was just curious to know what Paul was like. Gilbert’s face was full of disdain. No matter how much they tried to clear Paul’s name, he would always remain as the devil to Gilbert.
“Let’s go, Danika.” Gilbert was about to pull Danika away with him.
But then Marigold stopped them from leaving, particularly Gilbert. “I didn’t know that you felt so strongly about the Wagners. I thought that you just didn’t like me. I know about it now. That’s why I’m still not giving up. I’m going to show you that the Wagners are not as bad as you think. At least not all of us.”
Marigold left right after she spoke. Danika stole a glance at Gilbert’s exp**ssion. It was worse than before.
“Didn’t you always tell me not to judge a book by its cover?” Danika said after a moment’s silence. “Maybe the Wagners are dislikeable, but that doesn’t mean that every member of the family is bad. At least, I think Marigold’s decent.”
Gilbert said nothing. She didn’t know what he was thinking. He stared at the direction in which Marigold left for a long time, still lost in his thoughts.
“Gilbert?” Danika called. He came back to his senses.
He looked at Danika and said, “You’re just too naive. Is she going to announce her motives while getting close to me?”
“Aren’t you overthinking things? Marigold is just a girl. You can choose not to like her, but accusing her of evil intentions that she may or may not have is going overboard,” Eustace finally said, unable to bear it anymore. He and Marigold were not close, only coming into contact with her through Paul, but he could tell that Marigold was just an innocent girl. She was not as vindictive as Gilbert thought.
“Don’t you think interrupting my conversation with Danika is going overboard?” Gilbert looked at him, the hatred in his eyes clearly shown.
Eustace was about to speak, but Danika cut them both off. “Stop. Gilbert, it’s okay if you don’t like Marigold. You don’t have to get angry over this.”
Perhaps Gilbert thought that he had been overreacting, as well. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. “Alright. I’m not angry. Just ignore her if she comes looking for you.”
Danika nodded. “Okay.”
In her eyes, Marigold was an outsider. It was not worth getting into a fight with Gilbert over someone they barely knew.
The launch was still ongoing. Zack was the true star of the show, surrounded by a few people. His face flushed red, and he was stumbling on his steps.
“Gilbert, you should go help Zack out.” Danika couldn’t bear watching it. She worried that Zack would pass out at his own business launch.
Gilbert nodded and reminded her to take care of herself before walking over toward Zack.
As for Eustace, he said nothing. After Gilbert was gone, Danika looked at him embarrassedly and said, “Sorry. My brother was in a bad temper.”
“Why are you apologizing for him? He’s your brother, not your son,” Eustace said, annoyed.
Danika said nothing.
“I’m sorry, Danika. I…” Eustace wished he could slap himself. What was he saying? It was Gilbert who had provoked him, not Danika. Why did he lash out at her?
Danika didn’t take it to heart. She shook her head. “It’s okay. I know you were standing up for Paul.”
If someone said that about Stephanie, she would be mad, too.
Stephanie…
Danika suddenly realized that Stephanie was not there.
That wasn’t right. Stephanie was her best friend. She knew that Zack was her brother. She had no reason not to come.
She swept her gaze over the audience. Just as she was about to confirm her suspicions, she spotted Stephanie’s father. She turned toward Eustace and said, “I have to deal with something for a bit.”