Secret Marriage: The CEO's Pampered Wife

Chapter 178: Chapter 168: Wear This Necklace to the Interview Tomorrow (1)

"Everyone makes their own choices. This is mine." Georgia Thorne stood up. "I’ll be waiting for you at Grandview tomorrow at noon."

"Sorry, I won’t disturb your work any longer."

The next day at noon, Georgia Thorne was sitting in a private room at Grandview.

The table was laden with food, but Georgia sat in her chair, not moving a muscle.

Her vacant gaze drifted out the window. The room was silent.

As time passed, the light in her eyes dimmed bit by bit.

To be honest, she wasn’t confident that Zane Lennox would agree to her terms.

From anyone’s perspective, Zane was the one getting the short end of the stick in this deal.

The hot dishes on the table had grown cold. Georgia glanced down at the time. It was almost one o’clock.

She bit her lower lip. The appointed time had long passed, but she still couldn’t bring herself to give up.

She sat motionlessly for another half hour before a knock finally sounded on the door.

Her gaze instantly focused as she turned eagerly toward the entrance.

But it was only the restaurant’s waiter. The light that had just appeared in her eyes vanished in an instant.

’He probably isn’t coming,’ she thought. ’No one would be foolish enough to do something like this.’

Georgia stood up, but before she could speak, the waiter produced a box from behind his back.

She recognized it. It was the box she had given Zane Lennox yesterday, the one containing the necklace.

"Miss, a gentleman asked me to give this to you," the waiter said, placing the box on the table.

"Ah, I see. I’d like to pay the bill."

"The gentleman has already taken care of your bill."

"Thank you," Georgia said with a smile.

Only after the waiter left the room did Georgia pick up the box from the table.

She opened it. The necklace inside was as dazzling as ever, its deep red glow reflecting mesmerizingly in her palm.

Dejected, she left the restaurant. Then, her phone rang. It was Zane Lennox. "Wear this necklace to the interview tomorrow."

"Okay!"

"You don’t sound very happy."

"No, I’m very happy!"

The anxiety that had been weighing on her all morning finally lifted.

’Mom’s grave is safe now. How could I not be happy?’

Georgia left the restaurant, hailed a cab, and went straight to the cemetery.

In front of the headstone was a fresh bouquet of flowers, a sign that someone had been there to pay their respects.

Georgia breathed a sigh of relief. She stood ramrod straight before the stone for about half an hour before leaving.

The sun was at its most scorching, and her fair face was flushed red from the heat.

"Excuse me, has anyone come to pay respects to my mother in the past couple of days?"

The cemetery groundskeeper said, "I think there was one person."

"Do you remember what they looked like?"

"Now that, I really can’t remember. Too many people come and go every day." The groundskeeper waved his hand dismissively. "How about this? I’ll keep an eye out for you next time."

"Thank you."

When Georgia returned to her apartment, she happened to run into Nancy Hughes getting out of a car.

Nancy had a sweet look on her face as she waved to the man inside the car, watching as it drove away.

Just as she was about to turn and enter the building, she saw Georgia standing off to the side.

She jumped back a large step, clutching her chest. "Oh my god, you scared me to death!"

"And you said he wasn’t your boyfriend!" Georgia teased.

Nancy’s face immediately flushed red. She looked down shyly and asked, "You saw all that?"

"He’s not bad looking! When did you two start dating?" Georgia had only caught a fleeting glimpse of half of the man’s profile.

She hadn’t gotten a clear look, just a vague impression.

Nancy smiled, linking arms with Georgia as they went upstairs. "We just started dating. It hasn’t been long at all!"

It was Nancy’s first time in a relationship, and Georgia didn’t want to rain on her parade, so she offered a sincere congratulations.

"Let’s have a drink today!" Nancy opened the fridge and looked back at her.

Seeing Georgia nod, she pulled two cans of cold beer from the fridge.

After giving one a vigorous shake, she popped the tab, and foam erupted from the opening.

She clinked cans with Georgia. "A toast to me being in a relationship!"

"And a toast to me getting married."

"Cheers!"

Nancy cheered and took a sip of the ice-cold beer.

At first, Nancy didn’t really process what Georgia had said, thinking she was just echoing the toast to her new relationship.

A mouthful of beer got stuck in her throat before she realized something was off.

"What did you say!" Nancy frowned, forcing herself to swallow the beer.

She stared at Georgia. "What the hell did you just say?"

Georgia took another sip of beer and repeated calmly, "I’m getting married!"

"To who?" The first person who popped into Nancy’s mind was Elliot Sheridan. ’It couldn’t be him, could it?’

"Zane Lennox!"

"What!"

This time, Nancy nearly sprayed the beer she had just drunk.

"You’re marrying Zane Lennox?" Nancy leaped up from the sofa in shock. "But you don’t even like him! He must be forcing you. Tell me, what is he holding over you to make you do this!"

Nancy angrily slammed her hand on the table. Now she was truly convinced that Zane Lennox was not a good person.

"He isn’t forcing me. I’m doing this willingly!"

"If he isn’t forcing you, then what is going on!" Nancy sat back down, looking at her with a serious expression. "Why are you suddenly getting married!"

"Zane Lennox is rich, and I’m poor."

Georgia summed up her marriage to Zane Lennox in eight simple words, and Nancy immediately flew off the handle. "But you can’t do that!"

’Besides,’ she thought, ’Zane Lennox isn’t the only rich man in the world. There’s still Elliot Sheridan!’

’If Georgia marries Zane Lennox, what will Elliot do!’

Nancy wanted to persuade Georgia, but she couldn’t just say it outright.

In the end, she chugged the rest of her beer in one go. "I just think... this wedding is too rushed. You should really think it over!"

Nancy had once had a crush on Zane Lennox, so she knew a little about his temperament. The man was arrogant and conceited, and he had never paid women any mind. If Georgia really married him, she would surely have a hard time.

’Their president is so much better!’

Although there was a significant age gap between them, when Elliot Sheridan and Georgia were on good terms, he was genuinely good to her.

Besides, a mature and stable man could give a woman a sense of security.

Georgia just hummed in response, finished her drink, and went back to her room.

Nancy thought Georgia had taken her words to heart and would reconsider the marriage.

But the very next day, she saw the video of their wedding interview.

Georgia was elegantly dressed up, wearing bright makeup and a simple, tasteful beige dress. The ruby necklace around her neck was the envy of countless people.

Georgia nestled against Zane Lennox like a timid bird, smiling gracefully for the cameras.

With his arm around Georgia, Zane Lennox patiently answered the reporters’ questions one by one.

Questions poured in: how they got together, when they were getting married, why they were getting married, if it was a shotgun wedding, and a whole slew of others.

Georgia simply smiled without speaking, leaving all the questions for Zane to answer.

Zane gave a standard answer.

They were university classmates who were getting married because they were in love.

Reporters these days are incredibly efficient. In no time, they had dug up everything about Georgia’s background, discovering she was Jared Thorne’s daughter. And since Jared Thorne’s company had been having problems lately, they wondered if there was an ulterior motive behind the marriage.

Zane said there wasn’t. The reporters, unsatisfied, pressed on with other questions.

One reporter’s voice was particularly loud. "Miss Thorne, I heard your mother was Jared Thorne’s mistress and that you’re his illegitimate daughter. Is that true!"

Georgia froze. The smile vanished from her face, and her gaze turned icy as she stared at the reporter. "This is my business. It has nothing to do with my mother!"

Georgia could tolerate people talking about her, but she could not accept them talking about her mother.

Zane pulled Georgia protectively into his arms and shot a look at the nearby security guards. The reporter who asked the question was promptly escorted out.

Then he cleared his throat and announced cheerfully, "The wedding is set for one week from now. We’ll inform everyone of the specific time. You are all welcome to attend!"

The interview about Zane Lennox’s wedding was being broadcast live by nearly every media outlet, big and small.

The news that another of Portmire’s most eligible bachelors was getting married caused an uproar.

Elliot Sheridan had only announced his engagement. As long as the engagement party hadn’t happened, things could still change.

But Zane, by announcing his marriage directly to the media, had taken things to a whole new level.

After the interview, Zane put his arm around Georgia as they got into a car, ordering the driver to take them to her apartment.

The quiet car insulated them from the noisy, bustling traffic outside.

Georgia watched the scenery outside for a while before turning to the man beside her. "One week, isn’t that too soon?"

She remembered he hadn’t mentioned a wedding date yesterday.

"I can wait, but I’m afraid your father can’t!" Zane said with a light chuckle.

Georgia was speechless. "..."

He had a point.

Jared Thorne was at the end of his rope. At this point, anyone who showed up would be his lifeline.

She had barely parted ways with Zane when Jared Thorne’s call came in. "Is it true? Are you and Zane Lennox really getting married next week?"

"It’s all over the news. Could it be fake?" Georgia took off the heavy necklace. "This is the last time I’m helping the Thorne Family!"

"Then has Zane agreed to invest in our company?" There was a hint of delight in Jared Thorne’s voice. He hadn’t expected Georgia to actually get ahold of Zane Lennox at such a critical moment!

The Lennox Family’s wealth was not to be underestimated!

"From now on, you are not to touch my mother’s grave ever again!"

"Yes, yes, yes, I know!"

Jared Thorne was overjoyed right now; he couldn’t care less about what mattered to Georgia.

Georgia heard someone on the other end of the line call for "President Thorne," and Jared Thorne hurriedly hung up.

In another top-floor office.

Justin Sullivan’s face was taut with fury. The veins on the back of the hand gripping the remote control bulged.

He froze the screen on Georgia’s smiling face and hurled the remote at it.

BANG! With a loud crash, the impacted screen spiderwebbed with countless tiny cracks. The remote, having fallen to the floor, broke in two.

’Why would she choose Zane Lennox over me?’