Free Web NovelChapter 81: A Feasible Solution
When Michael saw Wendy’s mocking gaze, he realized that he had succeeded only in making things worse. He had previously kept the document in the glove compartment because he did not expect Wendy to end up in the driver’s seat.
"Michael, deep down, you see me as just a toy that you can easily deceive and manipulate, right?"
There was a bit of a smile on Wendy’s face, but it was not genuine at all.
Michael immediately tore the document to shreds and threw everything into a nearby trash bin. He tentatively reached out to grab Wendy’s hand, explaining, "That’s not what it is, Wendy, I just..."
Wendy flung his hand away forcefully. The smile on her face faded, and she scoffed. She turned around and walked away mercilessly.
Michael immediately chased after her. He said, "Wendy, I just wanted things between us to get better, I didn’t expect..."
"You didn’t expect me to find this document, right?" Wendy was so furious that her chest was rising unevenly. She continued, "Michael, I’m very, very disappointed in you." When he continued following her, she shut her eyes and said sternly, "Id really like for you to stop following me right now. Can you do that?"
Michael knew that Wendy was genuinely angry.
He also knew that if he kept following Wendy now, it would only make things worse. He clenched his fists as he watched her grow smaller and smaller, walking away.
The wound on his hand had already stopped bleeding, but after having exerted force, the blood started flowing again. Internally, he swore at himself for being so careless and not storing the document more carefully.
After this incident, Wendy continued giving him the cold shoulder for the next few days.
Although Michael came back home every night, she completely ignored him and even refused to even look his way. Aware that he was at fault for this, Michael did not dare to pressure Wendy too much.
Consequently, Mr. York even began to realize that Michael was frequently getting distracted.
Even though he still came to work on time every single day, he was often in a daze. It was evident just how much influence Wendy had over him.
Mr. York noticed that Michael gave no response after he finished talking to him, and he could tell that his boss had not heard a single word that he said. Since it was nothing important anyway, Mr. York decided to just leave the office quietly.
However, at that very moment, an incoming call on Michael’s phone shattered the tranquility in the room.
Michael looked down at his phone. When he saw Yvonne’s name on the screen, he hung up without hesitation. This time, Yvonne did not continue to spam call him. Instead, she simply showed up at the office soon after. Michael was slightly surprised to see her. But at the same time, it was not something completely unexpected. He had not been to visit Yvonne at the hospital since the night of the party.
Yvonne had made use of Michael’s feelings of guilt to manipulate him into pampering her for so many years. Even though her suicide attempt had worked to threaten him into giving her attention, as she wanted, it had been a huge blow to their relationship. Instead of things improving, they only got worse.
"Michael..." Yvonne walked up to him. When she saw the bandage on his hand, she asked with a frown, "What happened to your hand?"
Michael glanced at her. Instead of answering her question, he answered coldly, "Why are you here?" freewēbnoveℓ.com
"I’m here to see you," Yvonne whined, "You haven’t visited me in the hospital at all. I miss you."
"Yvonne, I hope that you will stop saying such things in the future," said Michael, making his rejection clear. "If you only came here to say these types of things to me, then I suggest that you don’t show up at this company ever again."
Yvonne’s expression, which had initially been sweet and concerned, immediately faded when she heard Michael’s words. Instead, her eyebrows were raised as she said with a smile, "Michael, do you know what I’ve been thinking about in the hospital for the last few days?"
Michael shook his head. How could he possibly know?
Yvonne said slowly, "I thought about many, many things when I was in the hospital, especially about our past. I still remember we only met in the first place because Zachary invited me to one of your outings. When I first saw you, I thought that you were a very charming man, and he was so different from all the other guys that I knew. But later, when I found out that you were part of the Lucas family, I started to feel like I wouldn’t be good enough. I thought that you were too good for any woman in this world, actually. But you did not look down on me, and instead, the three of us became really good friends. Since you and Zachary were older than me, the both of you often pampered me and took good care of me. At that time, I really felt like the luckiest person in the world. If not for that accident, I’m sure that the three of us would still be as close as ever." Her eyes grew damp when she mentioned the accident.
Clearly, it was a tragic memory.
Zachary’s name was not something that Michael wished to hear. He reached out to pinch the area between his eyebrows and said quietly, "Why are you harping on things from the past?"
"You’re right, it is just the past," said Yvonne. She tried smiling but ended up bursting into tears.
Sniffling, she continued, "You will never treat me as well as you did back then again, just like how Zachary can never come back to life. So, I’ve figured out my thoughts. Love cannot be forced. Michael, it’s been over four years, and you haven’t fallen in love with me. Now, you’re in love with Wendy Stewart, which makes it even more impossible that you would ever return my affection." ƒreewebɳovel.com
Michael did not expect to hear this type of admission from Yvonne. In fact, he had no idea what else she could possibly say next. Looking up, he gazed at her and waited for her to continue.
Yvonne reached up to wipe her tears. She said, "I didn’t come here today to beg for your love, or for you to get divorced. The only reason why your relationship with Wendy is in this state right now is because of my suicide attempt. Michael, I just came to tell you that I’ve thought things through, and I’ve decided not to continue fantasizing about the possibility of you ever loving me back. Also, I came to wish you and Wendy all my best."
Again, these words came as a complete shock to Michael. Since Yvonne had always been so self-assured and self-involved, it was hard to believe that she had thought things through this way.
He thought, but if she is being honest about this, it’s not exactly a bad thing either. After all, we used to be good friends. I don’t want Yvonne to continue obsessing over me. The more she pines after me, the guiltier I feel about Zachary, even though he has already passed on. I can’t get over this feeling of guilt. And anyway, it was indeed Yvonne who caused things between me and Wendy to turn out like this.
With all that in mind, there was no way that Michael could possibly bring himself to continue treating Yvonne the way that he used to. There was a glum expression on his face, and he was just about to say something when Yvonne apologized to him with her head bowed, saying, "I’m sorry, Michael, I was too stubborn in the past."
"You’re right about that," said Michael. "But it’s also my fault for being overly indulgent with you. It’s a good thing now that you’ve thought things through. Since you’re no longer an employee at this company, it’s best if you don’t come here anymore."
The truth was that Michael did not really care about whether Yvonne was being genuine or just putting on an act. He felt that he had already fulfilled his duty to her after abandoning Wendy at the party to save her from her suicide attempt.
On the other hand, Yvonne did not expect Michael to still treat her with this attitude when she had already apologized so sincerely, and even brought up Zachary. She thought, it seems like Christian was right after all.
Christian was the main reason that Yvonne had shown up at the company today. He had told her about the current state of Michael’s relationship with Wendy and asked her to take advantage of this opportunity to win Michael back.
Yvonne had just been thinking about how this was a good chance for her to get between them. She just did not expect Christian to instruct her to apologize to Michael. At first, she did not really believe that his method would work. Now, however, she felt thankful that she had taken his advice.
"I came here today to apologize," said Yvonne as she bit down on her bottom lip. "I also owe Wendy an apology. Is she in her office right now? I want to apologize to her personally."
When Michael heard this, he began to feel frustrated. "She’s not in the office right now, so think you can just forget about apologizing to her in person," he said authoritatively. "I have other matters to deal with, you should see yourself out."
"Michael, is she still angry because you abandoned her at the party?" Yvonne put on a sincere front. When Michael remained silent, she continued, "I have a suggestion on how you could fix that, perhaps it might work."
Michael frowned at that.
Yvonne continued, "The main reason why Wendy is angry is because she feels that you don’t prioritize her at all, and in fact, care more about me. Since you abandoned her at the party, which humiliated her, you might consider hosting another one to introduce her to the public properly. With this, the rumors about her will stop."
"I thought about that, but she wouldn’t attend it," said Michael with a helpless sigh.
"In that case, you can compromise a little. You can take the initiative to hold a press conference and announce her identity to the media and let her know that your feelings for her are true. Since I’m a woman, l understand what we want most. As long as you let Wendy see how hard you are trying, she will definitely feel better. Plus, she has been in love with you for so many years. I’m sure that deep down, she still cares about you."
Yvonne’s plan seemed feasible. Or at least,it sounded much better than the methods in the guide that Mr. York had compiled for him. Michael drummed his fingers against the desk, as though he was seriously contemplating this.
When Yvonne noticed, she jumped at the opportunity to continue, "Michael, I only came here today because I genuinely wanted to apologize. I think you can try what I just suggested. If you feel embarrassed about having to hold a press conference, you can just leak the news to the media and ask them to publish it. This way, you won’t have to personally get involved."
When Michael saw Yvonne’s careful and sincere look, he nodded slowly.
"Well, Michael, I’ll see myself out. I won’t disturb you anymore, said Yvonne, as she obediently took the initiative to leave by herself."
Everything that Yvonne had said today was extremely unlike her usual self. Not only did she apologize, she also gave Michael a suggestion for how he could earn Wendy’s forgiveness. He thought, could it be that she really did manage to think things through in the hospital?
Right now, he did not have the time to continue considering what had come over Yvonne.
Instead, he called Mr. York via the company phone and summoned him to his office. After Mr. York’s arrival, Michael instructed him, "I want you to release information about my relationship with Wendy to the media and have them broadcast it on the news. Make sure that this headline receives coverage for at least one month."
Prior to this, all Michael had done was ask for the articles about Wendy to be taken off the internet. He also engaged Mr. York’s help in his quest for Wendy’s forgiveness. However, it only made matters worse. He also thought about the possibility of hosting another party, but it was impossible to get Wendy to show up.
Hence, Michael decided to try this suggestion from Yvonne. It might just work. He indeed found it embarrassing to hold a press conference, so he decided to simply release the news about his relationship with Wendy to a few prominent reporters who worked in the media.
