It was 11:00 pm, and the night breeze was rather chilly. Liesel’s lips were a little pale as she got into the car. She lowered her eyes, and her wrists were briefly exposed underneath her suit jacket. It made her seem rather weak and pitiful.
Jacob frowned. He’d never noticed her being this skinny. “Have you settled the problem with Hardin Group?”
She nodded, looking tired. “Yeah. Elijah is harder to deal with than Uriah, but he’s already agreed to switch out the subpar products. We’ll just need to send someone to handle the handover.”
Jacob’s gaze flitted past her. “Natalie is young and naive. You can’t completely blame her for this.”
Liesel paused before saying softly, “You’re Ford Corporation’s CEO. It’s up to you how you want to handle her.”
Natalie was young, huh? She’d been even younger than Natalie when joining Ford Corporation, but Jacob had never cut her any slack.
“I’ve yet to tell Grandpa about the divorce,” he said, switching the subject.
Vincent Ford had been recuperating at home these past years and couldn’t be aggravated. Even if Liesel and Jacob had never been the most loving couple, Vincent probably still couldn’t handle the news of their divorce.
Liesel looked down. “Got it. I’ll tell him about this when the time is right.”
Jacob didn’t say anything else.
Liesel had had a bit to drink without eating anything. After a while, she curled up in her seat and drifted off. Her face was pale.
When Jacob noticed something was wrong with her, he frowned. He was about to instruct Jesse to take them to the hospital when she woke up.
“Where are we?” she asked, her voice hoarse.
He said, “I’m taking you to the hospital.”
Liesel’s heart skipped a beat as she thought of something. However, she kept her tone nonchalant and said, “There’s no need for that. My stomach just feels a little upset. I’ll be fine after resting at home.”
Jacob looked at her. His gaze was deep and sharp. It was as if he could read her thoughts. After a while, he said, “Fine.”
She relaxed. Back home, she called Chelsea and said a little grimly, “Buy me a pregnancy test.”
…
The following day, Liesel was supposed to attend a welcome-back party for Alex Stone, one of her and Jacob’s mutual friends. Alex had called her before his return to invite her to the party. Perhaps it was because he’d heard about the divorce and wanted to help them reconcile.
The party was already in full swing when Liesel arrived. She heard Alex’s voice through the door. “Have you and Liesel really divorced? Was it because of Natalie?”
Liesel faltered, her hand on the doorknob. After a pause, Jacob said, “It has nothing to do with Natalie. Liesel and I aren’t a good match.”
“Tsk. How are you two not a good match?” Alex asked. “I think Liesel is fantastic. She’s pretty, intelligent, and has won many people’s recognition at Ford Corporation. Why are you so obsessed with Natalie? Don’t forget that Liesel saved you in the past. Sometimes, some things are just too little, too late.”
He’d met Natalie before and could tell she was nothing but a young woman with a few tricks up her sleeve. She couldn’t compare to Liesel.
Liesel had managed to save Jacob from the hands of his abductors. How could someone like Natalie compare to her bravery and determination?
Jacob would have much to regret if he and Liesel really were to divorce.
This time, Jacob remained silent for a longer time. Then he said, “You can’t force matters of the heart.”
Liesel lowered her eyes and slowly clenched her fists. Alex stopped trying to change Jacob’s mind. Instead, he said, “You’d better think this through. You may not like her, but plenty of others do.”
Liesel didn’t linger. She texted Alex on WhatsApp and told him she wasn’t attending the party because she had to attend to something else. Then, she asked Chelsea out.
Chelsea gave her the pregnancy test and asked hesitantly, “You’re not really pregnant, are you, Lili?”
