Sorry, You Can't Have Me Now

Chapter 6 Divorce Funds

"Oh, you mean to rely on the Wilson family to throw me out?" Emily said impatiently as she leaned against the doorframe. "You'd better leave now. Or... you guys want another visit to the police station?"

Being hounded by the two annoying guys every day was enough to drive Emily crazy.

She knew Maggie all too well. Ever since she married Patrick, she'd acted like she was some kind of socialite, arrogant and proud.

Now here she was, shamelessly showing up to beg her stepdaughter for money.

Emily couldn't help but guess if there was something up with the Wilson family. The thought made Emily stifle a laugh.

Maggie's expression wavered, clearly bothered by the memory of her last visit to the police station.

Though visibly seething, she forced a tight smile and tried to explain, "Your father's company hit a bit of a rough patch. He just needs a little cash to keep things going. You're getting quite a bit from the divorce with Joseph, right? I wouldn't have asked you if your father wasn't at his wits' end over it."

Emily fiddled with her nails and responded with a sharp tone, "Sorry, he's Nancy's father, not mine."

Her father had been gone ever since her mother's funeral.

Nancy opened her mouth to retort, but Maggie's warning look made her back down.

Emily noted this unusual restraint. Nancy was normally all too eager to shout at Emily, and she actually held her tongue now. That meant whatever was happening with the Wilson family had to be serious.

Maggie's face remained calm as she continued, "Emily, if not for your father, at least do it for the Wilson family, hmm? I mean, think about it. If the Wilson family was as powerful as the Robinson family, would Joseph even consider divorcing you?"

And then, she tried sweetening the deal. "Your father even said if we can get through this rough patch, he'd buy you a villa next door and hand you a black card with no limit. You'll be able to buy whatever you want, whenever."

Maggie seemed confident that these "perks" would win Emily over.

After all, anyone knew that a strong family brought more influence and opportunities, and Maggie thought Emily would always put the family's interests first.

Emily looked at her with a sneer. "After all these years, you're only getting better at blowing smoke."

A villa and a black card? Emily already had more than enough money of her own. And even if the Wilson family could actually deliver on those promises, she knew there'd be strings attached.

Nancy, on the other hand, looked like she'd swallowed a lemon, and her eyes flared with jealousy. If looks could kill, Emily would've been done for.

Seeing Nancy's reaction, Emily thought back to how things used to be. Nancy had been pampered like a princess from birth, while she'd struggled just to get by.

With a smile, Emily added, "If your father is open to selling shares, I can connect him with some investors I know—some powerful ones. Think he'll be interested?"

Maggie's face tensed briefly before her practiced smile returned. "Emily, you know the company's his life's work. Why would he even consider selling shares?"

Emily shrugged and said, "Then let it go bankrupt."

With that, she started to close the door, but Maggie blocked it. "If you don't help us this time, Emily, we won't hesitate to take this to the media."

Emily smirked at the empty threat.

Aside from the fact that she had no legal duty to support them, it wouldn't be her reputation on the line if this went public.

She recalled how things had been after Nancy was born. Patrick's only expectation of her was that she stayed out of the way. The only reason she'd made it this far was her own hard work.

On Emily's 18th birthday, Patrick even kicked her out of the house with nothing.

And now, they had the nerve to ask her for her divorce funds.

She wondered what Joseph would think of them counting on his money like this.

With that thought, she gave a knowing smile. "Joseph hasn't handed over the divorce funds yet. We agreed on three days. Why don't you come back then?"

Maggie's face brightened, clearly thinking her threat had worked.

"Emily, it's good to see you're being reasonable. Your father will be so pleased to hear this," Maggie said while stepping back, unable to hide her satisfaction.

Emily didn't reply and shut the door once Maggie stepped outside.

Nancy immediately started whining, "Mom, Dad's not seriously giving her a black card and a villa, right? I don't even have those!"

Sure, she lived comfortably, but her pocket money wasn't enough to buy a single designer dress on her wish list.

The thought of Emily getting anything she wanted for herself stoked her jealousy to the point of fury.

Maggie patted Nancy's shoulder and comforted. "Relax, sweetie. You know your father, don't you?"

Patric was realistic and would never actually hand anything over to a daughter who was dumped by Joseph and couldn't bring any benefits to the family.

And a few million for a villa and a black card? That was never happening.

Inside, Emily caught the whole exchange through the door and smirked. The Wilson family fortune wouldn't even cover one of her minor investments.

Patrick and his people might treat it like gold, but to her, it was little more than trash.

Hearing their car drive off, Emily turned back inside and called the security desk. "Hi, I'm the owner of Villa A. If anyone named Nancy Wilson or Maggie Wilson tries to visit, please don't let them through."

"Understood, ma'am!"

Emily slept like a baby that night.

The next morning when she woke up and stretched, Emily noticed a string of missed calls from Paul. She quickly called him back.

As soon as he picked up, she asked, "What's wrong, Mr. Turner? Do you need more investment or..."

Paul chuckled and cut her off, "No, no. Tonight, I'm hosting a gathering to find some partners for a new research project, and since you're the biggest investor, I thought you might want to join. Plus, I'll introduce you to a few of the lads—they're all brilliant guys, young and hot!"

Paul knew how much Emily had sacrificed for Joseph, and she even gave up her own career for her last marriage. They'd argued about it plenty in the past.

Now that Emily was finally divorced, he wanted to nudge her toward meeting someone new—at the very least, she'd have a few attractive faces around to distract her.

Knowing exactly what Paul was up to, Emily teased back, "You got it, Mr. Turner. I promise I'll dress up and impress those guys."