Chapter 154

"Mrs. York, please, have a seat.”

Penelope stood, personally pulling out Mrs. York's chair, taking her coat to give to the waiter, and then waiting for her to be seated. This series of small, attentive gestures brought a smile to the face of Mrs. York, who had been reluctant to

come.

"You're too kind, Ms. Laurier."

"Not at all. Thank you for gracing me with your time."

Penelope called the waiter over. Mrs. York seemed a bit overwhelmed by the upscale restaurant, so Penelope gently asked about her preferences and recommended the braised beef tenderloin and the seafood pasta. Her warm and polite demeanor put Mrs. York at ease, and she accepted the suggestions. Penelope added a salad and coffee for her and ordered the same for herself.

"Mrs. Olson didn't specify why you wanted to meet me," Mrs. York said with a smile, getting straight to the point.

Penelope had contacted Mrs. York through a mutual acquaintance, Mrs. Olson. It was a strong connection; otherwise, no one would agree to a meeting without knowing the reason.

"I want to buy your family's appliance store," Penelope stated just as directly.

Mrs. York looked surprised. "But that store is on the verge of bankruptcy."

"I know. I'm interested in the land it's on."

"Then shouldn't you be talking to my husband?”

"We did talk. We even reached an agreement. But then he suddenly refused to sign the contract, and now he's stalling."

"What do you mean?"

Penelope leaned in slightly. "You and your husband are in the middle of divorce proceedings, aren't you? If he waits until after the divorce is finalized to sell the land to us, he won't have to split the money with you."

Mrs. York's eyes widened. She had thought the appliance store was a failing business, a liability. When they were dividing assets, she hadn't paid it any mind or fought for it. She never imagined it was actually valuable.

"Six million. That's the price we offered him," Penelope added.

Mrs. York was stunned again. In their asset division, she thought she had gotten the better deal by taking the house, which was worth just over a million. But the store property was worth six million. If Penelope hadn't told her, she would have been cheated out of three million dollars.

That bastard, Cedric!

"I'm telling you this, Mrs. York, because I hope you can persuade Cedric to sell the property to us as soon as possible. To be honest, we're in a hurry."

Mrs. York considered this. "l appreciate you telling me, Ms. Laurier. Now that I know, I will certainly protect my interests. But whether he sells it now or later, I'll

still get my half. There's no need for me to rush him, is there?"

Penelope smiled. "You heard that we're in a hurry, so you think you can leverage that to get a higher price, and that we'll have no choice but to accept, correct?"

Caught, Mrs. York looked slightly embarrassed.

“But I don't believe Cedric knows that you're pregnant, does he?” Penelope said, her gaze dropping to Mrs. York's stomach.

Mrs. York gasped. "How... how did you know?"

"It was a coincidence. I was at the hospital a few days ago and happened to see you at a prenatal check-up."

It was when she had taken Rebecca to the hospital. Amid the chaos she had caught a glimpse of Mrs York and Sensed something was amiss, so she had discreetly followed her.

"We're in a hurry,

but we can wait.

Your baby bump, on the other hand,

cannot. The day Cedric finds out

regnant, bes

ask

you're pregnant, pregnant, he's going to a

whose child it is. With proof of

adultery during the marriage, do you

stiffthink you'll get half of that

property?"

Mrs. York was silent for a long time before finally sighing in defeat. "Alright. I'll get

him to sell the property to you as soon as possible.”

"Ideally, we'd like to sign the contract tomorrow."

"I don't think I can make that happen."

"I can offer you a personal bonus for your trouble."

Mrs. York paused for another moment. "Then tomorrow it is."

With the deal settled, Penelope looked up just in time to see Zebulon strolling into

the restaurant.