While Watching Drama, the Heroine Warned Me About My Best Friend Chapter 08

While Watching Drama, the Heroine Warned Me About My Best Friend Chapter 08

The old woman shot her a glare and pulled me inside. “I invited her. Got a problem?”

Celia bit her lower lip and forced the words back down.

At the table, the old woman sat in the head seat. Frank sat on her right, head down, shoveling rice

into his mouth in silence. Celia, wearing a floral apron, hovered beside them, a smile plastered on her face, bustling back and forth serving dishes and bowls.

“Mom, try this braised pork-it’s nice and tender,” she said.

The old woman poked at it with her chopsticks and left it untouched. “I don’t eat fatty meat.

Celia’s smile froze for a second, but she quickly picked up a plate of greens. “Then try this- stir-fried, light on oil and salt.”

The old woman glanced at it. “So bland, it looks unappetizing.”

Celia held the plate in midair, shooting Frank a helpless look. Frank put down his chopsticks and said in a low voice, “Mom, Celia’s been busy all morning. Do me a favor and at least take a bite.”

The old woman shot him a sidelong glance. “You’ve got a lot of nerve-what makes you think you have any pride left to beg me?”

Frank choked, his face flushing with embarrassment, and went back to eating in silence.

Celia’s eyes reddened. She turned and went into the kitchen, returning with a bowl of soup. “Mom, I simmered this for two hours. Please try it.”

The old woman finally picked up a spoon and took a sip. Celia’s eyes lit up, a smile starting to curl at the corners of her mouth-but then the old woman dropped the spoon back into the bowl. “Too

salty.”

Celia bit her lip and sat down, not daring to speak another word.

The old woman took a slow sip of tea, her gaze fixed on Celia. “You went to all this trouble to beat around the bush. Don’t you have something else to say to me?”

Celia froze, then forced a smile. “Mom, Frank and I were hoping you’d sell the old house back home and help us with a down payment.”

The old woman let out a cold laugh, pulled a stack of papers from her pocket, and slapped them on

the table. “You want money, huh? Then first tell me where did the two hundred thousand Frank gave you for IVF go?”

When Celia saw what was on the papers, her face went white.

Frank’s chopsticks stopped midair. He slowly turned to look at Celia. The table fell into dead

silence.

The old woman pulled one sheet from the pile and pushed it in front of her. “This report says natural conception. Where did that money go?”

Celia stared at the paper, her whole body starting to shake.

Frank put down his chopsticks, his face dark. “Mom’s asking you. Where did the money go?”

Tears spilled from Celia’s eyes. “I had no choice. My mom suddenly got sick-surgery cost two hundred thousand. I was afraid you wouldn’t agree, so I lied about the IVF and used the money for her treatment. I planned to pay it back once I’d saved enough, but then I lost the baby, and I was so grief-stricken I forgot to tell you…”

Frank’s expression softened a little. His clenched fists slowly relaxed. “Just this once. Next time,

tell me first.”

The old woman suddenly smacked Frank on the back of the head again. He pitched forward, his chopsticks clattering onto the table. “Mom! Why did you hit me again?!”

The old woman let out another cold laugh and slapped another stack of printed records onto the table. “This old woman has lived over sixty years. I may not have many skills, but my eyes are sharp. That day in the hospital, I already saw something off between you and that pretty boy. When Frank’s father used to keep a mistress, he had the exact same look.”

“I had someone check your hotel records-twenty-six times in three months. Want me to read them out, date by date?”

Celia’s sobs stopped abruptly. Her eyes went wide as she stared at those records, frozen solid.

Frank stood up from the table, took the stack of hotel records, and flipped through them, page by page. With every page, his face darkened a little more.