Chapter 3 Someone Is Pursuing My Wife

• Although Oscar hadn't checked his account balance in a while, he was confident that Edmund wouldn't grovel before him without good reason.
• Beep beep—
• A sweet female voice quickly came through the phone. "Good day, Mr. Dalton. How may we assist you?"
• Oscar glanced at Mandy and the others, then casually said, "Please check my bank account balance."
• The room grew silent as everyone held their breath.
• Moments later, the sweet voice responded again, "Mr. Dalton, your domestic account balance is ... one hundred dollars."
• One hundred dollars?
• Oscar was stunned.
• I only had a hundred dollars?
• Whitney and Sienna exchanged glances before bursting into fits of laughter, their bodies shaking with amusement.
• Oscar thought for a moment before realizing something. "The money must be in my offshore account. The representative probably can't check it directly ... "
• Sienna was still bent over, laughing uncontrollably. "Offshore account? Do you even know what that is?"
• Mandy looked embarrassed. "I think he might've overheard me mentioning it when I was on the phone with my dad a few days ago. He probably thinks all bank accounts are called offshore accounts ... "
• Just as Oscar was about to ask the customer service representative another question, his phone went dead.
• The customer service representative's voice cut off mid-sentence.
• Mandy shot Oscar a look, seeing that he still wanted to explain himself. She sternly said, "Just go wash up and sleep, okay? Stop daydreaming and embarrassing yourself."
• Oscar mumbled a soft "okay" and didn't dare argue.
• ...
• That night, Oscar found himself sleeping in the study again.
• As he lay down, his phone, now charging, began to vibrate. It was the bank calling back.
• "Mr. Dalton, we're glad to have reached you again," the sweet voice on the other end said with relief. "Upon further verification, your funds are in your offshore accounts. Would you like us to transfer the money to your domestic account?"
• "How long would that take?" Oscar asked coolly.
• "If you approve it now, we can transfer it by tomorrow."
• "Good," Oscar replied. "I want to see my money tomorrow. Transfer half of it for now."
• After hanging up, Oscar could hardly believe this sudden stroke of good fortune.
• "I'm not dreaming!" he muttered, giving himself a light slap on the face. "Tomorrow, I'll head to the bank and find out how much I really have."
• Tossing and turning all night, Oscar could hardly sleep. The next morning, he prepared to head to the bank on his electric scooter, only to find an extra battery lying on the seat. It had to be Mandy who put it there. No one else in the Prestons would be that kind.
• After securing the battery, Oscar was ready to go.
• "Oscar, where do you think you're going this early?" Skylar, in her nightgown, shouted from the villa's third-floor balcony. She had a bratty expression as she glared down at him.
• "Good morning, Skylar," Oscar greeted with a humble nod.
• "Don't be so friendly with me. How did my sister end up marrying a loser like you? If it were me, I'd have strangled you on our wedding night."
• Skylar's voice was ice-cold as she tossed a folder down at him. "My sister forgot this for her meeting. Make sure you get it to her on time, or you'll be in big trouble."
• Despite her attitude, Skylar was undeniably attractive, inheriting the Preston's good genes. With her slender waist, long legs, and curves in all the right places, Oscar couldn't help but feel embarrassed if he looked at her too long.
• Picking up the folder, Oscar was bewildered. In the three years they'd been married, Mandy had never asked him to come to her office because she didn't want him to embarrass her. It was all like a dream now.
• "Get moving already!" Skylar snapped, her annoyance evident. Seeing Oscar's dazed expression only fueled her frustration. Other people had respectable, dashing brothers-in-law, but she had a useless brother-in-law who didn't want to get a divorce from her sister.
• ...
• About half an hour later, Oscar arrived at the entrance of Mandy's company.
• As he approached the entrance, a security guard blocked his way with a baton. "Get lost. We don't allow beggars here."
• Oscar had just woken up and he was wearing his old t-shirt and pants, looking like a homeless man.
• Oscar, used to such treatment, simply smiled and said, "I'm here to deliver something to my wife."
• "Your wife?" the guard sneered. "Who? The janitor or the cook?"
• "My wife is Mandy," Oscar replied.
• The security guard froze for a second, then burst into laughter. "Oh, so it's you—the Prestons' famous live-in son-in-law ... Haha!"
• Oscar shook his head, surprised by how well-known his reputation was.
• "Fine, hand over the documents," the guard said, still chuckling. "Ms. Preston told us you might show up."
• "No." Oscar shook his head firmly. "Skylar said these are important, so I have to deliver them personally. Please step aside."
• "You!" The guard was at a loss.
• What was wrong with this guy? Didn't he know how much the Prestons despised him? He looked more like a homeless man than a husband by dressing like that. Letting him inside would hurt the company's image.
• Before their argument could escalate, the roar of an engine interrupted them. A sleek BMW sports car drifted into the lot and parked next to Oscar's scooter. Lawrence stepped out, holding a bouquet of roses.
• "Good morning, Mr. Davidson!" The security guard instantly had a respectful attitude. "Ms. Preston has been waiting for you in her office."
• Lawrence nodded, ignoring Oscar completely as he made his way into the building.
• Oscar tried to follow, but the guard blocked him again with his baton.
• "What's your problem? Why can he go in, and I can't?" Oscar snapped.
• The guard sighed. "Oscar, you're just a live-in son-in-law. How can you compare to Mr. Davidson? Look at that bouquet of roses—it's worth thousands. Can you afford something like that? Honestly, I don't think you'll be around much longer."
• Oscar frowned. "What do you mean?"
• "What do I mean? Are you clueless or just pretending to be clueless? Everyone's heard about last night's party—Mr. Davidson is pursuing Ms. Preston. They're a perfect match. And you're just in the way. I don't even know why she married you in the first place."
• ...
• Meanwhile, inside the company lobby, Mandy, looking stunning in a floral dress, stepped out of the elevator.
• She smiled politely when she saw Lawrence. "Mr. Davidson, sorry for the wait."
• Lawrence licked his lips as he handed her the bouquet. "A beautiful woman deserves beautiful flowers, Mandy. Only someone like you could do these roses justice."
• Mandy's brows furrowed slightly. The memory of Lawrence's public proposal at the Prestons banquet last night was still fresh. His bold pursuit of her had become the talk of Wavecrest.
• While she didn't want to meet him today, her company desperately needed funding, and Lawrence was her only option.
• Forcing a smile, Mandy replied, "You're too kind, Mr. Davidson. Today's meeting is about business. I couldn't possibly accept such a personal gift."
• Lawrence grinned. "It's nothing more than a polite gesture. Are you rejecting it because you think I'm not being genuine? I can have a batch flown in from Morsenspir for you."
• "No, thank you." Mandy shook her head. "Morsenspir's roses are scarce this year. I heard the price of each stalk is around 1,500 dollars—it's just not worth it."
• "Fifteen hundred dollars per rose ... " Lawrence's smile faltered slightly. He'd need to send at least a hundred stalks to impress her.
• It would cost at least 150 thousand dollars.
• He couldn't help but feel awkward at the thought of the amount.
• Just then, Oscar burst into the lobby, pushing past the guard. Without hesitation, he grabbed the bouquet from Lawrence's hands and stomped on it.
• "Honey, you can't accept things from other people. If you like roses, I'll buy them for you!" Oscar, without thinking, grabbed Mandy's delicate hand and started pulling her toward the elevator.
• "Oscar, let go!" Mandy hissed.
• She couldn't let him make a scene in her company's lobby.
• "You b*stard! Get back here!" Lawrence, already feeling a bit awkward, now trembled with fury. The bouquet that he had carefully selected cost at least ten thousand dollars, and it had been stomped to pieces before he could even give it to her.
• What made it worse was that Oscar had just grabbed Mandy's hand—something Lawrence hadn't even had the chance to do.
• "You crushed my flowers! Can you even afford to pay for them?" Lawrence slammed his left hand against the elevator door just as it was about to close, forcing it back open. "You worthless loser! If you don't give me an explanation today, you're going to regret it!"