Chapter 437 Show No Weakness
I glanced at the message and committed the address to my memory. Then, I deleted it.
After changing my clothes, I left the apartment to go to the appointed restaurant. Once I arrived, a waiter immediately led me to Lincoln’s table.
Even after a year, Lincoln still looked the same. He was as healthy as I remembered. It seemed that he had lived a good life in the past year.
I sat down opposite him and greeted casually, “Mr. Shaw.”
Although I hated Lincoln then, I still had to keep up a pretense of civility. Otherwise, people would deem me immature.
Lincoln was shocked upon seeing me. He probably didn’t expect me to look so much better than I was a year ago.
“Anna, it’s been a year since we last met. I didn’t expect you to grow prettier and youthful,” Lincoln said with a smile. He sounded as if he was complimenting me.
I had heard countless compliments over the course of one year. As a result, Lincoln’s praise was nothing to me.
Nonetheless, I still responded with a polite smile, “You seem younger than a year ago. Have you been living well in this past year, Mr. Shaw?”
I turned the focus of the conversation to him.
Lincoln stopped making small talks. He looked at me seriously and asked, “Anna, when did you return here? Where have you been in the past year?”
“I went to Anglandur. I am now the director of Nifty Group.” There was no point in hiding this. I wanted Lincoln to know that I had gained position and authority. And that I was no longer the same person he used to bully.
Another look of surprise flashed across his eyes. He gazed at me with a shocked and odd expression.
“You are now a director of an overseas company? That is unexpected,” he said.
I smirked and said coldly, “It’s not as surprising as you think. After going through such a big upheaval in life, it’s only natural that a person would develop tremendous resilience. I should thank you, Mr. Shaw, for hurting me so much that I could achieve what I have today.”
Lincoln knew what I meant. His expression stiffened, and the atmosphere turned awkward.
“Anna, I know what happened a year ago hurt you severely. But, it was Michael’s decision. Furthermore, I also felt that you and Michael were unsuitable for each other. After all, his mother is still unconscious in the hospital because of you,” Lincoln said.
When Lincoln brought up Josephine’s condition, I could see the anger in his eyes and sensed his hatred for me.
I believed what happened a year ago had something to do with Josephine. Otherwise, no misunderstanding could have made Michael act with such cruelty toward me.
“Mr. Shaw, I understand you are still angry over this matter and can’t let it go. Do you hate me?” I asked.
I could remember how drastically Lincoln changed his attitude after what happened with Michael.
Lincoln’s expression darkened at that. However, he was a man familiar with social propriety. Therefore, he quickly concealed his emotions and looked at me calmly.
“That is all in the past, so there is no point in mentioning them. Have you met Michael since your return?” Lincoln smiled calmly. Although he told me to let go of the past, his gaze remained threatening.
I regarded him calmly and knew what he was concerned about. I sipped my water unhurriedly before saying, “I’ve met him a few times.”
Lincoln’s expression darkened further upon hearing my nonchalant tone. I immediately sensed that he was hiding something from Michael and me. For some reason, I kept feeling that Lincoln had done something that he did not want us to know.
“Michael never told me that you’ve returned. I had only just found out today that you are here. Otherwise, I won’t even know that both of you have met,” he replied.
His face had gone a little pale. Although he was still smiling, I could see his real emotions in his eyes.
I did not want to continue wasting my time with pointless conversations. As such, I looked straight at Lincoln and said flatly, “Mr. Shaw, I believe you asked to meet with me because you have something to say. You should get straight to the point. I am very busy nowadays.”
Lincoln stared at me and seemed flabbergasted before his gaze turned conflicted.
In the end, however, he still decided to touch on the main topic. He looked at me and said tentatively, “Anna, since you are doing so well overseas, why did you return? Isn’t it better for you to stay overseas and develop your career there?”
I knew what he was thinking, and it made me want to laugh. One year ago, the Shaw family treated me like trash and kicked me out of the family. Now that I have returned, does he seriously think I would listen to him?
“Whether I chose to develop my career overseas or in this country, that is my freedom. Besides, I have someone important to me in this country. So, don’t you think that I should return?” I answered cryptically.
The someone that I was talking about was Amaury, and I believed he understood who I meant. After all, he had witnessed how crazy I was when he refused to let me see Amaury.
His expression changed slightly upon hearing me. There was a flash of complex emotion in his eyes.
He looked straight into my eyes and hesitated for a long time before saying, “Are you telling me that you returned here for Amaury?”
“Of course. Amaury is the most important person in my life. He is the main reason why I came back here and decided to further my career here. Another reason I returned here is that the company has moved my work back to this country. So, I will be working here from now on,” I answered calmly.
I reckoned he must have wanted to meet me that day so that he could find out when I would be leaving the country. My return must have caused him to worry that I would take Amaury away from him.
As expected, Lincoln began to frown and looked a little panicked after hearing my answer.
“So it turns out that you returned to this country for Amaury’s sake. While I understand that you suffered a lot when you had to separate from him, he has settled well in the Shaw residence. I don’t think you should disturb his life. You want your child to grow up well, don’t you?” he said with a gentle tone as if he was trying to do what was best for Amaury. In actuality, he only wanted to separate me from my son.
He had put on such a kindly expression that I could not resist feeling disgusted.
A year ago, he used cruel means to separate me from Amaury. Now that I finally made my way back, what right does he have to make such a request of me? Furthermore, what makes him think that I would listen to him?
