THE FORGOTTEN HEIRESS-Chapter 448: Give Them A Run For Their Money

"Poor us," she mumbled under her breath, not realizing she had spoken aloud until her mother turned to her with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you disappointed?" Marie asked.

"No, I’m not."

"Good. Because, you know, you bear some responsibility for what happened back then," her mother replied, gently pulling Ariel back toward the living room.

"How can you say that, Mom? I thought I explained everything to you," Ariel protested.

Her mother gave a small, knowing smile. "You should blame it on your jealous friend. If she hadn’t misled him, he might have had the chance to fix his mistakes and you three wouldn’t have been separated for this long. But that’s all in the past now. What do you intend to do?"

"Nothing, Mom."

"What do you mean, ’nothing’? You should make the most of this opportunity. Let me remind you in case you’ve forgotten, you’re not getting any younger. So make hay while the sun shines."

"But I can’t just forgive him so easily, Mom,"

Ariel countered, crossing her arms defensively.

"Who said anything about forgiveness? Besides what’s there to forgive. All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t let this chance slip away. He seems like a responsible man, and I’ve looked into his background, he comes from a good family."

Ariel was taken aback and stood staring at her mother nonplussed. "Mom?! When did you do that? I only told you about our encounter three days ago."

"It wasn’t for nothing that I was the wife of an intelligence officer for years," Marie said proudly.

"I see," Ariel said. She had almost forgotten the special privileges her mother enjoyed from being the wife of someone who had worked with Military intelligence.

Although her husband was late, Marie still had some people she could contact if she needed any information that didn’t go against the rule. "So what exactly are you suggesting?"

"Oh, I don’t think I need to spell it out," Marie waved Ariel off dismissively. "Now, go set the table so we can eat. Gigi hasn’t had anything since she came back from school; she wanted to wait until you got here."

"I’ll set the table, but I doubt George will want to join us for dinner," Ariel said.

"You don’t seem to understand men and the lengths they’ll go to when their heart’s involved, especially the ones in love. But there’s no need to argue about it, you’ll see for yourself soon enough," Marie replied with a knowing smile.

"In love? With who?"

"His daughter of course," Marie replied bluntly.

"Oh," Ariel responded, trying to sound indifferent, but her mother caught the subtle note of disappointment in her tone.

"You know me, too well, Ria, I never turn down a free meal," George replied with that lazy, sexy grin that always unravels her insides when Ariel courteously asked him if he would join them for dinner.

So just like her mother had said, George did not even stand on protocol and directly agreed to have dinner with her family.

Dinner could never have been more interesting with Georgia and George carrying on as if they were the only two people at the table, making Ariel feel both warm and oddly out of place.

Even though their bond was fresh, it seemed to grow right before her eyes, and for the first time since she brought George to see his daughter, she wondered whether reconnecting them had been the right decision.

By the time they were set to leave for Baltimore, Georgia was so reluctant to part from her father that they all ended up traveling together, much to Ariel’s surprise.

Marie, however, decided to stay behind, claiming she had a weekend engagement that couldn’t be rescheduled. Ariel had her suspicions, but she knew better than to argue.

******************

Two days later, the Wyatt Corporation’s grand banquet arrived, the event buzzing with energy and elegance. All the top executives and business elites were in attendance, their conversations blending with the soft music that filled the extravagant ballroom.

George stood beside Ariel wriggling a cocktail in his hand, "Who’s that?" he asked, nodding toward a striking couple who had just entered the hall, drawing the attention of nearly everyone present.

"That’s my boss Dr Janice Wyatt and her husband, Shawn Hudson." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"Wow! You don’t mean to say that’s the renowned Dr Janice Wyatt, do you? George asked.

"Yeah, the one and the same Dr Janice Wyatt you’ve heard about."

"And you said she’s your boss?"

"Mm-hmm," Ariel said proudly.

George let out an impressed whistle. "I didn’t know you worked for someone that high-profile. That’s incredible."

Not everyone gets to be the personal assistant to such an outstanding woman and George was surprisingly impressed by Ariel’s achievements over the years.

"Isn’t she extremely beautiful? I never saw someone as beautiful as she. Not only is she beautiful outwardly, but she is also multi-talented and yet so humble," Ariel praised sincerely.

George’s expression was filled with admiration as his gaze lingered on the couple. "The way her husband looks at her, it’s like she’s the center of his world," he noted.

"Yeah, although her husband is the president of Hudson Groups, he practically hangs on every word she says, even the one she’s yet to speak out, he’s already made arrangements for it to be fulfilled."

"They’ve bagged the best couple of the city for six years now... back to back as no one has been able to defeat them," Ariel boasted.

"That’s because they haven’t had any serious competition," George said with a teasing glint in his eyes.

"You think so?" Ariel chuckled. "I doubt if there’s any man in this city that could do what president Hudson does for his wife. My boss’s brother is doing his best but he still can’t compare with President Hudson when it comes to spoiling and loving his wife."

She turned to George with a challenging look. "You think you can compete with Shawn Hudson?"

George’s gaze softened as he looked at her. "I’m sure I could... if I had the right partner by my side."

Ariel’s smile faltered slightly as heart skipped a beat. "And what do you mean by that?"

George stared at Ariel for a few seconds without saying anything.

"You’re as beautiful as she is, Ria, I wouldn’t mind spoiling you even more than President Hudson spoils his wife," he paused, donned a knowing smile that made Ariel’s heart start beating erratically, then asked,

"Should we give them a run for their money?"

Ariel’s heart raced, unsure of where this was going. "We... as in..."

"As husband and wife, of course," George said in a voice so calm and firm as if he had been waiting for this moment.

Instead of the angry or elated reaction George expected, Ariel frowned slightly before reaching up to touch George’s forehead. "You’re not sick, are you? Why are you talking like someone who’s lost his mind?"

George threw his head back and laughed, but the look in his eyes told her he was anything but joking.

"I’m in my right mind Ria and if I’m not asking too much, I would want us to..."

"Hey, did I interrupt something?" Cheryl, who had just turned up beside them, asked when he saw the look on Ariel’s face.

"N-no. You’re not. Is there something you want me to do?" Ariel asked and quickly mumbled a tiny apology in George’s direction before dragging Cheryl away, leaving George with a knowing smile hanging on his lips.