Chapter 781 She Hasn’t Coaxed Me
Soon, Brendan made his way to the bar and got himself a glass of champagne, which he guzzled down in one shot. In fact, he immediately caught on to the situation the moment Danny mentioned Alexander’s name. Despite their brotherhood, he felt sorry for Elise because it seemed to him that Alexander cheated on her with another lady after she left for three months.
After all, she had many admirers and could have settled with anyone among them, yet she picked Alexander instead. At the thought of that, Brendan felt his anger gnawing at his mind as his abnormal obsession with flawlessness began to take over him.
Deep down, he could never tolerate any unfaithful behavior in a relationship. Although that started as a perfectionism complex at first, that obsession grew even stronger ever since Yuri came back. Therefore, he tended to lose control over himself and let his emotions get the better of him whenever he ran into something like that.
“Mr. Griffith.” A lady’s voice was heard coming from not far away.
Brendan quickly pulled himself together, but when he saw ‘Anastasia’, the smile on his face instantly faded away. Elise then walked up to the man and raised her glass to toast him. “Thanks for the help both of you gave me last time. Where is the other Mr. Griffith?”
Brendan looked back in frustration, glaring at the lady emotionlessly. “Are you trying to thank me or my brother? I’m here for work, so why should I bring him along?” Upon hearing that, Elise awkwardly raised her eyebrows because she hadn’t heard Brendan’s impulsive tone for a while. “Anyway, my brother is already married, and his wife is Elise Sinclair. That’s also the same way everyone else in our family feels. So, if I were you, I wouldn’t waste my time and energy on any more silly plans, Miss White.” Brendan made his point understood intimidatingly.
Elise was amused yet helpless after hearing Brendan’s words. Although she was happy deep down that Brendan stood up for her, she hoped that the Griffith Family could forget about her, considering the gravity of the situation. If the Griffith Family can’t remember about me at all, I suppose I don’t have to be concerned about the Boyle Family and those unseen forces backing them in the shadows. As much as Elise was aware of her responsibilities, she knew there was no way she could rush the process. “You’re getting the wrong idea, Mr. Griffith.” Elise patiently tried to continue smiling. “I was just about to recommend someone to work for you out of my admiration for your talent. Nothing else more.”
Brendan put down the empty glass in his hand and took another one full of wine, but when he was about to take a sip, he suddenly paused. “In my line of work, only those with real talents can survive. So, if you’re hoping to pull some strings for someone else right here, I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed.”
“I know your style, Mr. Griffith. Talent is all that matters to you when it comes to recruiting. So, think of me as the bridge between the two of you. It’s your call whether you’re interested in accepting this person.” Elise didn’t want to irk the man by pushing her luck too far.
As Brendan was not someone unreasonable, he decided to consider Elise’s recommendation and eased up on her. “Give me your contact then.”
After the two of them exchanged name cards, they were interrupted by some noise from the entrance. “Mr. Joslin is back, so aren’t you going to attend to him?” Brendan implied that he didn’t want to be disturbed anymore.
“In that case, I’m going to excuse myself.” Knowing Brendan was someone who liked some peace and solitude, Elise decided to walk away and leave him alone.
On the other hand, Benjamin was sitting on the stage while Benedict, his eldest son, was giving his father his blessings. After that, he had his assistant deliver a sophisticated-looking box to him before he handed it to Benjamin. “Father, I wish you a long life full of happiness and joy.”
“Good.” Benjamin nodded and put down the present. In the meantime, Elise, who was somewhere nearby, saw Benedict and held her skirt hem high, whereupon she scurried toward him.
“Hi, Uncle Benedict.” Elise politely greeted Benedict with a smile, but the man continued to stand there without giving her any response, as if he didn’t hear her at all. A few moments later, he walked away from Elise and Benjamin, leaving them behind but not before saying, “I’m going to get some rest. Please excuse me.”
Noticing Benedict’s reaction, Elise helplessly shifted her gaze to Benjamin for help. “Don’t look at me.” Benjamin tried to steer clear of trouble. “You’re going to have to clean your own mess.”
“Alas! I guess I’m going to have to take this slowly,” Elise said to herself helplessly. After all, she knew Anastasia had made a lot of silly decisions that strained her relationship with her family members. Thus, she understood why Benedict was reluctant to entertain her. I guess I should consider myself grateful for not being chased out of here during Mr. Joslin’s birthday. For that, I should probably stop acting like an annoying fly and leave Benedict alone.
On the other hand, Benedict was sitting on the couch in the estate but didn’t see anyone coming even though he had already drunk half of the water in his glass. Out of curiosity, he tiptoed to the balcony and hid behind the curtains, secretly peeking outside, only to realize that Elise didn’t come after him. Instead, she was seen happily chatting with Benjamin on the balcony.
Benedict pouted in frustration and turned around, shouting at the kitchen, “Noa! Come here now!”
“Yes, Young Master Benedict. What can I do for you?” A woman in a maid’s dress came running, speaking with a peculiar accent.
“Didn’t you just say Anastasia apologized to Grandpa? Why didn’t she seem to bother me now that I’m back?” Benedict asked with a sour look on his face.
“Yeah.” The woman looked at him innocently. “But I don’t really know what’s going on.”
Benedict stroked his chin in a puzzled manner. Is she mad at me because I was too rude? Should I go after her and coax her? Nah! A true man has to uphold his principles! She must apologize to me first, or I won’t talk to her. Benedict nodded to himself, but when he saw the woman still staring at him, he dismissed her by waving his hand. “Alright, you’ve been quite a great ‘help’, so you may go now.”
“Okay!” The lady then scurried away and made herself scarce.
In the meantime, Elise was surrounded by people who wanted to gain her favor when she appeared to be back to talking terms with Benjamin. Thinking Benjamin would be happy to see the place getting crowded, Elise greeted anyone who approached her patiently. As time went by, Elise found herself listening to the conversation between two elderly. However, she suddenly felt someone’s wandering hands on her lap. After making sure it was intentional, she swiftly grasped the man’s hand and twisted his wrist, whereupon the place was filled with the man’s painful scream that drew every guest’s attention.
“Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Please let go of me!” The man had a painful look on his face, seemingly struggling to straighten his body while shouting in agony.
“If I let you go, who am I supposed to hold responsible for this harassment?” Elise intentionally strengthened her grip, putting the man through immense pain.
“Oh, dear. Is there some kind of misunderstanding going on, Mr. Ford? Anyway, this is Anastasia from the Joslin Family, so just admit your mistake.” Someone stepped in and tried to defuse the situation.
“What’re you talking about? I haven’t even heard about that at all. Plus, she is not related to the Joslin Family by blood, anyway. Look at what she is doing to me now. I was just joking, but she took it so seriously that she wanted to kill me!”
