Chapter 199 The Ungrateful One
Caroline was just about to head back to work when Liam shouted at her.
“Stop right there!”
She lowered her eyes and looked at him, calm but sharp. “You got something else to say?”
+8 Pears
Liam’s eyes burned with anger. “We’re doing this for your own good. Running a restaurant isn’t as simple as flipping a few pans. On your own, this place is bound to fail.”
Hearing the scolding tone, Caroline snapped back, “Then let it fail. That’s my problem, not yours.
“You-“Liam’s face turned crimson. He whipped around to Alaina. “Told you she was ungrateful. We try to help, but she’s never treated us like family.”
Family?
Caroline let out a bitter scoff. “If you’re all so invested, let me return the favor. You want to open a restaurant? Go ahead. Get it running. Once you do, I’ll send customers your way. That sounds like family to you?”
She didn’t wait for a reply. She turned and disappeared into the kitchen, where a mountain of prep work still waited.
Maia couldn’t handle it all alone, Caroline needed to get back in the game.
“What the hell is she so proud of? Let’s see how long she keeps this up. When it all crashes, I want to see how much she regrets all this!” Liam snapped, face as dark as coal. “Alaina, let’s go!”
Sure, Caroline could cook, but cooking was the easy part. Running a restaurant? That took experience and knowledge.
Caroline had no business sense, no real experience. No way she could manage this place properly.
Alaina lingered, throwing one last glance toward the kitchen, still unwilling to give up. “Should we ask Miguel to talk to her?” she murmured.
Liam let out a frustrated grunt. “Did you not see how stubborn she was? Forget Miguel, resurrect my mother, and even she couldn’t change her mind. Leave her. Let the restaurant sink. Then she’ll come crawling back and beg us to help her open a new one.”
Alaina stayed quiet, but his words sank in, she felt Liam had a point.
Caroline could cook, no doubt. She wouldn’t give up on this line of work so easily.
But if the place failed, she’d remember this day, remember that they had come to offer her the char b open a bigger place together.
She’d come looking for them, ready to talk, ready to start something new.
The only problem was, Alaina had no idea when that failure would come. Right now, the place had a steady stream of customers. If they waited for it to die on its own, it could take years.
That wouldn’t work. If they wanted to do business, they had to act early.
10:56 Sun, 8 Jun 7 Cu
Chapter 199 The Ungrateful One
She wasn’t about to sit around waiting.
On the ride home, the thought took root and grew fast.
If the restaurant wouldn’t collapse on its own, they’d make sure it couldn’t survive.
With that thought, Alaina pulled out her phone and called Helen. “Helen, where are you?”
“At home, Mom. Why?”
Alaina smiled faintly. “Good. I’m coming over.”
She ended the call and turned to Liam. “Take me to Helen’s place.”
“Sure, Alaina,” Liam replied without a second thought and rerouted the GPS.
It wasn’t her first time visiting Galaxy Bay Residences. She’d been there when Helen first moved in. She made her way up with ease and knocked.
At the door, she slipped off her shoes and peered inside. “Linden’s not home?”
“No, he’s at work,” Helen said. She caught the faint trace of worry on Alaina’s face and asked, “What’s going on, Mom? Something happened?”
Alaina finished taking off her shoes, she gave a heavy sigh and wandered toward the couch. “Ugh, don’t even get me started.”
That one heavy sigh made Helen’s curiosity flared. She’d already gotten Linden to help Edwin and Liam land jobs, so what could possibly be wrong now?
Before she could ask, Alaina dove in. “It’s that ungrateful brat Caroline! Her restaurant’s doing great. So your dad, your uncles, and I thought–why not expand and make it a family business? Liam and I went to talk to her first thing this morning, and guess what? She shot us down. No hesitation, no respect. Can you believe that?”
After all these years of raising her, Caroline’s heartless response was just outrageous.
Helen’s expression wavered.
She was surprised that Caroline had opened a restaurant and didn’t say a word. And it was doing well? But at the same time, she was confused. Why would Edwin want to run a restaurant with Caroline?
She kept her tone neutral. “Mom, what’s so great about running a restaurant anyway? It’s just a bunch of hassle. Working at the Grayson Group is steadier and way less drama.”
Alaina waved her off. “You’re too narrow–minded. Caroline’s cooking is amazing, and she’s already built up a reputation. If she expanded and did a bit of marketing, the customers would keep pouring in. With the right push, she could open a chain. And that’d bring in more money than the old clothing factory ever did.”
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