Faux Vows, True Desires
Chapter 381

Everyone in the room was startled by Olina's loud entrance. Instinctively, they watched her stride in, marching up to the counter and pushing Avery aside.

Avery stood there, bouquet in hand, dumbfounded and unsure of what was happening.

"Cecilia, how dare you cozy up to another man!"

Olina accused, pointing at Cecilia, "Have you forgotten your place?"

"Mrs. Martinez, I've already divorced your son," Cecilia replied calmly.

Olina's tirade came to an abrupt halt.

Yes, Owen had indeed divorced Cecilia.

She had come here today to tell Cecilia to keep her distance from Owen, not to catch her in an affair.

But it irked Olina to see Cecilia already having a suitor, a man who was just as attractive as Owen, right after the divorce.

She suspected Cecilia had been unfaithful during their marriage.

No wonder Owen wanted a divorce.

Olina conveniently ignored the fact that her son was currently clinging to Cecilia like a piece of chewing gum.

Seeing that Olina had run out of words, Cecilia stepped out from behind the counter and said, "Mrs. Martinez, please come with me."

Despite her silence, Olina followed Cecilia.

Cecilia led her to a table in the corner and called a waitress over. She ordered a cup of coffee and a few pastries for Mrs. Martinez, and another coffee for herself.

Once seated, Cecilia casually asked Olina, "What brings you here, Mrs. Martinez?"

Olina glanced at Avery, who was still standing at the counter, holding the bouquet and looking rather lost.

Focusing back on Cecilia, Olina's tone was far from pleasant, "You found a new man just days after divorcing Owen. Were you cheating during the marriage? No wonder Owen wanted to divorce you. Good riddance. You're not good enough for my son. My son is exceptional. Only a socialite is a match for him, not someone like you, Cecilia."

Cecilia merely smiled, "Mrs. Martinez, you should be saying these things to your son. After all, he's the one who's clinging to me like a piece of gum. You should tell him that Cecilia isn't good enough for him, that he should stay away from Cecilia!"

Olina was speechless.

She had tried telling her son, but he had refused to listen, even getting angry with her.

"As for infidelity, your son was the first to cheat. After we got our marriage license, he openly took Ruby out."

After a while, Olina asked directly, "Cecilia, name your price. I'll give you anything, as long as you promise to leave Pinehurst and never see Owen again."

Cecilia laughed, "Why are you offering now? Owen isn't my husband anymore. Even if I wanted to get money from him, I couldn't."

Olina was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"Last time, Ms. Scott came to make an offer. I didn't ask for too much, so I said 500, 000 and she agreed. But the deal fell through, and I had to return the money." Such a pity!

Olina's face darkened, "You just asked for 500, 000? He's a man worth over 100 million."

"How much can you offer, Mrs. Martinez?"

"I'll give you 1 million if you leave Pinehurst immediately and never come back. Once you're gone, Owen will forget you and start over. His wife can't be a penniless nobody like you." With that, Olina extravagantly took out a large check and slapped it down in front of Cecilia.

Cecilia picked up the check and asked, "Can this be cashed?"

"Of course."

"Oh, 1 million just looks like a piece of paper."

Olina's face hardened.

Cecilia took out her phone and snapped a picture of the check, uttering, "This is the second time I've been given money because of Owen. Each time the price goes up. If I hold onto him for a few more years, will the price go higher? Now it's 1 million, but in a few years, it could be worth 10 billion."

She pushed the check back towards Olina, "Mrs. Martinez, as appealing as your offer is, I'm not someone greedy. I wouldn't leave my hometown for just 1 million. Besides, I have no connections with Owen anymore. If I accept this money, I'd feel guilty."

"Do you think it isn't enough? I tell you, even if you keep him for ten or eight years, the price will be the same."

Cecilia laughed, "Do you really think your son is like fine wine, getting better with age? Your son will only get older. As an old man, his value will decrease, not increase. Besides, if you want to keep us apart, you should talk to your son. Remember, right now it's your son who is shamelessly pursuing me, not me clinging to him. As long as you can stop your son from pursuing me, you won't have to spend a dime to keep us apart. You can comfortably choose a socialite to be his wife. I, a poor girl with no power or money, don't want to reach for the stars. I should be thanking you, Mrs. Martinez, for helping me escape from your son's clutches."

Olina, "I tried, but Owen won't listen to me. He was raised by his grandparents, so we're not as close. He doesn't listen to me."

"You're coming to me because you can't get through to him? How is that fair? The problem isn't with me. What good will it do to come to me? Even if you gave me all your wealth and asked me to leave, it wouldn't solve the problem. Given your son's stubborn personality, he might stay single for my sake. Then I'd really be profiting, gaining all your wealth for nothing."

Olina moved her mouth to say something, but found there were no words.

The problem really lay with her son.

"Just don't accept Owen's advances. If he comes to replace you, you should..."

"Could you send me two pit bulls, Mrs. Martinez?"

Olina blinked in confusion, "What do you want with two pit bulls?"

"To keep them, of course. Next time your son comes sniffing around, I'll let the pit bulls loose on him. A few rounds of that, and I'll wager he'll think twice before stepping foot near me again." Olina frowned, "Pit bulls can be vicious. If they end up hurting my son, what then?"

"Well, what's your suggestion? Your son has power and influence, I can't just hide away from him."

"Or perhaps, you could arrange a blind date for him, and let the woman charm him off his feet completely. If he's forced to take responsibility, he won't have time to pester me anymore."

If Owen were present, listening to Cecilia proposing such a scheme to his mother, he'd be fuming.

With a sagging expression, Olina retorted, "I've told you, Owen doesn't listen to me. If I arrange a date for him, he won't attend. If he were so easily wooed, I wouldn't need to involve you at all." Cecilia raised her hands in surrender, indicating there was nothing more she could do.