Revenge Against My Ex-husband
Chapter 31 This is what happens when you go against me

Margaret never expected Irene to visit a luxurious restaurant like this, so she couldn't help but give her an extra look. Irene had practically nothing to her name when she left Edric Myers back then. She even took back the wedding ring that she had given to Edric, and it wasn't long before the ring turned up in a pawn shop. One could easily imagine how downtrodden she was to go after the mere few hundred dollars that the ring could fetch.

Margaret was previously involved in a car accident with Irene and had seen how shabby, and old-fashioned Irene's clothes were. She could tell that Irene was obviously having a rough time and had looked upon her with great disdain.

"Weren't you so arrogant back then? Did you finally learn how tough the world could be after leaving the Myers Family?"

In Margaret's mind, Irene was now the embodiment of destitution, and thus, so she was rather taken aback by Irene's current appearance.

Irene seemed completely different from before. Although what she was wearing was not a high-class brand, her clothes were not cheap either. Most importantly, they were now in a fancy restaurant, which was not easily accessible to anyone.

"Irene Nelson couldn't possibly be married to a rich man, could she? She's certainly pretty enough to be appealing, but isn't she barren?" Margaret wondered. As it was difficult for women with infertility problems to survive in rich families, the word 'mistress' suddenly popped up in Margaret's mind.

It was the only reason Margaret could think of, and she suddenly felt quite pleased with the thought that Irene might be the lover to a potbellied man.

"This is what you get for pitting against me. Serves you right, Irene!" Margaret thought.

While Margaret was gloating, a tall, young man suddenly appeared and approached Irene. When the man sat down across from Irene, Margaret's sense of joy instantly vanished.

Margaret only managed to get a clearer look at the man's face after he sat down and was taken aback when she realized that it was Jordan Reed-Edric's competitor for an urban construction project. Jordan's looks were comparable to Edric's and he, too, came from a good family. However, he was a playboy.

Margaret felt certain that Irene was one of his many lovers and the thought comforted her.

Just when her mood was lifted, Edric arrived at the restaurant and walked straight up to Margaret. "Mom, I was caught up by some matters," he explained.

"I've just arrived as well." Margaret assured and subconsciously glanced towards Irene before she remarked, "Did you see that? Irene Nelson's dining here as well. Her future must be so promising now that she's actually Jordan's mistress!"

Edric swept one glance at Irene and Jordan and when he saw the mesmerizing smile on Irene's face, felt a stifling sensation in his chest.

He quickly retracted his gaze indifferently and, as if he did not notice Irene at all, asked, "Mom, what do you want to eat?"

Edric had doted on Irene dearly in the past and Margaret was inevitably thrilled when she noticed that he had become so cold towards her now. "My son could finally let go of the past! I'd soon be free from this too," she thought. Her voice cracked up with excitement as she replied, "Up to you. We could eat whatever you want."

Jordan Reed did not sleep well that night. He couldn't stop himself from feeling depressed over the fact that Irene had been cheated on and was a divorcee. He had never been a gossipmonger, but was very curious about the identity of Irene's unfaithful partner.

For the whole morning, Jordan had held back from probing about the identity of Irene's ex-husband out of consideration of how personal the question was. As the Reed Family was also very particular about upholding silence during meal times, Jordan also formed the habit of eating in silence. Eventually, he couldn't contain his curiosity any longer and burst out, "Irene, I'm very curious about the identity of your ex- husband. Is he also from San Fetillo?"

Irene had already noticed that something was bothering Jordan long ago, but she never expected this to be his source of woe. "No," she replied casually.

"Did you marry out of love?" he probed.

"I guess so?"

Feeling slightly jealous, Jordan asked, "Why did he cheat on you?"

"Does a man need a reason to have an affair?" Irene sneered.

"Why are you reluctant to talk about him? Did he leave a gaping wound in your heart that still hurts?"

"It only hurts only when you love someone, but I no longer love him so why would I feel hurt?" Irene asked.

Edric never expected Jordan and Irene to discuss this. As he could hear everything that Irene had said clearly, his expression instantly changed. "She actually said that she does not love me. She's so cold and heartless!" he thought.

"I'm very curious about that man's name. Could you tell me?" Jordan pleaded.

"No, I can't," Irene rejected and placed her utensils down before she resumed, "He's just a nobody. So why bother?"

"I want to bash him up!" Jordan replied honestly. "I'll beat up that heartless man every time I see him!"

"You sound as if you're actually infatuated with me," Irene sniggered.

"I am indeed a womanizer, but only before I get married. I will definitely be good for my wife if I get married." Jordan vouched.

However, Irene shook her head and said, "That's what all men say before they get married."

"I'm not that kind of person. I'm serious!" Jordan explained anxiously when he saw how doubtful she was. "I'll prove it to you," he declared.

From Edric's perspective, Jordan's declaration was as good as a marriage proposal. Suddenly, he stood up and walked over to Jordan before he greeted, "Mr. Reed!"

Jordan looked up and replied, "Mr. Myers, are you also here for dinner?" Jordan then noticed Margaret whom he had met once as a child. Out of politeness, he got up and walked over to her before he greeted, "Hello, Aunt Margaret!"

Margaret nodded and smiled, but her eyes were fixed on Irene, who simply picked up her paper napkin slowly to wipe her mouth and took no notice of them. When Margaret saw how proud and haughty she was, she felt extremely upset and frustrated. "Jordan, who is this?" she asked.

Jordan then looked at Irene and called out, "Irene, come here. Let me introduce you to them."

Irene stood up and casually picked up her bag, but instead of walking over to Margaret, she walked toward the exit while replying, "Jordan, take your time catching up. I'll wait for you outside!"

Seeing how rude Irene was, Margaret and Edric's expression immediately darkened. Jordan, too, realized how inappropriate Irene's reaction was. He knew that Irene had always been very tolerant of others, and he couldn't help but wonder why she would treat Margaret like this. Failing to think of an explanation for Irene's bizarre behavior, he smiled at Margaret and apologized, "She's quite shy. Aunt Margaret, don't take it to heart!"

Margaret was instantly stunned, for Irene wouldn't have dared to throw her temper like this if Jordan wasn't dating her seriously, and neither would Jordan bother to explain anything on her behalf. Margaret was suddenly annoyed and thought, "Irene, you asked for it. Don't blame me. "We haven't been in touch for a long time, but as an elder, I have to offer you a few words of advice. She's a divorcee, and a man of your status shouldn't be dating her."

"Thank you for your reminder, Aunt Margaret. But Irene is different from others. She's gentle and kind. She merely met the wrong person."

Edric's face further darkened when he heard Jordan's reply. Margaret never expected such a response from Jordan and despite her initial intentions to slander Irene, was forced to swallow her words. After exchanging a few more words with Edric and Margaret, Jordan left to chase after Irene. Margaret watched as he slowly disappeared from sight before she snorted coldly, "Did you see that? This is how ill- bred your ex-wife is. Jordan must be blind to fall for her."

After criticizing Jordan, Margaret realized that she was also indirectly condemning her son, so she quickly changed her words and added, "Thankfully, you've realized your mistake. Otherwise, god knows how much longer you'll have to put up with her."

However, Edric merely remained silent. He had always believed that Jordan was merely toying with Irene, but he never expected Jordan to hold such a high opinion of her.

As Jordan was not only handsome and free-spirited but also good at coaxing women, Edric suddenly felt extremely upset inside.

However, Margaret did not know what her son was thinking and suggested, "Edric, you should visit the Cook family more often when you're free."

"Why?" Edric asked.

"Shouldn't you forge a better relationship with Lily and Steven Cook?" Margaret explained earnestly. "Edric, I think it's likely that Steven deliberately made things difficult for your current urban construction project because he's unhappy with you. After all, your engagement to Lily has been postponed for three years, so it's inevitable for him to have second thoughts about you."

"Haven't we already decided on the engagement date? What else is there to be unhappy about?" Edric snapped impatiently.

Margaret could only shut up when she saw how irritable her son was.

Meanwhile, Jordan managed to catch up with Irene at the elevator. "What's going on?" he asked.

"What's going on?" Irene repeated although she clearly knew what he was asking about.

"You embarrassed me so bad back there." he complained grudgingly. "Irene, why did you do that? Let's not talk about how Edric actually saved you that night. His mother is an elder and you shouldn't have left like that. It's very rude of you."

"What kind of an elder is she?" Irene replied sarcastically and instantly recalled what Margaret had done to her in the past. A look of hatred surfaced in her eyes, and she replied, "I feel annoyed whenever I see that woman's face. As for Edric Myers, did you really think that he wants to save me?"

Upon seeing Irene's sneer, Jordan suddenly recalled the relationship between Edric and Lily. "Did Edric save you because he knew you were Mr. Cook's daughter?" he asked.

"How would I know? You're the only one who knows of my relationship with Steven Cook!"

"I see," Jordan said and frowned. His mind flashed back to the scene of their fight at After Dark and he vaguely recalled Edric hugging Irene in his arms that day. He questioned, "Irene, is it true that you don't know Edric before?"

"I know him, but he doesn't know me!" Irene replied quickly. Jordan's brows scrunched up into a frown, and he felt as if he had missed out on something.

The first episode of the blind date reality show was aired on TV and well received by the audience, achieving up to seven points in the audience's ratings on just the first day of the broadcast.

Social media platforms were flooded with discussions about the program the next day. Thanks to efforts by the TV station's strong public relations team and the reposting of the program by big-shot celebrities, the topic trended on Twitter several times and soon became the talk of the town.

As Deborah Jones had nothing to do at home, she watched the replay of the blind date reality show and was soon hooked by the program. While she was engrossed in the show, Lily came downstairs and sat down beside her before she whined, "Mom, I'm so bored."

"Find someone to go shopping with you," Deborah suggested, and her eyes remained glued to the TV.

"That's boring. There are only that many places in San Fetillo, and I've already shopped in all of them." "Why don't you go to Spa then?"

"Mom!" Lily grumbled unhappily when she saw how uncooperative her mother was. "Can't you have a proper conversation with me? What's so interested in that stupid TV show?"

"This TV program is quite entertaining," Deborah defended.

Lily then took one glance at the TV. At that moment, the camera was panning over the female guests in the reality show, and her eyes suddenly widened as she exclaimed, "Mom, is that Irene?" "What nonsense are you talking about?" Deborah replied in surprise.

"Back to that show! Quick!" Lily yelled and snatched the remote control from Deborah's hand to press the button and then paused at the frame which featured Irene and exclaimed, "Mom, this lady's name is Irene Nelson!"

Deborah, who wasn't paying much attention before, was now focused on the fifth female guest in the reality show after she heard what Lily said. As none of the male participants paid attention to Irene, Deborah naturally overlooked her presence and only realized that she was Irene after Lily had pointed it out.

"Irene Nelson actually went for a blind date?" Lily and Deborah thought and exchanged a look. Deborah was the first the recover from her shock and asked, "Perhaps they share the same name?" "She's wearing a mask, so I can't see her face clearly, but her figure and face shape is very similar to Irene."

"It's not Irene. Look, she's wearing braces. Irene's already so beautiful, so there's no way she'll need to wear such a disgusting thing," Deborah refuted.

"Let's take a look at her personal information first." Lily continued to turn it back to the part where the female guests introduced themselves.

It was written in Irene's information that she was twenty-eight years old and was an ordinary employee. She was divorced once and had a three-year-old child. As she had been hurt in the previous marriage, a criterion that her future spouse must fulfil was to be honest. It would also be a bonus if she needn't deal with the in-law relationship.

Most of what Irene had stated in her information was true, for she genuinely wanted to replace a father for Eden. However, as she was worried that men would choose her for her appearances, she deliberately wore braces to make herself look a little ugly.

She believed that if someone did choose her despite her current appearance, he would be a person who did not judge a book by its cover. Eden's age was also falsely reported. However, the criteria that her future husband had to meet came from the buttom of her heart. As long as her spouse does not have a mother and would remain faithful, Irene would be contented. She had had enough of Margaret during the time when she was with Edric and had already developed a phobia for mother-in-laws.

"She couldn't be Irene. How could Irene have a three-year-old child?" Deborah, who was first to finish reading the information, said. Irene and Edric had only been divorced for three years, so it was impossible for her to have a three-year-old child.

"But why do they look so similar?" Lily muttered. "She still resembles Irene even though she's wearing braces. Perhaps she adopted the child?" "Alright now. Let's stop thinking about this. Whether she's Irene or not, it has nothing to do with us. If you are bored, I'll go shopping with you." "Mom, I don't want to go out. Could you get Dad to call Edric over for dinner tonight?"

Deborah was well aware of her daughter's intentions and sighed, "Alright! I'll call your Dad and speak to him about this."