Too Much to Bear, My Love
Chapter 149

Chapter 149 Making Friends

“Mrs. Scott, I have no intention to put you on the spot. I was just worried that you were actuallyconsidering Amelia to be your daughter-in-law. When you first proposed the marriage betweenCarter and me to my parents, I flew all the way home. I fell in love with Carter at first sight andresolved to be his wife. Mrs. Scott, if you decide not to back me, I don’t know what else I can do,”Jennifer said pitifully.

Faye smiled. Comforting Jennifer, she said, “You're the daughter-in-law of my choice, Jennifer.Amelia is already one of the Clintons. Nothing can happen between her and Oscar. Don't let yourimagination run wild. You'll become a laughingstock.”

Jennifer nodded. The smile remained frozen on her face, but her eyes were menacing.

At that moment, Tiffany had dragged Amelia into the lift. Due to the odd hour, the entrance of thehospital appeared entirely desolate.

The crisp morning air was chilly. Tiffany rubbed her hands together, and asked, “Babe, are youcold?”

Amelia shook her head. “I'm fine.”

Tiffany tugged at Amelia's sleeve. “Babe, it's been a real rollercoaster of a night and I've gotten alittle hungry. Shall we get supper? It won't hurt to fill our stomachs with something warm.”

Amelia nodded

Tiffany drove Amelia to a nearby diner. Before they got off, Tiffany turned to Amelia and queried,“You wouldn't mind eating here, would you?”

Bemused, Amelia replied, “Tiff, do you really see me as an uppity princess now? Don't forget that Iwent through hard times on my own before I married Oscar! We used to eat at small, homely dinerslike these together. Don't you remember?”

Tiffany beamed. “I was just worried that after so long, you might have gotten too used to the tasteof fine dining.”

Amelia detached her seatbelt. “Let's go, then.”

Tiffany followed suit, the two of them entering the diner. Even though it was past midnight, thediner was packed. There were all sorts of characters, but somehow the presence of Tiffany andAmelia managed to draw all eyes to them nonetheless.

They couldn't help it. Both Amelia and Tiffany were gorgeous creatures. Even though Amelia wasseven months pregnant, her features remained as lovely as ever. Her figure wasn't as alluring as itused to be, but she remained an intriguing sight all the same.

Tiffany didn’t lag behind in her look but forged ahead with her sense of style and fashionableclothing. With their combined beauty and sophisticated air, Amelia and Tiffany immediately becamethe center of attraction.

Tiffany glanced around. Then, she called to the owner, “Are there still any tables available?”

The lady owner was already heartily striding towards Amelia and Tiffany, bustling, “Sure, let me getyou a table. Please feel free to order as much as you want. It's our privilege to have you twobeauties at our humble diner.”

Tiffany laughed. “Madam, you're too kind.”

The lady owner then ushered them towards a table. “Please feel free to place your orders wheneveryou're ready. I see that this beautiful lady here's pregnant. Shall I whip up something off-menu andmore nutritious for you?”

Tiffany replied on Amelia's behalf. “Sure, we'll have two of that then.”

They then sat down as the owner hurried away to prepare their food

The gaze of the other patrons, however, still lingered curiously on Amelia and Tiffany.

A burly man sitting at the table beside them turned and said, “Ladies, what brings you here insteadof sleeping soundly at home?”

Tiffany shot him a look. “We just came from the hospital. We got hungry and stopped here forsupper. You look pretty active yourself, mister, to be running around in the middle of the night.”Amelia tugged at Tiffany's sleeve to stop her. She was terrified that Tiffany would run her mouthand get them into trouble. She believed that people who were still lurking around at this hourtended to be troublemakers. They might interpret Tiffany's reply to them as flirtatious and forcethemselves on her. By then, it would be almost impossible for Amelia and Tiffany to defendthemselves.

Tiffany felt the urgency of Amelia's gesture but pursued the conversation relentlessly. “Mister, youlook pretty strong. What do you do?”

“I run a security firm. You can always approach me if you need my services,” the man replied with awink.

Tiffany's eyes lit up. She exclaimed, “How may I address you, then? Where's your security firmlocated? How big is it? Do you have many people working under you?”

In reply, the man took out a few business cards and handed them over to Tiffany and Amelia. “Youladies don't look like common folks. I guess you live in a rather fine environment. Beautiful ladieslike yourselves should consider hiring a bodyguard to protect you.”

Tiffany's interest had clearly been piqued. Amelia, however, remained non-committal, and said, “I'msorry, Mister. I'm just an ordinary woman and I don't think I'll ever require a bodyguard. Thank youfor the suggestion, though.”

Tiffany shot Amelia a slightly reproachful look, then replied the man, laughing, “I'm pretty curiousabout your security firm! What are the services you offer?”

“Besides employing security guards and bodyguards, we've branched out into debt collection aswell. It's up to you to see which of these services interest you,” he replied with a shrug.

"Are you all professionals?” Tiffany inquired further.

"Of course. We're in customer service, and we emphasize honesty regardless of who our customeris. Our bodyguards have all been through professional training and are well-trained in kickboxing,combat, and other areas in martial arts. We'll fulfill any request you have, as long as it's within ourmeans.”

Tiffany laughed. “I'm interested in what I've heard so far. Why don’t we head over to your firmtomorrow to take a look?"

“Sure,” the man said amenably.

"How should I address you, then, mister?” Tiffany asked again.

“My last name's Laird. I'm thirty-one years old this year. Even if you aren't interested in hiringbodyguards, we can still be friends. You ladies are so beautiful that any man would want to get toknow you,” he said, eyeing Amelia and Tiffany.

Tiffany grinned. She pointed at Amelia, shaking her head. “She's already taken, so don't bother.”"What about you?” he replied, fixing his gaze on Tiffany.

Tiffany wagged her finger. “I'm sorry. I'm attached as well. It looks like all our relationship is destinedto remain strictly professional, Mr. Laird.”

“That's fine. At least I've acquired two beautiful ladies as customers. It'll be a treat nonetheless forthose young unmarried fellows at my firm,” the man roared.

Tiffany's face broke out in an unreserved smile at his humor. “Mr. Laird, you seem to have astraightforward character. I'd like us to be friends. I'm Tiffany, and she’s Amelia. Would you mind usgetting to know you?”

“I'm Gary, Gary Laird. My close friends call me Gary. You can call me that too,” Gary declared. Forsuch an imposing man, he'd turned out to be rather breezy in his manner. Noting that, Tiffany haddecided to make friends with him.

“I'll call you Gary, then. You seem like an extremely frank person, and that's exactly that type ofpersonality I appreciate. Let's be friends, then. We'll drink to that,” Tiffany proclaimed, boldly callingfor the owner to bring over two mugs of beer.

Gary shot a sideways glance at Amelia, then raised his mug and clinked it against Tiffany's. “Cheers!”Tiffany tilted her head back and drank the contents of the mug within a single gulp. However, shestarted coughing, evidently having choked on her drink.

Amelia patted her on the back and chided, “Why did you gulp everything so quickly? No one’scompeting with you.”

Tiffany cleared her throat and hastily recovered. “Babe, I'm fine.”

"Are you really alright?” Amelia asked.

Tiffany nodded.

"Gary, sorry you have to see me make a fool of myself,” Tiffany turned back to Gary and said with aself-deprecating laugh.

Gary shook his head, answered, “You seem like a rather straightforward person yourself! I'm happyto have made a friend like you. If you are in need of any help, just give me a call. My number's onthe business card there. My security firm's services are top-notch. If you hire us, I'll give you a sixtypercent discount.”

“Gary, I thought we were friends! Shouldn't there be a special price for me? If others pay a thousandfor a service, I'll pay ninety-nine,” Tiffany teased.

Gary froze for a moment, then guffawed.

“I admire your frankness. Fine, if there's anything you need, I'll definitely let you have that specialprice,” Gary agreed.

Tiffany waved her hands frantically. “I was just joking, Gary! You're running a business. How can youafford to entertain special prices like that? I'll pay the same price that everyone else. Let's not mixbusiness with friendship. There shouldn't be any negotiations on that account. We're only able toremain friends if we draw the line.”

Gary chortled. “That's what I like! It's good to have straightforward friends like these.”

Having said that, he took another glance at Amelia. She was nursing her drink, lost in deep thought.Amelia seemed totally unaware of the multiple looks that Gary had directed towards her, or shesimply didn't care.

Tiffany, however, noticed Gary's interest and shielded what she could of Amelia with her body.Casually, she tried to change the subject. “Gary, you're a successful businessman at the age of thirty-one. You must surely have a beautiful wife waiting for you back at home.”

Gary withdrew his gaze and replied, “I've been busy with work all these years and didn't make timefor this matter. I'm still a bachelor now.”

Tiffany hurriedly replied, “You're successful, physically strong with a rather open, direct personality.You'll be able to get any woman you want!”

Gary sighed. “Women nowadays are very demanding. They want their men to earn lots of moneyand provide them with a house and a car. Besides working ourselves to the bone, we're expected tospoil them and pacify them when things don’t go their way, and they make a fuss. Relationships likethat were way too tiring for me, so I eventually broke them off.”

Tiffany looked down at her plate and smiled sheepishly. “So you're speaking from experience.”Gary called for another mug of beer and shifted the topic of conversation. “Your friend beside youdoesn't seem too talkative. Is it because she doesn't like me?”

Tiffany glanced at Amelia, then replied, “She just came from the hospital and is feeling rather tired.Please take no offense, Gary. Once you get to know her, you'll replace her even more chatty than youare. Amelia's just shy in front of people she doesn't know very well. She's very nice and easy to talkto. She'll probably fit in anywhere! If she were still single, I'd definitely introduce her to you. Anyonewho marries you will be lucky indeed.”