Natasha Portman took a taxi directly to the nursing home. Since Franklin Portman had a stroke, he had been living there. His life had been saved, but he was left with the aftermath: half of his body was immobile.
When she arrived, Linda was gently wiping Franklin Portman's body as he slept.
She stood quietly outside the room, watching her mother, clumsy yet careful as she performed the task. Natasha couldn't help but feel her eyes well up with tears.
Before marrying Franklin Portman, Linda had been a young lady of privilege. After their marriage, she was cherished and pampered for half her life. Franklin Portman's love for Linda was well known in their circle. For all these years, Linda had never lifted a finger for household chores because Franklin Portman had never let her do anything.
Now, the man who had always adored her and treated her with such tenderness had suffered a stroke and was unable to take care of himself. Natasha had once thought her mother would collapse under the weight of it all, but she was amazed by how strong Linda had been. In their phone conversations, Natasha had never once heard her mother express despair or sadness.
In reality, the seemingly fragile ones often possess a strength that surpasses that of most people by hundreds of times.
"Mom—"
She walked in and softly called out to Linda. Seeing her father lying on the bed, she felt a lump in her throat, her heart heavy with sorrow.
"You're back..."
Linda glanced at her with tear-filled eyes before looking down again to continue wiping Franklin Portman. Linda's calm demeanor made Natasha suppress the tears that threatened to spill over.
"Mmm. How's Dad now?"
"There's nothing seriously wrong, just some difficulty moving."
After speaking, as if to reassure Natasha, Linda smiled gently.
"The doctor said, because your dad's health was good before, with regular massages and rehab, he should be able to regain his mobility."
Linda's optimism made Natasha feel even more upset. She watched as beads of sweat formed on Linda's forehead from wiping for so long, and she reached out to take the towel from her mother.
"Mom, let me do it."
Linda shook her head.
"No need, your dad has taken care of me for half my life, now it's my turn to take care of him. You've just gotten off the plane, go back and rest. There's still a lot waiting for you to handle!"
Natasha Portman understood what Linda meant—everything about the future was going to depend on her.
After leaving the nursing home, Natasha went home, turned off her phone, and told the housekeeper not to take any calls or let anyone in. She needed to cut off all contact with the outside world. Then she went to her room and buried her head under the covers, needing some quiet space to gather herself.
Meanwhile, Louis Donald was on an overseas call with Jacob and the others, venting his frustrations.
"I was on vacation in the UK, and out of nowhere, my old man calls me back in a rush, saying I have to get married! And the woman I'm supposed to marry—she has no figure, no looks, nothing! Can you imagine how frustrated I am?"
When he mentioned her looks, he faltered a bit. After all, her face did resemble her stunning mother's. She was beautiful, but her personality…
Forget it. Thinking about it just made him more frustrated.
He took a big gulp of wine and continued complaining.
"Can you believe how arrogant she is? She barges in and announces she wants to cancel the engagement. She made me so mad I got a stomach ache!"
Jonathan mocked Louis Donald with a sense of schadenfreude.
"I think the girl did the right thing. Since you don't want to get married, she's just helping you out. What's there to be angry about?"
Louis Donald fumed.
"If she's helping me, does that mean our Donald family is going to owe the Portman family forever? Do you understand the concept of 'debts owed by fathers paid by sons'? Can I just ignore the debts my old man owes them?"
The more he spoke, the angrier he got.
"Jonathan, are you really my brother? Are you trying to kill me?!"
Jonathan, as his good friend, was actually siding with Natasha Portman, which made Louis feel utterly defeated.
"Oh? You're angry now? Did you forget how you used to mock me?"
Jonathan chuckled smugly on the other end of the line. Back when he was with Jian Yunong, Louis Donald didn't hesitate to meddle and irritate him. Now that it was Louis's turn, Jonathan was going to get his revenge.
Jacob interrupted their banter.
"Alright, alright, enough of the arguing. Let's get to the point. When's your wedding? We should prepare to go back and attend!"
"Attend what? I don't even want this wedding. Just forget about it. You guys can pretend like it's not happening!"
Louis Donald rejected the idea without thinking. Jonathan couldn't help but poke fun at him again.
"That's not happening. It's your first wedding, we've got to be there to celebrate. When it's your second wedding, we'll skip it!"
Louis Donald took several deep breaths to hold back the urge to hang up. He gritted his teeth and protested to Jacob.
"Mr. Jacob, can you please move certain people aside? I don't want to talk to him, have Bert talk to me instead. I need someone to listen to my grievances!"
Bert, who was quiet, definitely wouldn't mock him like some other people.
Bert lazily picked up the phone.
"If you don't tell us, we won't even be brothers anymore!"
"Bert, you're the worst!"
Louis Donald snorted coldly, then heard Bert lazily add.
"By the way, what about Tiffany? You're still planning on marrying her, aren't you?"
Louis Donald's handsome lips immediately pressed into a tight line. He silently held the phone for a long time before hanging up with a sharp click. Bert, looking quite innocent, shrugged at Jacob and Jonathan.
Although Bert didn't mock him, every word Bert said struck right at Louis Donald's sore spot, especially the last one. Wasn't this the reason he was drinking away his sorrows? He didn't know how to face Tiffany.
Tiffany had been his girlfriend for two years—sweet, cute, kind-hearted, and optimistic. She was the most simple and pure woman he had ever been with. Most importantly, she didn't care about his wealth because when he first pursued Tiffany, she had no idea who he was.
Having encountered so many gold-digging women over the years, his view of love had changed. He came to believe that if a woman didn't care about his money, then she truly loved him, and that was the woman he could accept.
But Tiffany had one fatal flaw—she didn't fit in with high society. She came from an ordinary, even somewhat poor family. This was why his father didn't approve of her and had repeatedly opposed their relationship.
So now, he truly didn't know how to tell such an innocent girl that he was getting married—and she was not the bride.