Chapter 32 - Chapter 32. Leaving Home

Leaving Home. While everyone watched anxiously, Grandma Jones took a deep breath and said, "I've decided to give all available family assets to Oliver for this investment."Grandma." Matilda began to plead.But her grandmother interrupted her, "Don't say another word! Matilda, you must remember one thing. Above all else, you're a Jones!"Oliver was the most excited one in the room."Mother, don't worry. We'll easily earn at least two hundred million," Oliver said happily.The next step was for Grandma to authorize the Jones family's chief financial officer to transfer every available asset to Oliver's account.As this was happening, Jason looked at his smartphone and smiled.Meanwhile, Kevin closed his eyes and shook his head helplessly.Soon afterward, everyone left the mansion.Lily pulled on Kevin's sleeve as soon as they stepped out of the building and said, "Kevin, do you have any free time now? Let's go home and have a meal with Mom and Dad."Of course I have time, Lily," Kevin smiled and said. "Wait with them here while I go get the car."Your boss let you drive his car again?" Lily asked in surprise.She didn't understand. What kind of boss would let his employee drive his own car around all day long?"Of course. My boss thinks a lot of me. You should see the one he let me drive today!" Kevin said over his shoulder as he walked towards his car.Oliver came over and stood next to Lily.He watched Kevin open the door of a Porsche Panamera, and his eyes grew wide. He commented, "Kevin isn't doing too bad, is he? Just look at that car!"That's his boss's car," Dorothy said with contempt, "He could never afford such a nice sedan."He has an interesting boss. Where exactly does Kevin work?" Oliver asked suspiciously.Just then, Kevin pulled up in front of the three of them and greeted them warmly. They all got in and sank into the plush seats of the sports sedan.While pulling out of the mansion's gates, Kevin asked Oliver, "Dad, how long do you plan to stay this time?" "Your Dad just got here and you're already talking about him leaving?" Dorothy said coldly, "You've got no common sense!"Kevin didn't say anything else. He just focused on driving the car.Lily let out a light sigh. She knew that Kevin would never be able to change Dorothy's opinion of him, no matter what he did.When they reached home, Kevin sat down on the sofa. Dorothy glared at him and said, "Why are you just sitting there? Are you waiting for me to bring you your food? Why don't you go to the kitchen where you belong!"Kevin got up and walked into the kitchen."Alright, Dorothy, let's stop talking about Kevin," Oliver groaned."I'm really tired of him. What's wrong with chewing him out now and then?" Dorothy complained, "You don't know how it's been for the past three years.He doesn't do anything around here. Just a good-for-nothing freeloader."Alright now. That's all in the past," Oliver said as he looked toward the kitchen to see if his son-in-law was in earshot.When he saw that Kevin wasn't going to come out, Oliver turned to his daughter and said, "Lily, I came back home to give my family a chance to make a fortune. But I'm also here to talk about your marriage."What do you mean, Dad?" Lily asked with a puzzled look on her face.Oliver said sweetly, "Lily, I met a very rich man while I was overseas. His son has been investing in Chicago for the past few years, which is a wonderful opportunity for us. If you want, I can arrange for the two of you to meet." As it turned out Oliver didn't really like Kevin after all. He was embarrassed that his son-in-law had a reputation as such a loafer."Dad, what are you talking about? I'm already married to Kevin," Lily replied. But she knew what her father was getting at."Couldn't you get a divorce?" Oliver asked very seriously, "My friend's son is young and has a very promising career. Best of all, he doesn't have a girlfriend yet. You could marry him and then we could all move to Europe."Dorothy was excited to hear this and asked her husband, "Are you serious?"Of course. Over the past few years, I haven't had much financial success, but I made a lot of trustworthy friends," Oliver said slowly, "When the time comes, we can move overseas where I can keep you safe. "Before Dorothy could say anything, Lily stood up and said firmly, "Dad, I'm definitely not going to divorce Kevin!"Why are you shouting?" Dorothy said as she jumped up from the sofa. "Tell me, what good qualities does he have? He's useless and annoying, and he doesn't understand anything about the business world. Today, right in front of the whole family, he actually dared to question your father. He simply has no respect for us!"Mom, Kevin is just looking out for the family's interests," Lily replied. It made her anxious to say it, but she just had to. "Actually, I don't believe Dad's investment is a good idea. It's just that I didn't say it out loud in front of everyone. Listen, Mom, Kevin has already made a lot of positive changes. He's even found a good job. Please don't look down on him."So what if he has a job?" Dorothy forcefully interrupted Lily as she spoke, "He's never going to do anything with his life. And I'm tired of waiting!"Lily, you've got to listen to my advice and divorce Kevin," Oliver insisted."No! No matter what you say, I won't divorce Kevin," Lily protested."What's wrong with you?" Dorothy said angrily. "Why don't you want a divorce? Don't you think I'd like to kick him out the door right now?"If he leaves, I'm leaving too!" Lily said courageously.Suddenly, Oliver slammed his fist on the table. He had lost his patience. "Enough! I'm the head of this family and I'll settle this right now! Tomorrow, you're going to divorce Kevin. And the day after tomorrow, you'll meet my friend's son. After that, I'll handle the paperwork for us all to move to Europe."Kevin, who was cutting vegetables in the kitchen, could hear every word of the conversation.He was surprised to see Lily shove open the kitchen door and walk toward him.She grabbed Kevin's hand and turned around to walk out of the room. As she did this, she shouted at her parents, "When you change your mind, I'll come back, with Kevin."If you're with him, don't bother to come back!" Dorothy yelled as she angrily picked up her coffee mug and threw it across the room.Oliver sighed bitterly and said, "How senseless!"Lily held Kevin's hand tightly. They kept walking until they were around the corner from her parents' house. When they reached the bus stop Lily let go of Kevin's hand, sat down on the bench and cried.Kevin looked at Lily. He had mixed feelings about what was happening. After sitting quietly with her for a long time, he asked softly, "Are you sure you want to do this?"Lily slowly raised her head, wiped the tears from her cheeks, and whispered, "Kevin, I won't give up on you if you don't give up on me."When Kevin heard her say this, he took a deep breath. It made him so happy.He never imagined that Lily would have such a big fight with her parents over him. For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.A few minutes later, Lily stood up and looked at Kevin. She said, "Go get the car. We'll go to your place tonight."Kevin looked into Lily's eyes and asked her, "You're really not going back?"I said that I'll only go back if they change their mind," she explained. Kevin could see that she had made up her mind.Kevin nodded in agreement, turned around, and walked around the corner to get his car.When he opened the door to let Lily in, he asked her, "Are you certain you really want to go to my place? I just want to be sure you're prepared for it." As Kevin started to drive toward Corwin Tower, he was racking his brains trying to figure out how to explain everything to Lily. He had told her that his job included room and board, but he'd only said that to buy some time. If she went to Corwin Tower with him, wouldn't she figure out his secret? He wasn't ready for that."I'll have to play it by ear," Kevin said to himself."Why don't you want me to see your apartment? Do you have a mistress already?" Lily asked him."Lily, that hurts. You should know me better than that," he said with a sigh. "I just hope you like the place."No matter how dirty and messy your apartment is, it'll be your job to clean it up!" After Lily said this, she leaned back in her seat and fell asleep. It had been an exhausting day.Kevin turned the Porsche onto Lake Shore Drive and headed downtown. Every now and then, he took his eyes off the road to look at Lily.Finally, Kevin made up his mind and thought to himself, "Lily, don't worry. As long as you're faithful to me, I'll be faithful to you, no matter what."About a half hour later, Lily slowly opened her eyes. She took one look out the car window and her jaw dropped. "Kevin, where are we? Didn't I ask you to take me to your place?"Lily, this is where I live!" Kevin said as he pointed to the entrance of the luxury tower."The apartment your boss gave you?" Lily turned her head and looked at Kevin in shock.Kevin knew he had to tell the truth. As he was driving to the Corwin Tower, this was the only solution that he could think of that would work. If he told Lily a lie today, then from now on he would have to tell her countless more lies. So he decided not to hide it anymore!"Lily, if I told you that I bought this place as a gift for you, would you believe me?" Kevin asked her earnestly.Lily didn't know what to say. She began to explain, "I don't."Before she could finish, Kevin interrupted, "You were there the day I bought it!"Lily immediately remembered and asked him, "Was it the day you and Garrett had that fight?" She recalled asking Kevin where he'd gotten the black card. But Garrett was being a real bastard, so Kevin never had a chance to explain it to her.However, Lily had always thought that Kevin bought the condo for his boss, not for himself, and especially not for her."Yes, it was that day!" Kevin nodded.After saying this, Kevin got out of the car and walked around to open the door for Lily. After the valet took the Panamera down to the building's garage, Kevin took Lily by the arm and they walked into Corwin Tower together. As she looked up at the beautiful neo art deco entrance hall, he asked her, "Well, what do you think?"Lily didn't answer Kevin's question. Instead, she hung onto his arm tightly."Kevin, this is your boss's place, right? Is it okay for us to even be here?"Lily asked nervously.She started to worry that they would get in trouble. "Kevin," she said anxiously, "I know you're trying to impress me. But what we're doing is against the law. We have to get out of here. No matter how bad your apartment is, I won't be upset. Let's walk over to your place!"Kevin didn't know what to say. He could tell Lily was terrified."Call your boss to apologize, and then we'll go to your apartment," she pleaded.She didn't know who Kevin's boss was, but she was sure that someone who could afford a place in Corwin Tower had to be very important.Kevin smiled and reassured her, "Don't be nervous. I really do live here." Then he patted Lily's hand gently to comfort her as he walked her over to the private penthouse elevator."Kevin, please don't lie to me anymore," Lily wept. Her eyes swept around the magnificent room. Then she lowered her head and said softly, "We can't possibly afford to live in a place like this."Why don't you believe me? I swear I really live here!" Kevin pulled out his key card and swiped it for the elevator. He gently took Lily's arm and stepped in with her. As the elevator rose to the top floor, he suddenly had an idea."Lily," he explained, "I helped the company sign a business deal worth billions. My boss was so happy he gave me an enormous bonus. So I bought this condo!"Are you serious? You're really not lying to me? "Lily looked at Kevin and he could tell she still had her doubts.As the door opened and they stepped into the living room, he said, "We've been married for almost three years. Have I ever lied to you?"Lily dried her eyes and looked around the lavishly decorated living room, with the floor to ceiling view of Chicago's skyline and Grant Park. It was true that he'd never lied to her.When she thought about it, since she had watched Kevin buy the place she knew that it was worth 8 million dollars. If Kevin really helped the company sign a billion-dollar business deal, it was definitely possible for his boss to give him at least that much!"So, then you really did buy this place?" she confirmed."Of course. For you, for us," Kevin said with a smile.When Lily heard this, she broke into a wide grin and pulled Kevin to the window to look out on the city."Kevin, I'm going to call my mother right now and tell her you bought the nicest condo in Chicago!" Lily said excitedly.But Kevin wasn't sure that would be a good idea.