Cherise was startled by Theo’s question. It seemed she was right that no one would ever only have a gentle side, no matter how gentle their demeanor was.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Theo continued. “Anyone in your place would have taken their revenge if they had a powerful background like yours.”
“I have taken my revenge, although most people might think they deserve more.” Cherise chuckled.
“Why don’t you?” Theo asked.
“More revenge, you mean?” Cherise asked, in which Theo nodded in response.
“At first, yes, I thought of it, and as I’ve said, I had humiliated them a few times with the help of my grandpa, brothers, and best friends,” Cherise replied. “But now I’m busy and they are not worth my time. As long as they don’t cause me trouble or get in my way, I let them be. I don’t want to be the bullied who turns into a bully.”
“Do you think they’ll stop bothering you?” Theo asked and suddenly reached over, wiping a corner of Cherise’s lips with his napkin.
“You had cream there,” he explained gently and withdrew his hand, going back to eating his dessert like what he did for Cherise was a normal thing to do to someone who wasn’t a family member or partner.
Cherise looked at him and shook her head inwardly, hoping Theo was just this gentle toward her because of their past, and the more time they spent together in the future would show him she wasn’t ready for another relationship if that was what he wanted.
She cleared her throat and answered him. “They know I’m an Alster. It’ll be foolish for them to try to harm me now.”
Then she paused for a while as she thought of Dahlia, Polly, and Emely. “Though knowing those three women, I don’t think they would care. They can’t change, so it won’t be a surprise if they cause trouble for me.”
“How about your ex-husband?” Theo asked. “Aren’t you going to take revenge on him?”
“Oh, I did,” Cherise smirked. “He wants to reconcile but I told him no. That’s enough to bruise his ego and humiliate him.” “Are you sure you don’t want him back?” Theo’s gaze seemed to intensify as he waited for her answer.
Cherise was used to this question and could now answer firmly, “No.”
Theo nodded and said, “You are such an angel, Cherise. Even Julian and your grandfather are soft-hearted, too. If my sister had been bullied and I had the means, I’d crush their group to dust.”
Cherise smiled because she liked that Theo was protective of his sister. “Julian and Grandpa respect my decision. I will not bankrupt their family as I love Agatha.”
“Hudson’s grandmother?” Theo raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Yes.” Cheride nodded and smiled. “She loves me as her biological granddaughter, and I’m thankful for it.”
Theo cocked his head, and for once, he looked serious.
“What’s wrong?” Cherise asked with her brows knitted together.
“You know how the Kingston Group is mainly in the gaming industry, right, Cherise?” he asked her. Cherise nodded, wondering what he was trying to say.
“Which means I have quite a few powerful hackers in my company. I can help you to steal some information from the Amery Group. It’ll be enough to get your revenge against Hudson but not to bankrupt the company,” Theo added.
Cherise was stunned by how much he wanted to help her, and to be honest, she found it quite endearing. So far, only her family and close friends were so protective of her.
But she shook her head and waved her hand dismissively. “Please don’t bother, Theo. The Amery Group has K behind them.”
“K?” Theo looked surprised. “How did you know?”
“Oh, Hudson told me about it,” Cherise lied smoothly.
Actually, she found it out by herself when she wanted to help strengthen the Amery Group’s firewall during their marriage. She tried to hack their system to find K’s signature work blocking her attempt.
It wasn’t surprising that Hudson paid for K’s service. After all, the Amery Group was the most influential group in Country B, and he would hire the best people in each industry, just like her family in Country A.
Theo pondered about that information before he looked at her helplessly. “It seems I can’t help you at all when I really want, even just a tiny bit.”
Cherise smiled gratefully at him and, without thinking, reached out to squeeze his hand.
“I’m grateful you want to help me, Theo,” she said gratefully. “But please don’t do anything rash. Don’t risk the Kingston Group just to help me take revenge against him. If you are not reading this novel on Jobni b.com, some sentences are incomplete. The Amery Group is much more powerful than the Kingston Group. If he finds out, the Kingston Group will have no chance of fighting against him.”
“You are right, Cherise, but I just…” Theo let out an exasperated sigh. “I want to help you. I can’t stand the thought of you being mistreated by anyone.”
Cherise squeezed his hand again. “And I’m really grateful for it, but it’s all in the past. If he bullies me again, then I’ll deal with him myself.”
At Hudson’s table, Finley could feel the gloomy aura coming from Hudson.
“Hudson, he might be her friend like Tristan, or maybe her cousin,” Finley tried to comfort his friend.
“That’s Theodore Kingston,” Keith supplied, and Hudson nodded. Once they got a good view of the man, they knew who it was.
“From the Kingston Group you are trying to get a cooperation with?” Finley asked.
Hudson nodded. “He chose the Alster Group.”
“Oh, then they are just partners,” Finley chirped.
“But why?” Hudson asked in a hoarse voice filled with pain. “Why would she touch him?”
“Maybe they knew each other before this?” Finley asked hesitantly.
Keith sighed and advised Hudson again, “Rather than assuming anything, just ask her nicely the next time you meet her.”
“Keith is right, Hudson.” Finley nodded, agreeing with Keith. “I’m sure once she knows you’ve backed out of two projects for her, she’ll feel grateful and visit you.”
Keith felt it wouldn’t be the case, but he kept quiet rather than make Hudson’s mood worsen.
Hudson closed his eyes and took calming breaths. Yes, he had given her two projects to make her happy. He hoped she would treat him to dinner and he could show her his sincerity once again.
He watched them leave together, and as much as he wanted to stop them and pull Cherise away from Theodore, he stayed in his seat and tried to enjoy his dinner, which he felt tasted like sand.
Cherise arrived home but didn’t let Theo in. She felt they should maintain some distance in case she gave him the wrong idea. She was already regretting touching his hand in the restaurant, but she didn’t want to make it awkward by apologizing since they were going to work together.
Theo didn’t force her to let him in and left after bidding her goodnight.
When Cherise entered the villa, she saw Julian in the living room and she went to hug him.
“How’s Theo?” Julian asked as Cherise snuggled in his arms.
“You never told me you guys keep in contact.” Cherise pouted.
Julian pinched her nose dotingly. “Cherise, after you came back here, you developed a high fever and kept having nightmares about the kidnapping. Then somehow, you seemed to have forgotten about Theo, so Grandpa, Dad, and Mom thought it would be best not to mention anything to you until you were ready to tell the world you were an Alster again.”
Cherise harrumphed but didn’t argue with him. Instead, she asked him, “Theo has a sister?”
“He does,” Julian replied. “I think she’s still in school, and they are very close. I’m not sure if he’s told you his parents have passed away, and he was basically the one who raised his sister?”
“They are orphans?” Cherise asked in surprise.
“Yes, but I think it’s best if you ask him about it,” Julian replied, then kissed her cheek. “And I think it’s best if we retire for the night.
Cherise nodded and went to her room and get ready for bed but instead of sleeping straight away, she logged into her Q account and began searching for information about The_…..