A Drunken Decision ( Annabelle Ross )

Chapter 3 

Looking at Ashley, Annabelle finally found the answer to everything. 

It was true that Ashley did call her. In fact, she called her many times. However, she never mentioned anything about the plans for their birthday. When Annabelle asked her when she would be home, Ashley told her she would be late because an important matter at the office required her urgent attention. 

Annabelle turned to look at her mother. 

Without waiting for her to speak, Madeline asked angrily, “What’s the matter? Are you trying to accuse Ashley of not calling you?” Although she was talking to her friends when Ashley made the call, she clearly heard her mentioning Annabelle’s 

name. 

All of a sudden, Annabelle fell silent. “After being my mother for 23 years, doesn’t she know my character? But she’s not willing to give me even the slightest bit of trust!” she thought. 

Her gaze landed on her sister, who suddenly barged into their lives out of nowhere. As it turned out, the familial love she wanted was so weak that it could be easily broken. 

“What’s with that look? I’m telling you – you need to be responsible for your wrongdoings. Don’t drag innocent people into it. For the next few days, you have to stay in the house. You’re not allowed to go anywhere at all!” 

Madeline stood in front of Ashley and protected the latter closely like a hen guarding its chick. In her eyes, Annabelle was like a vicious eagle preying on her dear child. 

Braxton did not say anything, but it was apparent that he agreed with everything that Madeline had said. 

At that moment, Annabelle was drained. She knew that she had reached the state where she was both physically and mentally tired. 

To her, being grounded was not something that she would find unbearable. 

Thus, she stood up and headed upstairs. 

When Braxton and Madeline saw her behaving that way, they were even more enraged. Reminded that she was out fooling around with some random person, they ended up tilting their heads to look away from her. 

Nathan was the one who still cared about her the most. Worried that Annabelle would fall off the stairs, he quickly rushed. forward and helped her upstairs. 

“Anna, what happened last night?” Unlike their parents, he was willing to believe her. 

Annabelle shook her head. She was naive while he was incompetent. Even if they were to cooperate, they would never win against Ashley. 

Ashley did not want Annabelle to be her sister, but she had been treating Nathan nicely. Thus, Annabelle thought she should 

not trouble him. 

She could still hear Ashley’s gentle voice behind them. Every sentence that she uttered sounded so kind, as though she was standing up for Annabelle, yet at the same time, they labeled the latter as a flippant, ignorant, and corrupted person. 

As expected, the moment their parents heard those “mollifications,” their anger did not subside but blazed up. 

While listening to her father’s angry roars and her mother’s rebuke, Annabelle did not have a strong reaction as before. Instead, it was Ashley’s gentle words of consolation that caused shivers to run down her spine. 

She thought, “Ashley’s ploy…” 

Upon noticing that she was shivering, Nathan asked worriedly, “What’s the matter, Anna? Are you not feeling well? Let me take you to the hospital.” 

“No need!” Annabelle paused for a while, then held his hand tightly. “Get along well with Ashley. She has just returned to our family and had suffered a lot previously. You have to treat her well. Do you understand me?” 

She guessed that Ashley did not like her because the latter did not have a sense of security. It could be that Ashley thought her share of happiness had been taken away by Annabelle. Thus, she tried to find a way to get back everything that was supposed to be hers, including their parents‘ love, a wealthy life, and the massive wealth of the Ross family. 

In truth, Annabelle could give everything up except their parents. Moreover, she was already 28 years old and had graduated from the university. She could leave home and live on her own. 

However, it was a completely different situation for Nathan. He was only 18 years old and had recently started his university life. There was a huge possibility that they would live together for quite some time. 

If Ashley were to misunderstand that Nathan wanted to fight for the family inheritance during the time that they lived under the same roof, it would be hard for him to win against her, considering his intelligence. 

Standing at the doorway to her room, Annabelle did not care about the sorrow in her heart. As she looked at Nathan worriedly, she urged, “Nathan, let’s just enjoy our lives, okay? Spend money, have fun, and don’t care about the company. 

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Chapter 8 

Shall we?” 

品 

“Didn’t we decide on this a long time ago?” Nathan blurted in surprise, puzzled as to why his sister would bring up the topic again. When they were kids, they had a discussion about it. After their parents had become old and could no longer manage the company, the two of them would have gotten married by then. At that time, they would let his brother–in–law or his wife take care of the company. As for him and Annabelle, they would continue to rely on them. 

Then, he added, “It’s good that Ashley is here. She’s competent and enjoys being a businesswoman. We don’t have to suffer at all.” 

Annabelle finally felt at ease. She thought that by not fighting for power and money in the family, Ashley would eventually understand that they had no intention to compete against her. With that, Nathan would be able to live a peaceful life as well. “Yes, that’s how it should be! Ashley’s very competent. Only by letting her manage the company will it flourish and not go bankrupt!” 

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Nathan nodded. “You should go and get some rest. If you want anything, just call me!” 

“Sure!” Annabelle responded before pushing the door and entering her room. 

Burrowing herself underneath the covers, she absentmindedly touched her cheek that had been hit. It was so painful that she frowned. 

Although she understood the reason behind Ashley’s actions, she disagreed with them. After all, she was not the cause of her unfortunate situation. Even if Ashley harbored hatred in her heart, it should not be directed at Annabelle. 

However, Annabelle knew herself very well. With her intelligence, she would achieve nothing if she wanted to compete against Ashley. 

Despite feeling dejected by it, she tried hard to comfort herself so that she would not dwell on her misery. 

Over the past few days, Annabelle stayed at home obediently and would not even leave her room except for meals. 

In the meantime, Nathan’s classes at the university had begun, and he went to the campus alone to attend his classes. Meanwhile, it seemed like their parents‘ anger had subsided. When facing Annabelle, their behavior was not as unpleasant. 

As for Ashley, she would treat Annabelle amicably in front of other people. However, she would not bother to spare the latter a glance when no one was around. 

To be honest, Annabelle would prefer if Ashley could also ignore her in front of other people as she disliked the pretense. 

However, she did not want to be bothered by it anymore. As such, she behaved obediently and played along. 

Yet, the fake harmonious relationship between the two sisters did not go on for long. 

On the seventh of October, Nathan had to go to the university in the afternoon, so Madeline instructed their housekeeper to. prepare a sumptuous lunch. The housekeeper went all out as she prepared all the delicacies that she could cook. 

It was a pleasant lunch, with great food, liquor, and atmosphere. Unfortunately, it was wholly ruined by Annabelle. It first started when Ashley took a piece of fish and gave it to her. Before she could thank her for it, a wave of nausea engulfed her, forcing her to run into the bathroom. While she vomited up everything in her stomach, Ashley cried her heart out in the dining room. 

“Mom, does Anna hate me?” 

Everyone in the Ross family knew that Annabelle’s favorite dish was fish, yet she vomited when it came from Ashley. 

Annabelle wanted to explain everything, but she became bilious again before she could say a word. 

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