Chapter 3

She was a master at playing delicate. One fake whimper, and Russell would worry over her for days.

One soft moan, and Clive and Jennifer would shower her with gifts and money without blinking.

Clive and Jennifer knew perfectly well how much this marriage arrangement meant to me.

By letting Russell and Alice be together, they were basically telling me the Alvarado family wasn't good enough for them anymore.

Alice walked over to Russell and tugged on his sleeve like a child. "Russell, Mom and Dad already agreed to let us get married."

Russell's face lit up instantly, and he rushed to thank his parents.

Then he brought up what had just happened. "Raymond left his post without permission—that already breaks military rules. And now he's dragging out all this stuff to propose to Sophie.

"He's embarrassing you both. You need to stop him. This is live—people will laugh at our family if you don't."

Jennifer glanced at the streaming camera, her brows knitting together.

Then, without a word, she brushed past Russell and walked straight to me.

I froze, unsure what to do.

Jennifer stopped in front of me and gently took my hands, and her eyes reddened as if she might cry. "Did we scare you?"

I shook my head, still stunned.

Her voice softened even more. "Sophie, all of this is the Pearson family's fault. Russell isn't worthy of you."

I understood she was giving me a way out with dignity.

And I couldn't afford to push things too far—if this mess could end without more humiliation, that was already the best outcome.

Just as I was about to say something, Jennifer pulled out a golden key and pressed it into my palm.

She patted the back of my hand gently and whispered, "This is the key to the Pearson family treasury. Raymond is our eldest son, but he's away most of the time. From now on, the entire Pearson family will need to be managed by you."

[Holy crap! That's the Pearson family's golden key!]

[That means financial control of the whole Pearson family. Jennifer just gave it to Sophie like it's nothing, huh?]

[Does this mean she agrees to Raymond and Sophie getting married?]

Russell and Alice went pale on the spot. Alice especially—she stiffened like a statue.

Russell panicked. "Mom, what are you doing? Are you seriously letting Raymond marry Sophie? And that golden key—you promised you'd give it to Alice! She's been raised under your care for over twenty years. She's got to be more reliable than Sophie."

Jennifer turned her gaze on him, cold as ice. "An adopted daughter who seduces her own brother—I wasted twenty years raising her. She could have gone after anyone, but she had to go after you.

"Even if you two aren't blood related, even if you don't care about gossip, the Pearson family still has a reputation to protect.

"I won't let people say we adopted Alice just to hand you a wife. And I won't let people say the Pearsons are ungrateful.

"The golden key belongs only to someone with real character, someone people respect—someone fit to be the future lady of the Pearson family. Alice will never be that person."

Alice swayed like she might collapse, and if Russell hadn't held her up, she probably would've hit the floor.

"Mom, how can you say that about Alice? Isn't she your most beloved daughter?" Russell snapped.

Jennifer gave a sharp laugh. "If I had known she'd bring trouble into this house, turn my son against me, drive a wedge between your father and me, and eventually lead this whole family to ruin, I'd have raised a dog instead of her!"

I froze, not understanding what she meant.

Russell frowned. "Mom, what are you talking about? Alice has never done anything like that."

Just then, Clive stepped forward and handed me a document.

"Mr. Pearson, this is—" I looked at him, confused.

Clive said kindly, "I know you've been helping Russell with the company all these years. Most of the projects and business plans came from you, right? You even went out and landed deals yourself. But you never said a word.

"You let me believe all of it was Russell's work, and I let him sit as president all these years. This is an appointment letter naming you the CEO of Pearson Group. If we'd had you on board earlier, the company wouldn't be in such a mess now.

"I was blind—I mistook trash for treasure. Miss Alvarado, I hope you'll forgive my arrogance."

Then Clive bent and bowed deeply to me.