Chapter 197

“Marion, that’s nonsense!” Debra quickly handed the family emblem to Marion. The emblem of the Houston family was so important that even an outsider like her knew it; yet Marion had placed such a crucial emblem in her hands.

“Debra, whatever I give away, I never take back.” Marion placed the emblem on Debra’s chest. The Houston family emblem represented the head of the family. With this emblem, one held absolute authority within the Houston family. Marion looked at Debra with a smile and whispered, “You’re the wife I have chosen.”

Debra’s heart pounded, unsure how to respond. In her previous life, she had always been focused on Juan and had never been decisively chosen. But Marion’s words stirred something in her heart.

Just as Debra was about to speak, Randy’s voice suddenly came from outside the door. “Marion, the things you asked me to buy…” Randy’s voice abruptly stopped upon seeing the scene inside. Debra hurriedly distanced herself from Marion. Randy, still holding a beautifully packaged food box, instantly realized he had arrived at an inopportune moment, noticing Marion’s dark expression.

“Should I leave?” Randy hesitantly asked.

“Don’t go! I still need to talk to you!” Debra immediately stepped forward, her mind racing. She mumbled, “I happen to be a bit hungry. What did you buy?”

“Marion asked me to buy dinner. He told me you definitely hadn’t eaten anything after work,” Randy said, glancing at Marion. Marion’s gaze was murderous.

Debra opened the food box to find her favorite creative dishes inside. Surprised, she asked, “Don’t they usually not do deliveries?”

“Oh, I went there myself. I made sure to pay enough. Why wouldn’t they make it?” Randy said, “Marion really went to great lengths for you. Even I’ve never received such treatment.” As he said that, Randy winked at Marion, but Marion’s expression remained unchanged. Randy felt uneasy. Had he just interrupted a heartfelt confession from his close friend? No way! Who would confess so suddenly?

But the next moment, Randy noticed the family emblem on Debra’s chest. Thinking he had made a mistake, he looked closely. It really was the Houston family emblem!

“Marion, this is too much!” Debra dropped her knife in shock. Marion frowned. “Get out!”

“How could you confess like that… Mmm!” Before Randy could finish, Marion covered his mouth with one hand and forcefully dragged him out.

Watching this scene unfold, Debra placed her hand on her slightly flushed cheek. She seemed truly moved.

The next day, the Nichols Group held an emergency meeting. Since the masquerade ball hosted by the McKinney Group, the Nichols Group had severed ties with some previously partnered companies. Those companies swiftly switched allegiance to the McKinney Group, leading to direct competition between the two business groups. For years, this was the first company to directly challenge the Nichols Group.

“Mr. Nichols, what should we do? The stock price of our company has been falling recently. Many projects have been taken by the McKinney Group, causing a decline in revenue across our companies. If this continues, we’ll incur significant losses.”