"No way. Is Thea that influential now?"

"Even if the Cadens were a powerful family, they're long gone. Why would they curry favor with Thea?"

"In my opinion, Grayson from the Gourmand must have taken an interest in her." Thea's face reddened. "Don't spout nonsense," she refuted.

"Thea, Bryan Grayson is from the Grayson family in the Capital. It's good he likes you. You should divorce James. That leech only exploits the Callahans. He boasts constantly despite having no abilities." The Callahans again urged Thea to divorce James. James looked exasperated. Now that the scar was gone, they'd forgotten the pain it caused. But the scar remained. Thea glanced at James. "I married him, so I'm his wife. We've had misunderstandings, but we've resolved them. I'll give him another chance."

Warmth filled James's chest. He grabbed Thea's arm. "Darling, you're the best."

Lex stood. "Alright, now that Thea secured a reservation at the Gourmand's Diamond Room, let's prepare our gifts. We need to apologize to Ms. Brooks."

Thea had made the reservation. By noon, they were ready.

James wanted to join the feast at the Gourmand—Cansington's most luxurious restaurant—but the Callahans forbade it, fearing he'd offend Scarlett with his incessant boasting. He complied and returned home early, while the Callahans went to the Gourmand.

He relaxed on the sofa. 'This is nothing compared to war,' he thought.

Hours later, the Callahans returned, laughing and talking.

"Thea, Ms. Brooks is so forgiving! She waived our thirty-billion-dollar debt after just one meal."

"Xara, you're acquainted with Ms. Brooks after only a few days with the Group! You've made us proud." Xara, instrumental in averting the family's crisis by arranging the meal with Scarlett, accepted their praise. "I came to Cansington looking for work," she explained. "The Group was hiring, and I happened to meet Ms. Brooks during my interview. I didn't know she was the chairman." Thea smiled. "I thought James got you the job." Xara paused. "No way. A useless man like him couldn't get me a job, especially at the Group. And Thea, nothing's going on between us." "I trust you," Thea said. James smiled. "The problem's solved, then?" Thea nodded. "Uh-huh, everything's settled."

Seeing ashes on the table, David shouted, "James, who let you smoke in the house? The table's covered in ashes!" Gladys echoed the rebuke. "Clean them up now," she said. "Got it," James replied, quickly clearing the ashes. Xara frowned, witnessing the Callahans bossing around the Group's behind-the-scenes owner. She envied Thea's good fortune. How different things would be if she had saved James ten years ago?

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