Chapter 68

Dorothea nodded and turned to Donovan. “That depends on Don’s schedule. I’m fine with whatever. The sooner the better.”

As the central figure in this matter, Donovan remained completely detached. He sat there like a sculpture, occasionally sipping red wine and slowly chewing a small bite of steak. His cold, chiseled face showed no expression. He didn’t even lift his eyelids.

He wiped his fingers with a napkin and said, “I don’t have time for an engagement this year. Push it to next year.” His voice was low but firm, and his finality left no room for negotiation.

The whole room fell silent.

Anne sat frozen in her chair, staring at Donovan with a pale face. Since the scandalous video incident, she had explained her innocence to him countless times, and her former confidence had long disappeared. She had been thrilled when she heard through the Kane family that he had agreed to move forward with the engagement. She thought he finally believed in her innocence and imagined she would be walking down the aisle next month.

She never expected this.

At the same time, Giselle didn’t feel great hearing it either. Her original plan was to get him to cancel the engagement entirely. But now, after all the back and forth, this bastard Donovan had made an ambiguous public statement right in front of her, as if he was compromising, and yet not.

Giselle held back for the moment. She picked up her glass of water and took a long sip to hide her reaction.

“Well,” Renee forced a smile, trying to smooth things over despite the awkwardness. “So, that means Don’s been very busy lately? The whole second half of the year too?”

“This year really is hectic,” Ethan replied neutrally. “Several new drugs are launching, plus we’re taking on a government vaccine project. It’s a lot of pressure. I doubt he has the mental space to focus on marriage right now.”

Grace quickly jumped in. “Work’s important, but marriage is a big deal too! He’s in his mid-30s. We can’t delay it any longer! It’s just an engagement. All the details... Don just needs to show up for a couple of hours. How can there not be time?”

Dorothea nodded in agreement. “Exactly. Let’s just schedule it for this year.”

Dorothea’s biggest concern now was Donovan’s marriage. She no longer cared about being picky about a daughter-in-law. As long as Donovan agreed to get married and have children, she’d even be okay with the wedding happening tomorrow.

But Donovan simply took another drink of wine, saying nothing.

Seeing that he was beginning to be swayed by the people at the table, Giselle knew it was time for her to act.

She set down her knife and fork, forcing a polite smile. “Enjoy your meal, everyone. I’m going to use the restroom.”

With that, she stood up and calmly headed toward the first-floor bathroom. One of the housekeepers was leading the way.

Inside the spacious and luxurious bathroom, she shut the door behind her. At first, she didn’t do anything; she just stood in front of the mirror, quietly staring at her reflection.

Then she took out a tube of lipstick from her purse and carefully reapplied color to her full, soft lips. As she did, a wicked thought slowly formed in her mind. Once she was done, she took out her phone and sent Donovan a message on WhatsApp.