Chapter 406
Lauren’s good mood instantly vanished as her face darkened. She snapped, “Why don’t you just have me killed then?”
“What did you say?” Tiana raged.
Lauren took a deep breath and confronted her mother, who had always been extremely strict with her. “Since you want to control my thoughts and freedom, why not just have someone kill me? Then, you won’t have to look at me anymore!”
Tiana raised her hand to slap Lauren but stopped herself at the last moment. “Lauren, I may not be able to control you, but remember this–you’re a Rhodes heiress, not some common street girl.”
She added icily, “If you continue this entanglement with Andrew, you won’t just destroy yourself; you’ll end up destroying him too!”
Lauren’s heart skipped a beat as she laughed coldly. “Mom, I’ve said this before: you can take away my CEO position and keep me under house arrest, but the one thing you can’t touch is the only person I care about and love. If anything happens to Andrew, you won’t see me in a wedding dress marrying into the Driscoll family–you’ll see my cold, dead body returned to you and the Rhodes family!”
Tiana’s cold expression grew increasingly agitated before she finally stepped back in defeat. Her voice tinged with hurt as she said, “You’re my flesh and blood, your father’s only child. Yet, for an outsider, a nobody, you treat your parents this way and threaten the family.”
With a cry, Tiana clutched her chest as her face turned pale with pain. “Lauren, can you really be so heartless to me, your mother, and the Rhodes family that raised you? Do you really want to fight us to the bitter end until the Driscoll family turns against our Rhodes family?”
Lauren rushed forward to support Tiana and called out anxiously, “Jerry, quick, get a doctor! Mom’s condition is acting up!”
Tiana pushed her away angrily and said, “Don’t worry about me; worry about yourself! Go chase your happiness and your so-called freedom and ridiculous love. Let the Rhodes family’s hard-earned position in Blumedale crumble, and destroy everything your father and grandfather worked for!”
Tears rolled down Lauren’s cheeks as she said, “Mom, you know I never meant to put the family in trouble. I want the Rhodes family to prosper too. I want to carry on Grandfather’s and Father’s legacy, but…”
“But you just can’t marry into the Driscoll family? Can’t make this tiny sacrifice for the family?” Tiana interrupted.
Lauren burst into tears. “A tiny sacrifice? So my entire life and marriage are just small sacrifices to you?”
Tiana hesitated, realizing her words had been too harsh. “My child, I’m a woman too, and I’ve been your age. That’s why I’m telling you that Andrew isn’t the one for you. Right now, you think your love for him is irreplaceable forever, but eventually, external pressures and life’s challenges will break you both. You’ll see that the man who once dazzled you is just another ordinary person; with him, you’ll only have a simple, mundane life.”
Tiana continued earnestly, “Listen to me–this pain is temporary, an illusion. You’re the Rhodes family princess. Your world shouldn’t be limited to a nobody. Joe and the entire Driscoll family, all of Blumedale–that’s your true destiny. One day, you’ll thank yourself and thank me for pushing you now. Trust me, you won’t regret it.”