SWNOVELS Chapter 50: We’re A Couple Now
Abbott walked into the office with Dolores on his heels. Matthew was talking on the phone and gestured for them to keep quiet as
they entered.
Although Dolores anxiously wanted to know what happened, she knew she needed to wait for the time being.
Several minutes later, Matthew hung out the phone and waved at Dolores. “Come here.”
Dolores walked over and stood in front of the desk, wiping her sweaty palms on her clothes.
“Give me your phone?” Matthew said, reaching out to her.
“What?”
Dolores’ eyes widened. Wasn’t he going to tell her what happened? Why did he want her phone?
What the hell was going on?
Abbott stood silently at the window, looking at the sky while praying in his heart, ‘god, Helen White, please come back as soon
as possible. If you’re not here soon, I’m afraid Dolores Flores will snatch Mr. Nelson.’
Matthew raised his brows and asked in an unhappy tone. “You don’t want to give it to me?”
“No, no, sorry,” Dolores said, hurriedly getting her phone out of her bag and handing it to Matthew. “It’s not locked.”
Matthew took the phone and unlocked the phone. He then opened the contacts and entered his phone number. Staring at the
screen for a long moment, he abruptly moved his fingers to type ‘Mr. Nelson’ into the name column. ‘Dolores always addressed
him in this way, after all.’ He then dialed the number he saved and his phone sitting on his desk lit up and vibrated.
Dolores shifted her gaze between Abbott and Matthew, still trying to understand what they were doing.
“What the hell just happened? Hey, say something!” Dolores hated being ignored.
Matthew handed the phone back to her. “This is so I can find you any time I need to in the future.”
When he tried to contact Dolores that afternoon, it shocked him to discover he didn’t have her phone number. The worst part was
that he was extremely and inexplicably unhappy to discover that.
Dolores didn’t take the phone. She stared at him as if she was questioning: So Abbott was so eager to find me, and it turns out to
be because Matthew wanted my phone number?
Matthew put the phone on the desk and sighed heavily. “Please, prepare yourself.”
Before Dolores understood what Matthew meant, the large screen in front of her Matthew used for videoconferencing lit up and a
high-definition video started immediately.
A pregnant woman was standing on the top floor of the Flores Group office building, looking as if she wanted to jump.
Police vehicles, reporters, and dozens of onlookers stood below, creating a large crowd. Screams and cries of concern came
across the video. Dolores could feel the chaos of the scene through the screen.
She turned stiffly to look at Abbott. “What... what’s going on?”
“That woman bought a house from your father’s company. Of course, like many others, there was an accident during the
construction of the building and the whole thing collapsed. Naturally, she doesn’t want the house anymore but, according to the
contract, once you buy the house it cannot be returned. So, now she’s standing on the top floor and is planning to commit
suicide, trying to force your dad to return her money.”
Dolores gasped and staggered back. “She... Is she really going to jump from the building?”
Even if money was imperative, life was far more important. Not to mention that she was clearly pregnant. Her choices were no
longer just about her life.
“Who knows? Perhaps this is just an attempt to force your dad to return the money. However, you also know how your father is.
If he returns her money, and if the other buyers follow suit and use potential suicide to threaten him, he knows he can’t raise
enough money based on his company’s condition to refund all of them,” Abbott said coldly, making it clear it was none of his
business.
Dolores wanted to do something but didn’t know what. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
Abbott stared at her coldly. “NO!”
The situation had deteriorated to the present state and the Flores Group was approaching the point of no return. No one would
be willing to buy a building constructed by the company with chronic collapsing incidents. If the company didn’t do anything soon
to resolve the situation and repair its reputation, the Flores Group would have to announce bankruptcy and the judicial
department would intervene and auction the company’s assets. It was a strong case.
“I have to get over there, now,” Dolores said as she ran out of the office.
Matthew knitted his brow and stood up to follow Dolores.
“Abbott, bring some men.”
The scene would be a mess, and Matthew didn’t want Dolores to get hurt because of her haste and lack of preparation.
Before Abbot had a chance to respond, Matthew left the room. Abbott, who was the only one left, was confused and enraged by
the whole scene that had played out in front of him. Was the person who left the office really the graceful and arrogant Matthew
Nelson? He hadn’t cared that much about Helen White, right?
Abbott grew agitated when he thought about Dolores not being qualified to be Matthew’s lover. He realized he needed to warn
Matthew and bring up the situation to him in case something irreparable happened in the future.
Outside the office building of WY Group, Dolores was waiting for a cab bouncing from foot to foot.
Matthew, who had retrieved his car, pulled up to the curb next to her. “Let me give you a ride.”
Dolores gave him a quick glance, then pulled open the door and climbed in without hesitation. “We need to head to the bank
first.”
Dolores wished to withdraw her savings. Originally, she planned to use the money to buy a house, but now she knew she had no
other choice but to use it to save the life of the woman and her baby.
“How many people do you think you can save? If this woman gets money, more and more buyers are going to try this same
approach. Can you afford it?” He couldn’t understand Dolores’ reasoning behind her thoughts.
There were policemen at the scene. And, at least to Matthew, it didn’t look like the woman really intended to jump from the
building. He assumed she was only using that approach to force Randolph to return the money.
“Is life less important than money in the eyes of business people like you? That woman is pregnant and if she dies, then so does
her child. This is all my father’s fault and, whether or not I like it, I am his daughter...” Dolores trembled and curled her lips into a
helpless smile. “I know I can’t save him. But I don’t want to be responsible for his sins either.”
Matthew fixed his eyes on Dolores’ cheek. She was kind-hearted toward Randolph in the end.
Even if Randolph had abandoned her and hurt her, she still chose to help him. It was a senseless act, but Matthew was touched
by it all the same.
“I will ask Abbott to bring money there.”
Matthew put the car in gear and pressed the Bluetooth button at the same time to call Abbott, asking him to bring around two
hundred thousand to the scene.
Dolores hadn’t expected Matthew would be so willing to help. “Oh... Thank you. I will withdraw my fund when we head back and
I’ll repay you.”
Matthew gazed at the road ahead. “We’re a couple now, you don’t need to be so courteous to me.”
Dolores turned to look at him, but he was good at hiding his emotions and she couldn’t glean anything from his expression. So
she slowly turned away and focused on the road again.
*****
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the Flores Group. Although they were still a bit away from the scene, Dolores could see a
sea of people.
Matthew parked the car by the curb.
“If you don’t return my money, I’ll jump. I swear I will.”
The pregnant woman, who was standing at the edge of the roof was holding a flag with ‘RETURN MY MONEY’ written on it and
was confronting the rescuer personnel face to face.
It was clear even from the ground that she was an emotional wreck. “I’ve spent all the money my parents saved to buy this
house. But now, it turns out to be a faulty building that does nothing but collapse. I will by no means accept this! Return my hard-
earned money! Return my money!”
As the pregnant woman was shouting from the roof, people on the chimed in.
The mother-in-law of the pregnant woman cried out loud at the entrance of the Flores Group, hoping to reach her daughter-in-
law. “Even if the money is lost, we can always earn more.”
The woman cherished her grandchild very much and her voice broke from long periods of crying.
However, the pregnant woman turned a deaf ear to her mother-in-law’s words. Relying on the presence of her unborn child, she
was going to force Randolph to return her money.
Dolores pushed herself into the crowd. Matthew frowned, seeing her petite figure wandering through the crowd, then bit his
tongue and followed her.
Matthew pushed ahead and carved out a way for her, almost like he was protecting her.
The rescue personnel with a loudspeaker shouted up at the woman. “Get down here first. This is all negotiable, even if it’s about
money.”
The location where the woman was standing wasn’t suitable for the rescue personnel to try and prevent her from hurting herself.
Therefore, all most of them could do was try to negotiate with her while others were trying to find out other means to rescue her.
Dolores walked over to the person holding the loudspeaker. “Can I try talking to her?”
The rescue personnel didn’t dare to hand the loudspeaker over to a random person. Who would be held responsible if a random
person encourages the pregnant woman to jump from the building?
“It’s useless to say anything else if you won’t return the money,” the woman said in a firm tone.
As nothing had happened for over two hours, the woman was soaked in sweat from the beating sun. But she still refused to
budge.
“Please, trust me. I won’t goad her.” Dolores begged.
The rescue personnel hesitated for a moment before finally handing Dolores the loudspeaker.
Just as Dolores grabbed the loudspeaker to tell the woman she would refund her money, a scream pierced the air.