Semua Bab I Raised Him for 12 Years; He Sends Me His Wedding Bill: Bab 1 - Bab 10

I stared at my wife, Evelyn Larson, eyes wide with disbelief. On the table lay an agreement. In black and white, it read, "I, Lawrence Zimmerman, am giving 700 thousand dollars to Maxwell Larson, and I will never take it back."Maxwell's signature was already scrawled at the bottom. Mine was the only one missing. "You had this ready all along?" I questioned, staring at Evelyn. She avoided my gaze and said, "Max is my sister's only son. His wedding is a huge deal. We have to help."Maxwell grinned from ear to ear as he slid the paper toward me. "Uncle Lawrence, just sign it. We'll still be family."I looked at the agreement, then at the relatives around the table. Evelyn's siblings and cousins kept their heads down, eating in silence. The steam from the simmering stew stung my eyes. Maxwell had come to live with us at ten, after his mother died and his father vanished. I had raised him for 12 years, never skimping on tuition or living expenses. When he failed college cour

The punch slammed into Tiffany's shoulder."Tiffany!"My heart seemed to stop, and I dropped beside her. "Where does it hurt? Are you okay?"My chest tightened at the sight of her. I looked up and glared at Maxwell, fury blazing in my eyes.Across the room, Evelyn rushed over, but not to check on Tiffany. Instead, she grabbed Maxwell's hand, turning it over anxiously. "Max! Does your hand hurt? You could've broken something! What were you thinking?"Only after making sure he was fine did Evelyn turn to me. She jabbed a finger in my face and yelled, "Lawrence Zimmerman! Are you really going to tear this family apart over a little money?"She's your daughter. Once she gets married, she'll belong to someone else's family anyway! What are you giving her all that money for? Why are you wasting money on a worthless woman like her?"Tiffany couldn't take it anymore. Her voice choked with sobs as she shouted, "Mom! I'm your daughter as well! How can you say that?"Evelyn froze for a

My gaze swept over the room, taking in every face. Evelyn looked indifferent, Maxwell was greedy, Lucy displayed a sense of entitlement, and Tiffany's tear-streaked face was full of despair.With that, I picked up the pen and signed my name.Evelyn practically snatched the papers back to check the signature. The moment she confirmed it, her face lit up with joy. "This is wonderful! Max, we've got the money now! Your wedding's all paid for!""Yes!" Maxwell whooped, throwing his arms around her. "I knew you loved me most, Aunt Evelyn! There will even be enough left over to buy a car!"Lucy beamed from ear to ear, too. "This is perfect! Now, Max can have a show-stopping wedding! We're doing this big!"At last, my father-in-law, Thomas Larson, spoke up. "Once you're married, stop fooling around and start taking life seriously."The Larsons gathered together, buzzing with excitement as they discussed the wedding—what hotel to book and how to spend the money. Not one of them spared T

The first few messages that came through were threats. One read, "Lawrence Zimmerman! Damn it! Put my wedding reception back on the schedule right now! Or I swear this isn't over!""Are you even seeing this? Violet's whole family has already been invited! Now, the hotel says there's no availability! What the hell am I supposed to do?""Don't think renting a fancy car and hiring a few actors is enough to fool me! I'll be at your office tomorrow raising hell!"A few minutes passed without a reply from me, and Maxwell's tone shifted. He wrote, "Uncle Lawrence, why don't you help me get the reception back on first? We can talk about the money later. I really don't know how to explain this to Violet's family…"Eventually, it turned into outright pleading. "Uncle Lawrence, I'm begging you. All the prime dates are booked out. Violet says if we don't hold the reception, she's calling off the engagement…"The next message read, "I know I was wrong. I really do. Please, just help me t

Evelyn pulled out her phone from her bag and dialed the real estate agent. "Hello? Taylor, it's Evelyn. I need to sell my old house as quickly as possible."The agent said something on the other end of the line. In the next instant, her face went pale. "What? Seized by the court?"A beat later, Evelyn hung up. Her hands trembled uncontrollably, and she could barely hold the phone. "T-The agent said… The house has been seized. We can't sell it."The moment Maxwell heard that, his mind went blank. "What?" He turned to me and barked, "Was this your doing?"I pulled out a court document from my briefcase. "Three days ago, I filed a lawsuit. I wanted to recover the money I spent raising you over the past 12 years and to freeze your assets since you were suspected of extortion."I gently laid the papers on the display counter and added, "So, that house is off-limits."Maxwell's eyes widened in disbelief. "Lawrence! I'll kill you!" he roared.He lunged at me again, completely unh