C18 A Royal Dinner

"Who's outside?" Mr. James asked his wife as a luxury car pulled up in front of their gate. Since Eve didn't have a house attendant, Mrs. Kate rushed to open the door for the guest.

"That's the driver from the Foster family, the boss at Vinestra. You know, our daughter was invited to dinner by Mrs. Daphne, the owner of Vinestra," Mrs. Kate replied with a proud smile.

Mr. James furrowed his brow, "Wow, can that be so, huh? To be picked up in such a luxurious car," said her husband in surprise.

"Well, let's just pray Eve doesn't make any trouble. You know she can't be restrained. And her young boss is quite authoritarian, it seems. I'm afraid Eve will be rude to them," Mrs. Kate complained, still worried about Eve's attitude there.

"I think Eve will be able to care for herself, Kate. Don't worry about it," comforted Mr. James, then paused to smile at his daughter, who was now heading towards them.

"Ready for your special dinner, Sweety?" asked Mr. James pleasantly.

Eve nodded her head but hid her gaze from her father. Her father would always know when she was lying, so Eve didn't want to lie while looking into Mr. James' eyes. She was not ready when her mother called her because a driver was already coming to pick her up.

"Be good at there, okay? And please don't come home too late. If it's later than nine o'clock, I will pick you up!" Mr. James said in a warning tone.

"Okay, Dad. It's just dinner at home. It won't be too late," Eve replied, calming her father and herself. She hoped she could say goodbye no longer when she arrived.

She then went out to be driven by the Foster family driver to her boss's residence. As she had expected, Eve was quite astonished at how luxurious and large the Foster residence was.

"And this huge house is only lived in by two people? Tsk, there must be dozens of servants," Eve muttered because she didn't want to be overheard by the driver.

She was dropped off in front of the large, majestic pillars that supported the spacious terrace of the house. The driver opened the door for Eve, and soon, a middle-aged woman in a servant's uniform came toward her while bowing in reverence. Eve seemed to be treated as an honored guest in the house that night.

"Let me take you inside, Miss. Madame Daphne is waiting," the servant said with a certain air of reverence.

"Oh, thank you," Eve replied and followed the footsteps of the maid who showed her the way. And yes, Eve seemed to know why there was a servant to pick her up at the front. The house was like a maze with many hallways and rooms, all of which were spacious. Eve continued to marvel at everything she saw on their way to the dining room. The grand and luxurious living room and an open hall, which even had a small L-shaped fish pond on the floor, created an exotic natural impression.

She was still stunned by the ornaments and wall hangings along the hallway that brought back memories of a famous painter's painting exhibition she had watched on television. Eve wasn't a fan of paintings, but it was obvious that they were all classy with fantastic prices. There was no doubt about that!

She didn't notice that she was already in the dining room until Mrs. Daphne's warm greeting woke her from her reverie.

"Wow, you're so beautiful, Eve."

"Oh, uh, thank you, Ma'am," Eve replied, surprised at the greeting.

"Welcome to our residence. Come, take a seat, and make yourself at home." Madame Daphne again said her warm welcome while flashing a motherly smile.

Ah, Madame Daphne is so kind. It was a good thing Eve had decided to come there. Otherwise, she would have regretted letting such a lovely lady down. Eve was seated to the lady's left as the waiter behind her had pulled out a chair on that side for her. The rectangular-shaped dining table had a large set of chairs. However, it was clear that only two chairs were usually used daily.

Imagining that, Eve felt that it was much better in her house. Although her house was not a quarter of the size of that house, at least their dining table of four chairs was always occupied by her family of three.

"I apologize for Gery's absence. I don't know where he is. I told him to have dinner at home, but I saw his empty room!" complained Mrs. Daphne with a sour look.

"Oh, that's fine, Ma'am. If I may say so, I'm even grateful he is not present among us." Eve expressed her heart honestly without sugarcoating it in the slightest. Yes, she had been nervous about how Gery would respond to her presence in the house, so hearing that he wasn't there was a good thing for her.

Mrs. Daphne tried to put aside the fact that Eve seemed to have a mutual dislike for her grandson. It was also good that Gery wasn't there that night. So, she could tell her about what made Gery such an annoying person that Eve hated her.

She was sure that if Eve knew Gery's life history, the girl's view of her grandson would significantly change.

The waiter and the chef then served a lot of food, which Eve thought was excessive, considering only two people would eat it. But she kept quiet because she thought this might be how the dinner was done in a royal family like the Foster family.

"Let's eat, Eve. Please fill your stomach with enough food because, after that, I will take you for a walk in some of the rooms in this house," Mrs. Daphne said, which made Eve a little dumbfounded.

"A walk, Ma'am?" she asked, slightly thinking she had misheard.

"That's right, a walk into my living family room and also into the past moments of Gery, your boss," Mrs. Daphne replied, which deepened the frown on Eve's forehead.

What could the old lady mean by mentioning a walk into Gery's past? Eve felt tongue-tied and tasteless while eating her delicious meal as she wondered what Madame Daphne meant.

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