Take My Breath Away

As Debbie thought about it, she added in the group chat, "Guys, Carlos' family doesn't like me."

For a moment, no one said anything. It was Dixon who first chipped in, "It doesn't matter as long as Mr. Huo likes you."

Later, Kristina cut in, "You never know how complicated life in rich families can be. Before you left, I had thought to caution you, but I downplayed it. Ignore the others. Just as Doctor said, all that matters is that Mr. Huo loves you."

"Tomboy, since when do you care about other people's opinions? This isn't you," frankly wrote Jared, alongside an eye-rolling face emoji.

Debbie's eyes turned teary as she read through her friends' comforting words. In such trying moments, it was enough that her friends were always there for her.

There was a knock on the door. Debbie calmed herself down and opened the door, only to meet Megan, with her usual pesky attitude.

Without waiting for Debbie's permission, she walked in uninvited and locked the door from inside.

'She acts as if she was the hostess of the Huo family, ' Debbie sneered. "What do you want?" she asked indifferently.

Megan stared at her curtly. "If I were you, I would leave the Huo family this instant."

The ridiculous way she sounded made Debbie chuckle. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Since there were only the two of them in the room, Megan took off her masquerade and snorted, "Don't you see? You have turned the family into a war zone. Uncle Carlos' dad got so angry he almost passed out. It's New Year's Eve today and everyone is having a crappy mood, just because of you. Don't you feel bad for what you've done?"

"Why should I feel guilty when I did nothing wrong? Carlos' dad almost passed out because he has a bad temper. Do you think I don't know that?" Debbie retorted. She wondered why James hated her so much.

"Did you just say Uncle Carlos' dad had a bad temper? I can't believe you've been talking about people behind their back, and you don't think it's rude? No wonder nobody likes you. I don't understand why Uncle Carlos is defending you all the time."

Debbie was having a meltdown. "When did I talk about people behind their back? Stop making things up! Is this what you're here about? Are you done? Now get out!"

"No, I'm not yet done! Debbie Nian, do you know?" That was just the provocation Megan was looking for. In an instant, her face flushed red, taking on a threatening aura like a cobra ready to strike. Through gritted teeth, she blurted, "If it were not for you, I would definitely marry into the family."

'I knew it! I knew she liked Carlos, ' Debbie thought. "Which one exactly do you want to marry among them four? Carlos? Mr. Lu? Wesley? Or Damon? Because sometimes it's really confusing."

Megan raised her voice. The look in her eyes was weird. "What the hell are you talking about? I've always only liked Uncle Carlos from the beginning."

"Only liked Carlos? Don't think I haven't seen you hug and kiss Wesley and Curtis! You want them all, don't you? You act like an innocent little girl. But who can imagine that deep down you are such a loose little slut?! You have deceived them all, using your pure, sweet facade. What a scary, manipulative bitch!" Debbie looked Megan up and down in disbelief.

Megan's face twisted with fury and embarrassment. "I'm going to tell Uncle Carlos that you not only said his dad was bad-tempered but also defamed my relationship with him and his friends."

"So now you are going to tell Carlos on me? Stop fooling yourself! Don't you know how much your uncle Carlos cares about me?"

"Yes, he cares about you. But he spoils me more. Just because he married you doesn't mean he loves you. Debbie Nian, Uncle Carlos loves me, not you. If you think he loves you, you can stop dreaming."

Debbie burst into derisive laughter. "You like my husband, don't you?"

Megan neither admitted nor denied it.

"You want my husband to love you, don't you?"

"I don't have to want anything. Your husband loves me from the beginning. If you hadn't popped into the equation out of nowhere, he would have been my husband."

From the time she arrived to the hostile reception, Debbie had been wondering if she had killed someone from the Huo family lineage in her previous life to be hated so much by her hosts in this life. Carlos' dad had smashed a teacup as soon as she entered the house. Now even an 18-year-old was trashing her right to her face. Did they see her as a pushover? Debbie sighed. "Calling Carlos 'Uncle' isn't enough to show how important he is to you. Since he's fostering you, why not call him 'Dad?' And since I'm his wife, you should call me 'Mom.' I'll spoil you more than he does."

"You! You!" Megan's face turned livid. She stomped her feet and finally managed, "You're taking advantage of me!"

"I am, so what? Come, come. Call me 'Mommy' and live with me from now on. Then you can see your daddy every day."

In a fit of rage, Megan stormed out of the room in tears. But before she left, she warned, "Debbie Nian, you are dead meat!"

"We'll see!" Debbie snorted.

Then with a bang, Megan closed the door, leaving Debbie with so many questions. 'Gail, Portia, Olga, and now Megan, why do they all hate me so much? Is it something to do with my personality?' Then she thought of Carlos' family. 'Oh heck, what have I done to deserve this?'

As soon as Megan left the room, she ran into Tabitha, who was lingering outside the study. "Megan, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" Tabitha asked.

But Tabitha's questions only made things worse. Intent on creating drama, Megan wailed even louder.

"Hey! Stop crying and tell me what's wrong, Megan," Tabitha demanded, genuinely concerned. "Who upset you?"

Since she realized how furious James was, Connie had been hiding in her room to stay out of trouble. But Megan's wailing made her curious. "Why is Megan crying?" she asked Tabitha, who unfortunately had no idea either.

"For the life of me, I can't tell. She has been crying from the time she walked out of Carlos' room. But when I tried to find out from her what the matter was, she wouldn't say a thing."

When the little brat finally stopped weeping, she said to Tabitha, between sobs, "I saw that James seemed angry to see Aunt Debbie, so I went there to comfort her. But Aunt Debbie didn't appreciate it at all. And she even called me names. Boo...hoo..."

"Debbie called you names?" Incredulous, Tabitha looked at the door to Carlos' room and asked, "Why?"

"I don't know. Maybe she was in a bad mood. But how could she take it out on me? It wasn't my fault. To make it worse, she even had the nerve to tell me that James was cranky and I shouldn't be here, because I am nobody to the family; I'm just a freeloader. Can you imagine? She boasts that she'll only be nice to me if I call Uncle Carlos 'Dad' and call her 'Mom.' Boo...hoo..." Tears welled in her eyes once again.

Just to create a scene, she started panting for breath; her face so downcast, you'd think she was going to pass out any minute. Even Tabitha who had been skeptical at first was moved. 'Could she be telling the truth?' But then it didn't seem possible that Debbie would stoop so low.

Just then, the door to another room opened and Miranda walked out.

Casting a cold glance at Megan, she demanded, "What are you doing here? Don't you need sleep?"

Tabitha smiled, "Miranda, Megan and Debbie had a squabble. We're trying to sort the issue out, before she goes to bed."