Repairing A Broken Home With My Patriarch System

Melinda chuckled, placing a hand on her waist. ”What do you mean? I should be the one asking you that question! But to answer you, I actually own this place.”

”Eh?” Evelyn blinked in surprise, then glanced around the luxurious store. ”Wait, this entire place belongs to you?”

Melinda nodded proudly. ”Of course! I opened it a while ago, and business has been going pretty well. I was actually checking on things when I noticed you.”

Evelyn’s surprise quickly turned into delight. ”That’s wonderful! Congratulations, Melinda. I didn’t know you’d become such a successful businesswoman.”

”Hehe, it’s nothing that impressive.” Melinda waved her hand dismissively, though the smile on her face suggested she was pleased with the compliment. ”I’ve just been working hard and trying to make the right decisions.”

”Still, you should be proud of yourself. Running a business isn’t easy.”

The two women continued chatting, catching up on the things they had missed since their last meeting. Ethan stood nearby, watching them with an amused expression while occasionally adjusting the sleeves of the suit he was wearing.

He didn’t mind waiting. Besides, Evelyn seemed genuinely happy to see her friend again, and he had no intention of interrupting their conversation.

After a while, Melinda’s gaze shifted toward the clothing racks before returning to Evelyn.

”By the way, what brought you here today? Were you looking for something in particular?”

Evelyn hesitated, glancing briefly at Ethan before looking back at her friend.

”We came to buy a suit for my husband. His cousin’s wedding is happening this weekend, so we wanted to find something suitable for the occasion.”

”Oh?” Melinda’s eyes lit up. ”A wedding? That’s nice!”

She turned toward the staff member who had been standing nearby and asked, ”Which suit was he trying on?”

The staff member immediately stepped forward, smiling respectfully at his employer. ”Miss Melinda, sir is wearing one of our premium charcoal suits. It’s from our latest collection.”

Melinda followed his gaze toward Ethan, who was still standing a short distance away.

For a moment, she simply stared at him. Then she smiled.

”Well, well. Evelyn, you certainly have good taste in men.”

Evelyn’s cheeks warmed slightly. ”Melinda!”

”What? Am I wrong?” Melinda laughed before walking closer to Ethan. ”Hello, Ethan. It’s nice to see you again. I must say, you look really handsome in that suit.”

Ethan smiled politely. ”Thank you, Melinda. It’s nice seeing you too.”

He had met her before and knew she was Evelyn’s friend, so he treated her with the same courtesy he would show any of his wife’s acquaintances. Cassie excluded, of course.

Melinda examined the suit for another moment before turning toward the staff member.

”I’ll take care of the payment. Have the suit prepared for him.”

Evelyn immediately understood what her friend meant and hurriedly raised her hand.

”Wait, Melinda! You don’t have to do that. We’re here to buy the suit ourselves.”

Melinda looked at her with an innocent expression. ”And? What’s wrong with me giving my friend a gift?”

”That’s precisely the problem!” Evelyn sighed, already anticipating where the conversation was going. ”I know you. If I hadn’t stopped you, you would probably have tried to give us the entire store.”

Melinda burst into laughter.

”Now, that’s an exaggeration! I wouldn’t give you the entire store.”

Evelyn gave her a doubtful look. ”Really?”

”Well...” Melinda tilted her head, pretending to consider it. ”Maybe not the entire store. Just a few things.”

”Melinda!”

Ethan watched their exchange with amusement, finding it difficult to suppress his laughter. Evelyn had clearly anticipated this situation, yet she still seemed unable to stop her friend from doing exactly what she had expected.

’Looks like these two have known each other for quite a while.’

Melinda finally waved her hand and smiled.

”Alright, alright. Since you’re so determined to pay, let’s make a deal. You can consider this a favor from me, and you can repay me another time.”

Evelyn frowned slightly. ”What kind of favor?”

”Nothing in particular. Just remember that you owe me one.” Melinda winked at her. ”Whenever I need your help with something, I’ll come looking for you. Fair enough?”

Evelyn opened her mouth, then closed it again.

She knew Melinda well enough to understand that refusing her outright would only lead to another round of persuasion. At least this way, she could repay the favor in the future instead of accepting an expensive gift without giving anything in return.

After a moment, she sighed in resignation.

”Fine. But don’t make a habit of giving me expensive things.”

Melinda grinned. ”Of course!”

Ethan shook his head, amused, as the staff member took care of the arrangements. He hadn’t expected their shopping trip to turn into a reunion, much less one where Evelyn’s friend insisted on paying for his suit.

Still, it wasn’t a bad outcome.

Once the matter was settled, Evelyn suddenly remembered something and looked at Melinda curiously.

”By the way, how are things between you and Frank?”

The smile on Melinda’s face faded slightly. ”We broke up.”

Evelyn froze at the news.

”What?”

She stared at her friend in disbelief, wondering whether she had heard correctly. The last time they had discussed Frank, Melinda had still been engaged to him. Although Evelyn hadn’t been particularly fond of the man, she hadn’t expected their relationship to end so abruptly.

”Wait, you and Frank broke up?” she asked again, her voice filled with surprise. ”What happened?”

Melinda let out a quiet sigh before folding her arms. ”I found out he was cheating on me.”

Evelyn’s expression changed instantly. ”He was WHAT?”

Her voice rose so suddenly that Ethan turned toward her in surprise. Even the staff member nearby glanced in their direction before politely pretending not to have heard anything.

Melinda gave a bitter smile.

”Apparently, he had been seeing another woman behind my back. When I confronted him, we had a huge argument. Things got ugly, and that was the end of our relationship.”

Evelyn’s face darkened with anger.

”That bastard!” She exclaimed, clenching her fists. ”How could he do something like that to you? After being together for so long, he still had the nerve to cheat on you?”

Melinda sighed and shook her head. ”Well, there’s nothing I can do about it now. At least I found out before marrying him.”

”You’re right about that, but still...” Evelyn gritted her teeth. ”What an absolute jerk! If I ever see him, I’ll give him a piece of my mind!”

Ethan stared at his wife. ’Whoa, whoa, whoa...’

He blinked in surprise, almost wondering whether he had misheard her. Evelyn was usually gentle and considerate, but the moment she heard that someone had hurt her friend, her entire demeanor had changed.

’She’s really angry.’

He glanced at Melinda, who seemed more amused than offended by Evelyn’s outburst. Clearly, she was accustomed to her friend’s temperament.

Ethan coughed lightly and decided to play along as though he knew nothing about the rest of the story.

”That’s unfortunate,” He remarked, adopting a sympathetic expression. ”But what happened to Frank afterward? Did he try to apologize?”

Melinda shook her head.

”No. Things got worse after our argument. He had already been causing trouble at his company, and apparently, he eventually lost his job. I heard he got into serious trouble there, but I don’t know all the details.”

Ethan nodded thoughtfully. ”I see.”

’Of course you don’t. And neither do I. I’m just a simple husband shopping for a suit.’

He maintained a perfectly innocent expression, resisting the urge to smile.

Frank’s troubles had little to do with the breakup itself. The man had made his own mistakes, and his behavior toward Cole had eventually caught up with him. Ethan had no intention of explaining any of that to Melinda, especially when she hadn’t asked.

Besides, it wasn’t as though Frank’s unemployment was something he needed to feel guilty about.

Evelyn, however, was still fuming.

”Good! He deserved it!” She declared, earning another surprised glance from Ethan. ”A man who cheats on his fiancée and then goes around causing trouble for other people shouldn’t expect everything to go smoothly for him!”

Melinda laughed softly and placed a hand on Evelyn’s shoulder.

”All right, calm down. You’re getting more worked up than I am.”

”How can I calm down?” Evelyn protested. ”You’re my friend! I can’t just sit here and pretend it’s fine when someone treats you like that.”

Her expression softened as she looked at Melinda again.

”Are you doing okay, though? I mean, really?”

For the first time since the conversation began, Melinda’s smile became a little subdued.