Melody Parker wasn't interested in these rumors; she only cared about work and the stepmother and sister she hadn't seen for a long time. This time back, she was definitely going to give them a surprise.
"How can it not matter? Let me tell you, your so-called sister is the fiancée of Adrian Davies, the CEO of Davies Group!" Serena Sterling widened her eyes, her expression overly dramatic. "What's the world coming to? All the good men are being snatched away by those awful women! It's just unfair, why doesn't anyone see my worth as such a wonderful princess?"
Watching Serena Sterling's exaggerated chest-pounding dramatics, Melody Parker silently laughed, "Clearly, you just look down on those ordinary men, right? By the way, you just said that Ava Parker is Adrian Davies' fiancée?"
"Yeah, that's why I'm complaining that life isn't fair! You definitely haven't met Adrian Davies. He's currently the dream guy of every single young woman in River City. Tall, handsome, cool, and wealthy, he's literally like Prince Charming."
Serena Sterling said indignantly, "It's a pity such a great guy ended up with your reckless sister. What a waste!"
Melody Parker frowned slightly. Since they were kids, Ava Parker had liked to take away Melody's things. From calling dad "daddy" to taking her bowls and chopsticks, if it belonged to Melody, Ava would take it without hesitation.
Who would've thought with that domineering personality, she'd already have a fiancé, and it was the CEO of Davies Group.
"By the way, did you just say that the CEO of Davies Group has some issue?" Melody Parker suddenly remembered Serena Sterling's earlier words and casually asked.
"Hehe, you said you weren't interested, but curiosity is a woman's nature!" Serena Sterling chuckled mysteriously, gesturing for Melody Parker to come closer, then whispered, "I heard that Adrian Davies has some issues, and your sister nearly visited every doctor in River City for him. Tsk, tsk, tsk, you can't just judge by appearances, looks don't mean anything if they're not useful."
Melody Parker hadn't yet processed Serena Sterling's words when she heard Benjamin Parker curiously ask, "Aunt Serena, what does 'not useful' mean?"
The childish voice made the two beautiful women blush in embarrassment, as if caught doing something wrong.
But Serena Sterling, being bolder, waved her hand at Benjamin, "Shoo, shoo, let the adults talk, kids shouldn't interrupt."
Benjamin opened his mouth to argue but saw the look from Melody Parker, "Be good now, mommy and Aunt Serena are talking. Get some sleep."
"Okay, women are so troublesome." Apparently resigning himself to adult matters, Benjamin sighed like a little adult, freshened up in the bathroom, and obediently went to bed.
Looking at the well-behaved Benjamin, Serena Sterling wore a face full of envy, "Melody, when can I have a son as obedient as yours?"
"That's not hard, as long as you're willing, I'm sure many excellent young single men are eager for you."
"Nonsense, where?"
The two long-time-no-see best friends snuggled on the sofa, chatting about their life in recent years, until the sky was filled with stars, and they finally nodded off to sleep.
When Serena Sterling fell asleep, Melody Parker got up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling balcony, gazing at the bustling and beautiful night sky, her icy eyes reflecting a hint of hurt.
This time she had returned; she swore back when her stepmother and father kicked her out that she would come back one day!
The next morning, when the warm dawn light passed through the curtains and fell on Melody Parker's face, she lazily woke up.
Just after a stretch, she saw Serena Sterling suddenly jump out of bed, "Oh no! The company has a roll call this morning! It's almost eight already, I'm late, I'm late, if I get caught, my performance this month is doomed!"
With that, Serena Sterling frantically scrambled up, dashed to the bathroom to wash her face, grabbed the handbag she had thrown on the sofa, and rushed out the door like a whirlwind, "Melody, I'm off. I'll contact you later, bye!"
With the sound of the door closing, Melody Parker shook her head helplessly; Serena Sterling's fiery personality really hadn't changed a bit.
After Serena had left, the room returned to its quiet stillness.
Melody Parker walked barefoot on the long plush carpet, gently tucking in the blanket for the sleeping Benjamin, and then stepped over to the floor-to-ceiling window to pull aside the curtains.
Outside, the brilliant morning light flooded in. Blossoming almond and peach flowers were in full bloom, and the bustling streets were brimming with the vibrant feel of spring.
Perhaps infected by this vibrant spring, Melody Parker crossed her arms with a small smile on her lips.
River City, long time no see, I'm back.
Just as she was bathing in a flood of thoughts, Melody Parker's cell phone rang.
Afraid of disturbing the sweetly sleeping Benjamin, she quickly picked it up and pressed the answer button, "Hello, this is Melody Parker. May I ask who's calling?"
"Hello, Miss Parker. I'm Boris Castle, the advertising director from Davies Group. I'd like to discuss the contract with you, is this a convenient time?" a somewhat earnest male voice came from the other end of the phone.
"Oh, it's convenient, go ahead." Melody Parker took the call to the sofa and sat down, listening quietly.
"Well, Miss Parker, we received the schedule your assistant faxed over. It says you specially came to River City for this advertisement. We'd like to schedule a time for filming. Is there a day convenient for you?"
Melody Parker thought for a moment. "How about ten in the morning? I need to prepare a bit."
"Okay, ten o'clock then. We'll arrange an audition shoot for the outdoor ad, and the location will be the previously selected River City Cross-sea Bridge Scenic Area, is that okay?"
"Sure, no problem."
"That's great, Miss Parker. We'll send a car to pick you up at ten, and the shooting time is an hour and a half. Thank you for your hard work."
"It's the least I can do. I'm staying at a hotel now; I'll have my assistant send the address. Let's leave it at that."
"Okay, Miss Parker, we look forward to your presence."
After the polite advertising director hung up, Melody Parker also put down the phone, got up from the sofa, and went to freshen up in the bathroom.
When she was done, Benjamin rubbed his eyes and sat up from the bed, "Mommy?"
"I'm here," Melody Parker quickly walked to Benjamin's side and asked softly, "Awake now? After such a long flight yesterday, are you tired?"
Benjamin shook his head, donning his cartoon pajamas and heading to the bathroom to freshen up. In no time, he came out looking energetic, "Mommy, is Loren coming to take us to play later?"
"Not to play. Mommy has to work, so I'm sorry for the trouble, but you'll have to follow mommy around." Melody Parker looked at her dear son with a bit of guilt.