Never Mistake a Queen for a Lapdog novel Chapter 1038

Noreen stared intently at Mrs. Wilder's face, refusing to miss a single micro-expression.

Likely crumbling under her intense scrutiny, Mrs. Wilder's gaze clearly darted away in panic.

To compensate, she raised her voice aggressively. "What are you looking at me for? Are you going to pay up or not? The reporters are still waiting downstairs!"

The louder she got, the more obvious her bluff became.

Noreen leaned back in her chair and asked, "Fine. How much do you want?"

Before Mrs. Wilder could speak, the older woman blurted out a number. "Millions of dollars!"

Noreen didn't hesitate. "Agreed."

The older woman's heart skipped a beat, suddenly regretting that she hadn't asked for more.

She quickly backpedaled. "Let me discuss it with my daughter-in-law. We'll give you an answer in a minute."

With that, she grabbed Mrs. Wilder and pulled her out of the room.

Noreen gave Sophia a pointed look.

A few moments later, Sophia returned and whispered something in Noreen's ear.

Noreen's expression instantly turned glacial.

Just then, Mrs. Wilder and Ian's mother walked back in.

Having clearly reached an agreement, Mrs. Wilder addressed Noreen. "My mother-in-law and I talked. We want double. Your initial offer was too low. My daughter is only two; she needs a secure future."

The older woman chimed in. "You run a massive company. That kind of money is pocket change to a boss like you. It's probably less than what you spend on a piece of jewelry."

This time, Noreen didn't immediately agree. Instead, she looked between them and asked, "Was there something wrong with Ian's medical exam?"

At those words, the color instantly drained from both their faces.

Mrs. Wilder recovered faster, rushing to deny it. "My husband is only thirty-three! He's in the prime of his life and perfectly healthy! There's absolutely nothing wrong with him!"

Noreen instructed Sophia to turn up the AC, scanned the document quickly, and then handed it to Mrs. Wilder. "Here is Ian's medical report."

Mrs. Wilder took it, her eyes reflecting deep confusion as she read.

"This has to be fake," the older woman insisted.

Noreen corrected her evenly, "It's completely authentic, straight from the hospital. But why would you assume a healthy report is fake? Unless... you've seen a different, unhealthy one?"

"It's definitely fake," the older woman stubbornly denied.

"If you don't believe me, I can send you to the hospital right now to confirm it with the doctors."

Mrs. Wilder collapsed heavily into her chair. "That's impossible. It can't be."

Realization finally hit the older woman, and she suddenly burst into violent sobs. "If my son is healthy, why would he kill himself? He had such a bright future!"

Mrs. Wilder's face was ashen, her hands shaking violently as she gripped the clean medical report.