Chapter 1727

Emily looked at everyone's expressions and said, "Nora, of course, no one's selling their daughter, but 50 thousand dollars really is too little. A higher amount would sound better, and it's only a formality anyway—we'll be sending back a generous gift from our side later." If it had been up to Emily, she would have thrown Hugh and Nora out on the spot. But like Helena, she held back for Joanne's sake and forced herself to speak with calm restraint. "A generous gift?" Nora scoffed, her eyes flicking around the modest home with obvious skepticism. "In plenty of backward places, people promise the moon about sending gifts later, but in the end, they give nothing. I'm not saying you'd do that, of course, but where we're from, this is simply the standard." Nora's condescending tone made Jack's blood boil, but for Joanne's sake, he held his tongue. Joanne, on the other hand, had reached her breaking point. The ride home in the minivan had been miserable enough. Being looked down on wa