"No matter who she''s dressing up for, we don''t need to stress over it," Mrs. Lafond said. "Our daughter''s almost thirty. She knows what she''s doing what she should and shouldn''t do. We''ve stopped worrying about her since she was a teenager." She believed fretting over her children''s rtionships was bad for her health, and frankly, she was tired of overthinking it.


    Anyway, their kids were grown. They could handle themselves.


    "Honey, how about we take a trip to Wiltspoon in a few days?" she suggested. "I''ve heard it has a lot of great tourist spots."


    Mr. Lafond immediately agreed. "I was thinking the same thing."


    Even though they imed not to worry about Romina, the real reason behind the trip was to learn more about River''s background.


    A family that could raise someone as outstanding as River had to be something special.


    They weren''t the type to obsess over ss or wealth in marriage. They valued character and capability. In their minds, a person with good values and ability could ovee any background, even poverty.


    After all, many rich families today started from nothing. They just got lucky that their ancestorsid the foundation.


    Mr. and Mrs. Lafond were open-minded parents. They didn''t interfere in their kids'' personal lives or demand a "perfect match." They also had confidence in their children''s judgment.


    If someone could earn their child''s admiration, they had to be decent.


    For them, it was more about having things inmon. People who didn''t live in


    the same world usually didn''t share the same mindset.


    Romina had no idea her parents were nning a trip to Wiltspoon.


    She and Maddox didn''t take his car-they left it at her house and had her driver


    take them in hers to the Lacroix family residence.


    On the way, she was unusually quiet and seemed a little tense.


    Maddox noticed and looked over at her. "Are you nervous?"


    This wasn''t her first formal event, so it seemed unlikely.


    "Nervous? No way," Romina replied quickly. "This isn''t my first banquet. I just feel


    a little ufortable in this dress. I''m more used to suits."


    Maddox chuckled. "Yeah, suits are definitely morefortable than evening gowns."


    Maybe he was just overthinking it.


    Romina was no rookie. She had been in business for years and had handled plenty of highstakes situations.


    He figured he must''ve misread her.


    Trying to shift the mood, Romina asked, "You''ve been pretty busytely, right?" Since he was her date for the evening, it made sense to keep the conversation going.


    "Yeah, very busy," Maddox said. "But so are you. The Lafond family is thriving." Romina smiled. "My parents think highly of you. They really like you."


    Maddox''s family saw Romina as the ideal partner-strong family, capable, refined,


    and someone who could handle both business and home life.


    He did have some feelings for Romina, though mostly because his family liked


    her. When she''d reached out for dinner, he didn''t hesitate.


    If sparks flew tonight, great. If not, they could still stay friends.


    Their families had business ties, so maintaining a good rtionship was still valuable.


    Truthfully, Maddox''s ideal partner was more soft-spoken, graceful, and family- oriented someone who didn''t need to be a powerhouse, just someone who would care for the home, share life with him, and be there with a hot meal at the end of a long day.