My Second Chance
Copyright© 2026 by BillMax
Chapter 19: What Cannot Be Tolerated
“Ah? Kidding. No matter what, back in the day I was the one who snatched you away from a crowd of excellent rivals. Even if I’m not doing great, there’s no reason for me to end up working as a laborer.”
Running into Claire by chance, Marcus was both pleasantly surprised and taken aback, and unconsciously started to make jokes.
But instead of laughing, Claire’s face turned cold.
“What’s wrong with being a laborer? They earn their living with their own hands, which is much better than your former gambling habit, isn’t it?”
“No, I didn’t mean to look down on laborers,” Marcus hurriedly explained. “I just mean that, with my abilities, I can do many kinds of work. It just hasn’t come to a point where I only rely on physical labor.”
“Then what is your real job?”
“Uh ... Elena Shaw is planning to start an investment company and has already hired me as the manager.”
Marcus’s words were half true, half false, but Claire didn’t believe even a punctuation mark of it.
“So your big manager’s job involves shoveling sand on a construction site?”
Marcus was left speechless, unable to find a suitable reason to explain himself.
“A man’s dignity can’t be regained by bragging.”
Looking at the dust on his face and body, Claire’s gaze held both satisfaction and disappointment. “Do you know what you lack the most?”
“What?”
“Being down-to-earth. If you had been earnest in the past, not so desperate to climb so high, maybe your entrepreneurial effort wouldn’t have ended in failure.
Seeing you busy here from afar, I was actually quite happy, thinking that you finally understood the importance of standing on solid ground. But to my surprise, you don’t even have the courage to admit it.”
It really wasn’t true, so what was there for me to admit?
Marcus didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and Claire sighed. “Never mind. Everything is difficult at the beginning. It’s good that you’ve taken this step. I shouldn’t expect you to suddenly realize everything. Sorry.
You go back to work.”
After saying this, she was about to turn away when she saw a man had already walked around the front of the car, so she stopped to introduce him. “He’s a supervisor at my workplace, named Felix Morgan.
Our company did the design for this building complex. We’re here today to confirm some final adjustments on site.”
A man and a woman alone in a desolate area could lead to misconceptions. Marcus believed Claire wasn’t that kind of woman, so he didn’t plan to ask at all.
But she felt it was her duty to make things clear.
That was her personality. She might seem weak, but she had a lot of inner firmness that couldn’t be changed, and that was precisely what Marcus found most irresistible about her.
She was nothing like those women who demand guesses from their partners, who think if you can’t guess, you don’t love them enough.
As soon as he finished speaking, Felix Morgan had already approached, and taking the opportunity, she said, “Minister Morgan, this is my husband, Marcus Hale.”
“Your husband? Really? You must be joking.”
Felix looked Marcus up and down, showing an extremely exaggerated expression of surprise.
After a moment, as if he only then noticed Claire frowning, he quickly changed his expression. “Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just too ... too unexpected. I couldn’t believe it for a moment.”
A theatrical personality? You’ve met your match now.
Marcus’s lips curled slightly, his gaze affectionately on Claire. “Minister Morgan is right. Even after many years of marriage, I still sometimes wonder if I’m dreaming.
Being able to marry Claire, I guess, is the fortune I’ve accumulated over several lifetimes of prayer.”
The words were very cheesy, making Claire’s cheeks warm up with complex emotions.
Felix narrowed his eyes and smiled. “Now I kind of understand why Claire would marry Mr. Hale.
Back when we were students, I was always envious of those who had a way with words. Even if they had nothing else, they could still win over a beauty.
Unlike me. I’m nearly thirty and even though I have a house and a car, I’m still single.”
His words were clearly a jab at Marcus, implying he was good for nothing but talking, while also indirectly advising Claire: You’re no longer the naive schoolgirl. Smooth talk won’t fill your stomach.
You should choose a man like me who’s talented, wealthy, and has a promising career.
At this point, if Marcus still couldn’t see what was going on, he might as well quit playing the game.
Claire was gentle and beautiful, and it was only natural for other men to covet her.
Normally, he wouldn’t bother with such a minor character, but now his wife was there, and every little thing could potentially affect whether happiness would come sooner or later.
“That’s strange.”
Marcus stroked his chin, pretending to be serious. “Logically, with Minister Morgan’s credentials, it shouldn’t be difficult to find a girlfriend, even if not randomly picking up a beauty.
So I think it might not just be about being able to sweet-talk. Perhaps Minister Morgan should look for the reason elsewhere.”
“What place?”
“Like ... maybe what you actually want is a boyfriend?”
Claire was startled and quickly looked at Felix Morgan.
As expected, the minister’s face had turned dark.
“Marcus—”
“Sorry, sorry. Just a joke,” Marcus laughed heartily, cutting off her impending words.
“Minister Morgan is a leader. He should have the broad-mindedness of a great official. He wouldn’t mind, right?”
Felix’s eyes twitched, and he squeezed out a smile. “Mr. Hale is exaggerating, but indeed, I don’t mind.
By the way, are you working here as a construction hand? That’s even worse than a regular laborer.
I have some connections with the constructors here. I know quite a few foremen. Maybe I could find someone to change your position?
I can’t guarantee it’ll be more relaxed, but you’ll definitely learn something. Just in case you can’t make it in the future, it’d be good to have another path, right?”