The executive chuckled knowingly and added, "I heard both your wife and your manager are pregnant at the same time?"
Dereck froze for a brief second, panic flashing in his eyes.
When he glanced over and saw me casually scrolling on my phone, my expression calm, he assumed I hadn’t understood a word.
He then curved his lips into a warm smile and replied, "Yes, a sweet burden indeed."
The group of German executives exchanged amused glances, their smiles filled with innuendo.
"Mr. Hughes, you’re impressive—two women having children for you at the same time!"
“I suddenly remember a saying called ‘double happiness arrives’? Did I pronounce that correctly?” The foreign executive attempted the phrase with a thick accent, his eyes gleaming with amusement.
Dereck nodded and smiled, praising his effort. “Your French is quite good.”
My fingers instinctively clenched, gripping the cutlery in my hand so tightly it hurt.
They didn’t know that I had attended a foreign language high school and understood German perfectly.
Feigning ignorance, I asked Dereck, “What were you all talking about?”
I tried to keep my tone casual and light, as if I wasn’t suffocating inside.