Marriage with my daughter's father: Darling please be gentle - Chapter 101

Chapter 101: Chapter 101: You ruined my life Winter
Rita, who had been silently following them, watched in frustration as the couple got into the car and drove away, leaving her standing there, seething, defeated.

“Ugh! How can she lie to me?!” she snapped, her voice laced with anger. Kalix’s sudden interference had completely derailed her meeting with Winter, shattering her carefully laid plans.

Her fingers curled into fists, but instead of lingering in rage, she swiftly pulled out her phone and dialed a familiar number.

“Mom, I need to talk to you,” she said, striding toward her car. Without wasting another second, she climbed in and sped off toward her parents’ house.

Meanwhile, inside the car, the air between Winter and Kalix turned unbearably tense.

Kalix’s piercing glare bore into her, his jaw clenched tightly.

Winter exhaled sharply, finally surrendering. “Okay, fine… I lied to you,” she admitted, turning to meet his gaze. “But that’s only because I wasn’t afraid of her.”

She should have known Kalix would find her easily. Thanks to the tracking device he had installed in her phone. What she hadn’t expected was for him to confront Rita head-on, stepping in as if he had known what she was upto.

“But tell me, what exactly did you do inside the restaurant?” Winter’s eyes narrowed skeptically.

She had a nagging suspicion that Kalix already knew the real reason behind the meeting. The way he avoided her gaze, feigning indifference, only fueled her doubts.

“I did what I felt was right to shut her down,” he said flatly. “She was trying to manipulate you with those fake tears. Thanks to Roger for giving me a heads-up beforehand.”

Winter’s eyes widened in shock. ‘So that was why Kalix hadn’t spared Rita a second glance—why he had stormed in and dragged her out without another word.’

“Let me warn you, Angel. Rita is not someone you can trust,” Kalix said firmly.

“I don’t trust her,” Winter shot back without hesitation.

“But you still agreed to meet her.”

Winter pressed her lips together, unable to argue any further. He had a point.

With a resigned sigh, she leaned back into her seat, the weight of the conversation settling over her. Kalix exhaled sharply, and before she could react, he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close.

Unable to bear the distressed look on her face, he murmured, “Roger is planning to divorce Rita. The only condition he gave her to stop it is to seek your forgiveness.”

Winter’s breath hitched, her eyes widening in shock.

Kalix wouldn’t have rushed to the restaurant if he hadn’t sensed the depth of Rita’s manipulation. He knew Winter was capable of handling people like her, but trust wasn’t the issue. Rita’s deceit ran deeper than most realized.

Roger might have endured his wife’s behavior for the sake of Sylvester, keeping up the façade of a marriage with no love left. But what Rita didn’t know was that Roger was already looking for a way out.

“So, what do you want me to do?” Winter asked, staring at him with the curiosity of a child.

“Ignore her,” Kalix responded flatly.

Winter hadn’t planned on forgiving Rita in the first place. She had only entertained the meeting out of curiosity, wondering why Rita had sounded so desperate to see her.

Trust was never something Winter gave easily, especially to those who had already proven unworthy of it.

Someone who grew up carrying the weight of betrayal learned early on that everyone had an ulterior motive. And once you knew what a person was capable of, what was the point of entertaining them?

“I was going to do that,” she huffed. “But you didn’t even let me speak back there.”

Kalix’s lips curled into a teasing smirk. “So now you’re upset that I took your chance?”

“Of course.”

Kalix leaned in and placed a quick peck on her cheek, amused by how adorable she looked while venting at him.

“You know,” he mused, a smirk tugging at his lips, “our daughter might look like me, but she definitely inherited all her mother’s crankiness.”

Winter shot him a sharp glare and immediately yanked his hand off her shoulder.

“You think I’m cranky?” She asked, fully turning to face him, her eyes narrowing.

“Did I say anything wrong?” Kalix feigned innocence, his nonchalant tone only irritating her further.

Annoyed, she punched his chest, just enough to make her point. But when he barely flinched, she aimed a harder one.

“Ouch!” Winter winced, shaking her hand, realizing too late that her plan had completely backfired as a sharp sting shot up her knuckles instead.

Kalix burst into laughter, watching her cute little pout and furrowed brows with pure amusement.

“Okay, now stop hurting yourself and tell me, where should we go for lunch?” Kalix asked, smoothly changing the subject while gently blowing on her knuckles.

Winter’s irritation melted in an instant, but just as quickly, reality set in.

“I don’t think that’s possible. My break is almost over,” she said, shaking her head.

Kalix, however, remained unfazed. “That’s not a big deal.”

“But it is a big deal for me, boss,” Winter shot back, emphasizing the word with a pointed look. “Unlike you, I can’t afford to draw unwanted attention for being late. You really think Diana would let me live that down?”

Kalix didn’t want to part ways just yet, but he knew he couldn’t take her job for granted. With a reluctant sigh, he finally conceded, and they made their way back to the company. However, before Winter could step out, she paused, remembering something.

“Where did you leave all of a sudden?” She watched him adjust on his seat, his expression cautious, which made her brows wrinkle.

“We found the truck driver,” he admitted.

Winter froze. “What did he say? Did he confess who hired him?” she asked, her voice laced with urgency.

“He admitted to ramming into Mr. Greyson’s car, but he couldn’t name the man who paid him. He was high when he got the job and doesn’t remember what the guy looked like.”

Winter scoffed in disbelief. “He’s lying. That man knows exactly who hired him. Take me to him. I’ll make him talk.”

“That’s not possible,” Kalix replied, cutting her off.

“Why not? I need to see him. He needs to tell the truth.”

Kalix had already tried and failed to get more out of him. He knew the man would have talked after the first beating if he had any useful information. But when he continued to stick to his story, Kalix realized he wasn’t lying.

“He’s already been handed over to the cops,” Kalix said and noticed the disappointed look quickly marred her face. But he didn’t let her dwell on it.

“Don’t be upset,” he added quickly. “We found what we needed, and I’m sure we’ll get to the person behind this soon.”

Winter listened to him silently before nodding. She knew she could trust Kalix and decided not to dwell on her disappointment any longer.

As they remained like that, somewhere in the distance, a pair of piercing, furious eyes locked onto them.

Agnes watched as Winter stepped out of the car, a lingering smile on her face. The sight alone made Agnes’s blood boil. Her grip on the steering wheel tightened, and before she could think twice, she slammed her foot on the accelerator, speeding straight toward Winter.

“You ruined my life, Winter, and now I won’t let you live with it,” Agnes seethed, her mind clouded with rage.

After Eric refused to marry her, she had felt more than just rejected. She had felt utterly defeated. Everything she had dreamed of, every plan she had made, came crashing down, and there was only one person to blame: Winter.

Blinded by fury, Agnes lost all sense of reason. Her eyes burned with rage as she drove recklessly, her only thought to end Winter once and for all.

Kalix, still inside his car, caught sight of the speeding vehicle. His instincts screamed at him the moment he realized where it was headed.

“WINTER!” he shouted.

The urgency in his voice made Winter whip around. The moment her eyes landed on the oncoming car, she reacted purely on instinct and quickly jumped out of the way just in time.

The vehicle swerved wildly, missing her by inches before crashing violently into a tree. The impact sent a deafening sound through the street, drawing gasps from onlookers as a crowd quickly gathered around the wreckage.

Winter’s eyes darted toward the crowd, but before she could process anything further, Kalix rushed to her side, pulling her into his arms.

“Are you okay?” His voice trembled, breaking her daze.

She nodded, still shaken but unharmed.

With Kalix’s support, she steadied herself, and together they approached the crashed vehicle. As soon as Winter caught sight of the unconscious figure slumped over the driver’s seat, her expression darkened.

***

Inside the hospital ward, Agnes woke with a throbbing pain in her head, instinctively raising a hand to touch it. The moment her fingers brushed against the bandages wrapped around her forehead, the memories from earlier came crashing back.

“Oh, you’re finally awake.”

At the sound of the voice, Agnes’s eyes snapped open, darting toward the person. The second she registered who it was, her breath hitched, and her eyes widened in shock.

“Winter…” The name slipped from her lips naturally, yet there was an undeniable tremor in her voice. A wave of unease settled over her as she took in Winter’s composed yet unreadable expression. Standing beside her hospital bed, Winter’s presence alone felt suffocating, making Agnes instinctively tense.