Marriage with my daughter's father: Darling please be gentle - Chapter 114

Chapter 114: Chapter 114: I don’t remember us having one scheduled.
“Where are we going?” Winter asked, settling into the backseat of the car beside Dianna.

Dianna barely spared her a glance. “A meeting.”

Winter frowned. “I don’t remember us having one scheduled.”

“It’s not up to you to decide what’s scheduled and when,” Dianna said curtly. “You’re still working under me, which means you follow my orders without question.”

Winter’s lips twitched at her superior’s sharp tone, but she chose to hold her tongue, shifting her focus to the meeting ahead.

The car ride was silent, tension simmering beneath the surface. Before long, they arrived at an upscale venue and were swiftly led to a VVIP room.

Inside, Mr. Kingston—one of the key suppliers for the Hillstone construction project—was already waiting. Winter recognized him immediately and straightened her posture as they approached.

“I apologize for the last-minute request, but this meeting was necessary,” Mr. Kingston said as he extended a polite handshake.

“No problem, Mr. Kingston. Work comes first,” Dianna replied smoothly.

Winter, however, remained in the dark about the purpose of this urgent meeting. If the lead supplier had called them here, it had to be serious.

“So, what did you want to discuss?” Dianna asked, her tone sharp and to the point.

Mr. Kingston exhaled, his expression serious. “It’s about the payments we haven’t received. The delays are affecting both the work progress and the supply chain for the construction.”

His words left both Dianna and Winter momentarily stunned.

“What?” Dianna’s brows furrowed. “Haven’t Stewart cleared the bills?”

Kingston shook his head. “No, we haven’t received any payments yet.”

Winter stiffened at his response. “That’s not possible. I personally handled the payments—Mr. Stewart should have processed them.”

Dianna’s gaze snapped to Winter, sharp and scrutinizing. “Are you telling the truth?”

Winter’s expression hardened. “Of course I am. Wasn’t I specifically sent to handle the pending transactions?”

Dianna considered her words for a moment before sighing. “Give me a moment—I’ll call Stewart and sort this out.”

She stood and walked out of the room, phone in hand. Meanwhile, Winter remained seated, her mind racing. How could Stewart have delayed the payments when everything had already been settled?

Across from her, Kingston observed her growing anxiety but remained silent. Before he could say anything, his phone buzzed.

“Excuse me,” he said, standing to take the call. In the process, an envelope slipped from his grasp, landing on the floor unnoticed.

Winter’s gaze followed the envelope. Kingston, however, remained focused on his call, seemingly unaware. By the time he returned, Winter had already picked it up, her hand outstretched.

“Mr. Kingston, you dropped this.”

The man reacted quickly, reaching for the envelope with a flicker of urgency in his expression.

Before Winter could question it, Kingston cleared his throat. “The payments have been processed. My staff just confirmed it,” he said, his tone suddenly apologetic.

Almost on cue, Dianna walked back in. “There was an issue with the transfer,” she announced. “Stewart must have already sorted it out.”

“I apologize for the inconvenience, Miss Dianna,” Kingston said politely before the meeting concluded.

Dianna, however, wasn’t in the mood for pleasantries. As they exited the restaurant, she shot Winter a pointed look. “You should have double-checked this matter beforehand. Did you really expect the boss to handle such a trivial issue himself?”

Winter remained silent, her thoughts lingering on the unexpected delay. She had no idea why Stewart would have postponed the payments when the procedure should have been completed immediately.

Though the issue was now resolved, a nagging sense of unease refused to settle. Something about this situation still didn’t sit right. Yet she decided not to dwell longer and focus on continuing her day.

***

Back inside Roger’s office, Gina leaned in closer to Lily, her voice hushed yet brimming with excitement.

“I never knew these siblings would inherit such incredible genes from their parents. Aren’t they all surreal? I just can’t look away.”

Lily shot Gina a sharp glare, watching as she shamelessly admired Roger’s striking features.

“He’s a married man, Gina. So get those shameless eyes off him,” Lily warned, snapping Gina out of her dreamy daze.

Despite being among the most influential families, the Andreas family maintained a notoriously private life. They preferred to stay out of the limelight, working discreetly behind the scenes.

That secrecy only added to Roger’s mystique. Though he oversaw the entertainment industry, he rarely made public appearances, attended events, or granted interviews. Even his marriage had been kept hidden from the outside world—another reason Gina found herself utterly bewitched by him.

Once the assistant left, Roger turned his attention back to Lily. “Is there anything else you’d like to ask regarding the project?”

Gina suddenly felt out of place as Roger’s gaze remained fixed on Lily the entire time. It was subtle, yet the way he looked at her—with a quiet endearment—spoke volumes.

“I think that’s all,” Lily replied, rising from her seat. “Now that the meeting is over, we’ll take our leave.”

“Already?” Gina muttered in confusion, but the second Lily shot her a pointed glare, she instantly stood up.

“Yes, I think we should take our leave,” she quickly corrected, falling in line with Lily’s decision.

Roger, on the other hand, felt a pang of disappointment. There was so much he wanted to ask—where Lily had been all these years, why she had never contacted him after that day. But he held back, recognizing the firm professional boundary she was trying to maintain between them.

Still, unwilling to let the moment pass without acknowledgment, Roger stood and walked around the table, stopping before Lily.

“I’m looking forward to working with you,” he said, extending his hand for a handshake.

Lily hesitated, glancing down at his outstretched hand before meeting his gaze. Roger continued to smile at her, his expression filled with something unspoken.

The longer she delayed, the heavier the silence grew between them.

Before the tension could stretch further, Gina quickly stepped in, reaching for Roger’s hand instead. “We are too,” she said, breaking the awkwardness.

Both Roger and Lily were momentarily taken aback but quickly masked their emotions. With polite goodbyes exchanged, they turned and walked away, leaving behind words left unsaid.

With a heavy heart, Roger turned to return to his seat, but he halted when his eyes landed on the phone Lily had left behind.

Instinctively, he reached for it, intending to return it to her. Just as he was about to head out, the door suddenly flung open, and Rita walked in.

Confusion washed over him. He hadn’t been informed of her arrival. Before he could utter a word, she ran toward him and threw her arms around him.

“I love you so much, Roger,” she murmured against his chest, leaving him frozen in place.

His mind raced, trying to process not only Rita’s unexpected presence but also the unsettling feeling creeping into his chest. That feeling turned to dread when his gaze shifted toward the doorway.

Standing there was Lily.

Her name slipped from his lips, barely above a breath, tinged with defeat. “Lily…”

The sound of her name caught Rita’s attention, and she quickly pulled back, following Roger’s gaze. The moment her eyes landed on the woman standing at the door, her expression lit up with surprise.

“Lily, is that you?” Rita’s excited voice cut through the awkward silence.

But Lily didn’t acknowledge her. Without sparing Rita a glance, she stepped inside, her gaze fixed on Roger.

“I just came to get my phone,” she said, her tone unreadable. Her eyes flickered to the seat before settling on the phone in Roger’s hand.

Realizing his grip had tightened around it, Roger instinctively extended it toward her.

Without another word, Lily took the phone, turned on her heel, and walked away.

And just like that, she was gone again.

Roger yanked Rita off him, his patience snapping. “I told you not to bother me, Rita. So why the hell are you here?”

His voice was sharp with frustration as he turned away, returning to his seat, his anger simmering.

Rita flinched but quickly composed herself, her gaze hardening. However, the moment Roger’s eyes met hers, tears welled up in her eyes.

“Roger, can’t you give me a chance? Please, trust me. I apologized to Winter, but Kalix… he—he—”

“Leave, Rita.” His tone was ice-cold, his patience gone. “I don’t have time for your bullshit.”

His mind was elsewhere—on Lily. She had misunderstood everything, and that thought alone gnawed at him.

Rita hesitated, refusing to move, her desperation keeping her in place.

“I SAID, GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!”

Roger’s voice thundered through the office, making her jump. Startled, she quickly turned on her heel and stormed out, her anger barely concealed.

But Roger no longer cared. His thoughts were consumed by the one person who had just walked away from him—Lily.

***

Rita stepped into the lobby, her anger simmering beneath a mask of silence. Her fingers curled into fists at her sides, but the moment her eyes landed on Lily near the main entrance, something dark flickered in her gaze.

A slow, vicious smile stretched across her lips.

“Lily, wait!”

The familiar voice made Lily stop in her tracks. Her shoulders tensed as she turned around, watching Rita approach with purpose in her stride.

Lily’s expression hardened as a painful memory crossed her mind.