Diana looked deeply at the three in the room and turned her head toward the courtyard.
She was in a bad mood and desperately needed to blow off some steam.
She hadn’t expected to see Javier standing in the doorway just as they reached the yard. He seemed happy to see Diana and ran up to her.
-Diana, where have you been? I’ve been looking for you for a long time.
Diana looked up at the handsome face.
“Javier is fond of me, there’s no doubt about that, the question is how much he likes me.”
Diana pondered for a few seconds and suddenly asked:
-Javier, if I marry into your family, will the Romero family give me a share of their shares?
This question froze Javier for a moment.
He frowned, the Romero family didn’t seem to have a precedent for this, all the shares were basically in the hands of the man in power and almost none would be given to the wife who married into the family.
Javier thought this made her uneasy and, after a moment’s careful thought, he said:
-I will think of something and, when you come in, I will find a way to get you a chance…..
Before he had finished speaking, Diana’s heart was already full of disappointment.
In contrast to Umberto’s offer to give Albina some Santangel Group shares, Javier’s comment struck her as high-handed.
But she was always smart enough not to show it.
Actually, Javier was very serious about helping her, and he really saw Diana as his fiance, since she was insecure and wanted shares.
Although the Romero family had not had such precedents, he would set one for her.
But Diana was not only untouched by his feelings, she disliked him.
Diana talked to Javier absently, her mind on what Doria had said.
In a few days, when Antonio and Bianca were not so attentive to Albina, she would have to think about how to break off their relationship.
While she was thinking about it, suddenly Javier said:
-Is the party tomorrow evening at 7 pm? My father is away on business and can’t come, so my mother and I will come.
Diana suddenly froze, she had almost forgotten that there was a party tomorrow.
“Tomorrow’s party won’t be like today’s, just the family greeting Albina to eat and chat.”
Tomorrow all the members of the Espina family would be there, and Albina’s identity would be revealed as well as Diana’s identity as an adopted daughter.
By then everyone would know that she had no relation to the Espina family even though she had their last name, being only an insignificant adopted daughter.
Those who used to hold and accompany her would change their faces and mock her.
Diana’s face involuntarily filled with panic at the thought of her terrible future.
Javier did not notice her state of mind and was still talking when suddenly Diana let go of his hand, and said to him with a slightly trembling voice:
-Javier, go home first, I’m a little tired.
With that, she hurried to the living room. Javier arrived too late to call her, and froze in place as he stared at her back with a puzzled expression.
When she entered the living room, she found that Antonio and Umberto had gone, leaving Bianca alone on the sofa with a cup of tea.
Bianca looked serene and kind, she had a smile on her lips and seemed to be in a good mood.
Diana bit her lower lip and approached her.
Compared to Antonio and Hector, Bianca had the best temperament and was the best one to talk to, so….
Hearing footsteps, Bianca looked up and froze for a moment at the sight of Diana, but then smiled and beckoned to her.
-Diana, come, sit here.
Diana obediently approached and sat down next to her.
Bianca poured her a cup of tea with a smile that could not be hidden.
-I’m so happy, I thought I’d never see Albina in my life, but I found her….
She had long wished she had someone to talk to about her feelings, and seeing that Diana was listening to her attentively, she said a lot in a whisper.
When the urge to speak passed, her voice stopped abruptly as she saw that Diana hadn’t said a word the whole time.
A flash of guilt shone in Bianca’s eyes.
-I’m sorry, Diana, you must be very tired, go upstairs and rest,” she told her as she rubbed her temples.
She was so content and happy that she almost forgot about the awkward relationship between Diana and Albina.
At that moment, Diana suddenly looked up, looked at Bianca, bit her lower lip hard and spoke:
-Mom, there is something I want to ask you.
-Tell me,” Bianca looked at her curiously.
Diana took a deep breath.
-Mom, at the party tomorrow, can you not announce me as the adopted daughter, please?
Her eyes were a little red and she clutched her skirt in panic.
Bianca looked at her, let out a long sigh and nodded:
-Okay.
This answer brought instant surprise to Diana’s eyes:
-Really?
-Yes,” she said softly.
She knew Diana had a sensitive mind, so if her identity as an adopted daughter was announced, she would probably become upset and develop a grudge against Albina.
Last night she and her husband had talked it over and had made the decision to hide Diana’s identity as a way of sticking up for the Romero family.
Bianca had planned to tell Diana tomorrow, but was surprised to be approached so soon.
Diana was delighted to receive a positive response from Bianca and, seeing how pleasant she was to talk to, she couldn’t help but want more.
After a moment’s hesitation, she looked cautiously at Bianca and said shyly:
-Mom, I’ve thought of something.
-Yes?
-Here’s the thing, if you announce Albina’s identity tomorrow, everyone will know that she disappeared and was kidnapped when she was two years old. Even if we make it clear that she was adopted by someone else, there will be people with bad intentions who will think otherwise, and it will be bad for Albina’s reputation if word gets out -Diana said to Bianca as if she had made up her mind-. And Albina is not an ordinary person now, she is the daughter-in-law of the Santangel family. If it affects the Santangel family, Albina will have a much harder time too, won’t she?
Bianca frowned and looked at her with a slightly confused look, she suppressed the expression in her eyes and asked:
-What exactly are you trying to say?
When Diana saw that she didn’t look angry, she continued:
-I think that tomorrow you could announce that you have a relationship with Albina and want to take her in as an adopted daughter. No one will think anything of it. As long as our family and the Santangel family know what’s going on, you can spoil Albina all you want in private….
When he finished, he added:
-This is just my advice, you can consult me, you don’t have to take it seriously.
After hearing her say this, Bianca’s face had completely cooled down.