The somber look on Emily’s face made Fred even more curious about what news his daughter had heard on the phone.
“What’s wrong, Em?” asked Fred, his voice soft as he tried to calm the storm in Emily’s heart.
Emily looked up, her eyes staring at Fred with a face full of sadness. “Dad,” she called softly.
Suddenly, a big smile spread across Emily’s face, chasing away the sadness that had just appeared. “I got accepted into the company!” she shouted, her eyes sparkling.
Fred smiled with pride. He knew how much Emily wanted to go back to work after focusing on Grace for seven years. Emily had decided to quit W Company after her breakup with Daniel and her pregnancy. During those seven years, she had focused solely on taking care of Grace. Fred helped with the finances of the house. Although Emily was never financially strapped as Daniel continued to send her a lot of money, even after their separation, Emily never used the money.
“Congratulations, Em. I’m sure you’ll do well in your interview tomorrow,” Fred said, his voice full of confidence. Emily smiled slightly, feeling touched by her father’s support.
“Thanks, Dad,” Emily replied with a nod, gratitude shining in her eyes.
Once Emily was inside her room, she took out her cell phone and hesitantly searched for the contact number of someone she knew. Her fingers moved slowly, as if afraid to press the green button. After a few seconds of thought, Emily finally got the courage to call. The phone rang softly, and before long, the line was connected.
“Hello, it’s me Emily,” Emily said.
The man on the other side of the phone was surprised to hear Emily’s voice. He was silent for a moment before saying, “Ah, Emily. How are you?” he asked.
“Fine. Richard, I’m sorry if I’m interrupting your time, but could you tell me where Daniel lives now? Or maybe you have his phone number?” asked Emily, her voice a little nervous, yet hopeful.
“I’ll give you his current address, but as for his phone number, he never changed it. He still uses the same phone number,” Richard replied.
“Oh, I see. Well, thank you,” Emily said.
Suddenly, Richard said, “Can’t you change your minds and get back together?” he asked, regretting Daniel and Emily’s decision to separate. His voice was full of hope and desire for their relationship to be restored, reflecting the genuine feelings of someone who cared about their relationship.
Emily was silent, not knowing what to answer, recalling the past that was still imprinted on her heart. Seven years had passed, but never for a second had she forgotten the love she had for Daniel. However, that love was also painful for her, like an old wound that never healed.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to interfere with your problems. It’s just…” Richard’s words were cut off for a moment. He recalled Daniel’s suffering during this time after parting with Emily.
“It’s just that maybe everything that happened to you was just a misunderstanding and there is still a way out to fix everything,” Richard continued from the other end of the line.
Emily smiled bitterly at Richard’s words. “I don’t know,” she replied, her voice sounding soft. “But it’s like we were not meant to be together.”
By nightfall, Emily was ready to go to Daniel’s place.
“Mom, where are you going?” Grace asked curiously.
“Little kids don’t need to know. Don’t misbehave at home and give Grandpa a hard time, okay?” said Emily as she gently stroked Grace’s head.
“Dad, if there’s something important, just call me, especially if this little girl is causing trouble,” Emily said as she looked sharply at Grace. Her face turned serious, although her tone was still soft.
Fred smiled at Grace’s pouting lips after being reprimanded by Emily. “You don’t have to worry. I’ll take care of her. Just go,” Fred said gently, trying to calm Emily down.
“Alright, I’ll be going, Dad,” Emily said as she kissed Grace’s cheek and waved to Fred before leaving the house.
Emily got into her car, started the engine, and prepared to drive the car to Daniel’s new residence. The journey seemed so long, every second was excruciating. When the car finally stopped at Daniel’s residence, Emily felt her heart skip a beat. She took out her cell phone, her fingers looking a little hesitant as she was about to press the green button to contact Daniel. But finally, determination overcame her hesitation.
After a long time, Daniel’s voice finally came from the other end of the line. “Hello,” his voice sounded flat.
“It’s me. Can we meet?” Emily asked.
“I’m busy,” Daniel replied briefly, his tone cold, as if dismissing the hope implied in Emily’s question.
“I’m already in front of your house,” Emily said.
“Go home, I won’t see you,” Daniel replied.
“Then I’ll keep waiting here until you come out,” Emily said.
“Whatever,” Daniel replied coldly, then disconnected the phone.
Daniel returned to his desk, trying to focus on work, but his mind kept drifting to Emily, who was still waiting in front of his house. Daniel tried to dismiss his thoughts about Emily by recalling Emily’s biological father’s message about destiny that they could not be together or Emily would die.
Daniel massaged the middle of his furrowed eyebrows, feeling dizzy thinking about everything that had happened. He recalled how heartless he had been for the past seven years towards Emily and his own daughter. This time, he felt the need to hold back so that his emotional defenses would not falter. With hesitant steps, he stood up, hoping that a shower would help ease the chaos of his mind.
Finally, Daniel stepped into the bathroom, letting the warm water from the shower flow gently over his body, washing away every anxiety and doubt that haunted him.
Meanwhile, Emily waited impatiently in the car, her hopes fixed on the door of the house that was still tightly closed. After a long wait, anxiety crept in when Daniel didn’t come out.
“Bastard, are you going to keep treating me like this? This time, I won’t be patient with you anymore,” Emily muttered, her voice filled with disappointment and anger. With steady steps, she got out of her car and closed the door with a slight bang.
Emily’s gaze was stunned when she saw Daniel’s magnificent residence in front of her. The house towered high with elegant modern architecture. The facade of the building, which was covered in high-quality materials, gave a futuristic yet elegant impression.
Emily boldly tried to overcome her nervousness. She stepped into the main entrance. With a pounding heart, Emily pressed the doorbell of the residence.
A few seconds later, a well-dressed and polite servant appeared at the door. She was the servant who had served Daniel’s grandfather when Daniel’s grandfather was alive and, of course, she also knew Emily very well. “Madam,” she asked in a friendly voice, “Did you come to see Young Master?”
“Is he inside? May I come in?” asked Emily.
The servant nodded slowly. “The young master is inside. Please come in, Madam.”
She opened the door wide, letting Emily into the house, which felt very grand and unfamiliar to Emily.
The maid invited Emily to sit in the living room. “I will call the young master.”
Emily remembered Daniel’s coldness on the phone and thought he might not want to see her.
“Let me go see him. Where is he?” asked Emily, her voice sounding hesitant, but her determination to see Daniel was strong.
The maid nodded slowly and brought Emily to join her. “It looks like Young Master is inside, madam,” she showed the direction of Daniel’s room with her hand.
“Very well, thank you,” Emily replied.
Emily bit her lower lip and, with some hesitation, she opened the door to Daniel’s room.
“Where is he?” muttered Emily when she saw that there was no Daniel in the spacious room.
But the sudden sound of the bathroom door opening broke her reverie. Her gaze met Daniel, who had just come out of the bathroom with his body uncovered by anything but a towel covering his lower half.
Daniel looked surprised, his eyebrows raised slightly, and his eyes rounded in surprise. The water dripping from his hair made his muscular body look even more attractive.
“What are you doing here?” Daniel asked.