Unexpected Marriage With Mr. Leighton: Rebirth of the Villain
Chapter 28: HIS BEST ASSET

Chapter 28: HIS BEST ASSET

"Your father is here," Ranon said. He put down the phone and looked at Hazel, who was reading the raw writing of their agreement.

"He is here?" Hazel lifted her head; she didn’t seem to worry. Actually, Hazel had expected his visit, since he must have known that she had gone to this country.

It wouldn’t be hard to know Ranon was in this country too, because this business trip was not confidential.

"Did he know that you made this deal?" Ares asked curiously. Ranon was right. This woman was completely different from the information they managed to gather.

"No." Hazel drank her water. "But to be honest, I think he will propose his own deal to Ranon."

Lucian shook his head when he heard that; he was polishing the deal between them so there would be a legal binding. "Your family is a mess. How could they use you for their own benefit?"

"You shouldn’t be surprised; you should have seen this coming," Hazel replied; she grinned at Lucian, indicating that she already knew they were digging for information about her.

"If you have a family like that, you don’t need an enemy." Lucian feigned shuddering, and Hazel laughed merrily.

"Have you ever heard the saying that ’home is the first place to learn’?" Hazel chuckled; she didn’t seem slightly bothered by the fact of how shitty her family was. "I think I have a good lesson."

Ranon stood up. "Are you going to meet him? I will deal with your father if you don’t want to meet him."

Hazel could choose to stay back and relax, but she stood up instead. "Nah. I want to be there when you meet with your father-in-law for the first time," she said lightly and winked playfully. She grabbed his arm. "Should we go out like this?"

Ranon shrugged her arms that circled his. "Too fast. Let’s do it later."

"Okay." Hazel didn’t take it to heart. There was nothing serious about this relationship.

Both of them went to the lobby, where they saw not only Greyson Rose but also Dylan Rose there. The two of them came together; their expressions were taut as if they were going into a war.

Especially when they saw how Ranon held Hazel’s hand. He actually grabbed her hand when they walked out of the elevator.

This would be the beginning of their appearance as a couple in public.

"Are you ready to meet your father-in-law?" Hazel asked in a low voice when Ranon held her hand, and she was surprised when Ranon actually lowered his tall body to whisper in her ear.

"Why? Nervous?"

His warm breath tickled her skin, and this made Hazel giggle. "Don’t worry; I assure you that he doesn’t bite."

On the other hand, Greyson and Dylan had this frown on their taut expression to see how the two of them whispered to each other. They looked intimate...

Ranon held Greyson’s and Dylan’s gaze firmly. "May I know what the reason for this is?" He feigned ignorance.

"You know why we are here, Mr. Leighton." Greyson looked around; he maintained his composure. "Let’s talk somewhere else private."

"You two can talk; I will have a few words with my sister." Dylan directed his eyes at Hazel. "Come here, Hazel," he said, his voice laced with command.

***

"I am really disappointed in you, Aubrey," Arthur said grimly as he stared at her stomach. You could see a little bump there.

Because he was too busy with the disappearance of River, he didn’t pay attention to Aubrey; more so, she didn’t visit his office often recently, and now he knew the reason.

"What have you done?"

"Father, I am sorry. I am really sorry." Aubrey immediately knelt down on the floor, sobbing into her hands as she begged for his forgiveness.

"Do you even know what you have done?! Arlo is your sister’s fiancé! How could you do that to her?!"

"Father, I am sorry..."

"I don’t need your apology! I want to know where your sister is!" Arthur growled at Aubrey, and he could be very terrifying when he was angry. But all this time, he had never directed his anger at his younger daughter, which made Aubrey tremble in fear. "Not only did you take your sister’s fiancé, but you are also pregnant with his child?! Do you have no shame at all?!"

Arthur was used to spending his time in his study room if he was not on a mission himself. Both of his daughters would come to visit him, obviously for different reasons.

While Aubrey would come as his daughter and converse with him about mundane things, River would always come to talk about missions. She was one of the best assassins that he had raised. It could be said she was his right-hand man.

Therefore, it pissed him off so bad when River disappeared all of a sudden like this. He disliked anything that was disorganized, and now everything was a mess without River here.

Because of that, Arthur was so angry at Aubrey right now. He had never been this angry with her before; thus, it was quite a surprise for her.

"Father, I didn’t mean it that way..." Aubrey shook her head. "I didn’t mean to hurt her, but I can’t help my feelings. I love him, Father. We love each other."

"Bullshit with love!" Arthur roared angrily. "What you have with each other is lust! That’s not love!"

Aubrey shook her head as if she was trying to deny it, but there was no word that came out of her mouth, aside from her sobbing mess. She crawled on the floor to reach Arthur’s leg and hugged it tightly, pleading with him in incoherent words.

"I am sorry..."

"It’s not to me that you should apologize."

"I will beg for her forgiveness if River is here... I will find her... I will..."

Someone stormed inside the room when Aubrey pleaded with Arthur, and this stopped her mid-sentence. She looked like the older version of Aubrey, but the way she carried herself was so different.

While Aubrey would walk with the arrogance of a young lady from a prestigious family, this woman carried dignity with every step she took.

"Mother..." Aubrey cried so hard; she stood up and went to her mother.

That was right; she was Elise, Arthur’s second wife, Aubrey’s mother. She looked younger than her actual age, and her sharp eyes hardened when her daughter went to her with open arms, tears and snot on her face.

Yet, instead of hugging her crying daughter, Elise raised her hand and slapped her so hard. Aubrey actually stumbled back, and Arthur had to hold her before she hit the table.

"Elise," Arthur called her name with a warning.

"I really hate a cheater." Elise tilted her head. "And I actually gave birth to one?" She narrowed her eyes, clicked her tongue, and approached Aubrey again, who had stopped crying because she was shocked.

Her mother was a typical trophy wife; she indulged herself in fashion and parties. She knew what Arthur was doing and where the money came from, but she couldn’t care less about that.

However, she indeed hated a cheater with passion. In this case, you could say she was a shallow woman with a high moral.

"Let’s talk about this calmly," Arthur finally relented; he steadied Aubrey, and she tried to get to her mother, but Elise gave her a disgusted look.

"Don’t come to me with your snot and tears," Elise said. "I just bought this dress, and I have a party to attend."

Sometimes, Aubrey wondered how her father could keep up with her mother when she acted like this. Arthur could have divorced her and found another woman for himself, but he didn’t do that.

"I don’t have time for this, and for the meantime, don’t show your face to me. I really dislike you right now."

Elise was not particularly fond of River; at best, she ignored her and only talked to her stepdaughter if it was necessary, but she was not really a good mother to Aubrey either. Probably, she was a good wife for Arthur; that was why he kept her.

After saying that, Elise walked out of the room. She only came to slap Aubrey and tell her not to be within her sight.

"Where do you think River is?" Arthur saw Aubrey’s red cheek and then went to get a towel; he folded it with three ice cubes inside and gave it to her.

"I don’t know, Father... I don’t have any idea where she has gone..."She pressed the damp towel and sighed in relief. It felt comfortable, and she relished the fact that her father still cared about her. "I don’t know where she has gone."

She had gone from this world. Down in the cold river.

Aubrey wanted to say that, but of course, she wouldn’t do it. It would be a suicide to tell Arthur what she had done to his best asset.

"Father, I am sorry..." Aubrey lowered her head. "I shouldn’t have done that. I know I am wrong. Mother is right; I am disgusting, but I love him, Father. We love each other..."

Arthur sighed deeply; he knew that Elise’s words had hurt Aubrey. He was still upset with her, but at the end of the day, she was still his daughter.

"I will apologize to River. I will beg for her forgiveness. I will help to look for her, Father..."

Arthur patted her back. "Let’s find her first."