6

Chapter 6: Get Out of the Way!

"What is she doing here? Mom can't go out like this!" Lavínia asserted, rushing to change. She quickly got ready and followed Zara as if they were heading to a funeral.

"She's in the hall where the party happened. Sorry, Lavínia..."

The two hesitated as they opened the door, but as soon as they did, they found Lavínia's mother standing there with a neutral expression.

"Who was that man?" her mother asked, even before they could say "good morning."

"He's someone unimportant!" Zara tried to answer.

"That's not it! He's not unimportant, he... we..." Lavínia stammered, unable to respond properly.

"We've been getting to know each other for a few months!" she said awkwardly, while Zara stared at her, petrified.

"You're already in a new relationship?" her mother asked, surprised. "I thought you were still with that scoundrel."

"But that ended a long time ago..." Lavínia averted her gaze, mumbling. "Anyway, I'm sorry you witnessed this situation. How about we have breakfast together?" she suggested, trying to change the subject, but her mother turned serious again.

"I'm here to talk about your father. I heard rumors that you want to fire him!"

"Mom... let's talk privately in my room!" Lavínia requested, uncomfortable as a few employees entered to clean the room.

After a long conversation with her mother, Lavínia left the room with Zara, both exhausted from the discussion.

"What are you going to do? You literally said you're dating a guy whose name you don't even know!" Zara scolded her.

"There's no problem with that. What are the chances of that guy showing up again? And you're not hiring those kinds of services anymore," Lavínia said indifferently.

"Well... not for now, but you didn't have to lie. Your mother knows you're an adult and can do whatever you want. Let's agree: a ruthless businesswoman who can crush any rival doesn't need her mom's brakes just because she slept with a drop-dead gorgeous guy, right?"

"You know my mother raised me with traditional values. That was an accident! Since I broke up with my ex-husband, I haven't touched another man, and in a moment of weakness, I did something stupid!" she asserted, still embarrassed.

"Wait... something doesn't add up. You always say you broke up a long time ago, but three months ago, you had a miscarriage. How is that possible if you haven't been with any man?" Zara asked, petrified.

"What is this?" a voice behind them asked. The two froze, Lavínia's stomach churned, and all she wanted was to run to the bathroom... or simply kill Zara. After months of hiding this secret from everyone, her friend had just thrown her into the lion's den.

"Mom... I can explain!" Lavínia said nervously.

"Are you still with that man?" her mother asked, annoyed. "Did he do something, and you lost the baby, is that it?"

"No! That's not it!" she quickly replied. "He's not the father, it wasn't him!"

"Oh... I see. So it was that young man who left here, right? Why are you hiding these things from us?"

"It's not what you're thinking, I'm taking you home now," Lavínia said, trying to calm her mother. But before she could convince her, her father arrived as well.

"How are you going to deal with this? Your father is disappointed because you want to take his job away."

Lavínia was already losing her mind with her parents.

"I need to go. Don't forget you have to be at the Alpha Corp. headquarters today. You have less than two hours from now," Zara reminded her, fleeing like a fugitive.

After Zara left, the drama continued. Her father started complaining, but it wasn't Lavínia who wanted to fire him. Her team of superiors wouldn't leave her alone.

"It wasn't me who said you should leave!" Lavínia asserted, stressed, but her father kept accusing her.

"That's not what I'm hearing. What are you doing to our family now?" he insisted, irritated.

"This again? You're still resentful because of that relationship?" Lavínia asked, upset.

"I know you lied to both of us! How could you keep that man hidden from us?"

"Dad... that's over!" she shouted, stressed.

"After giving away millions of your assets to him! I know you ended up leaving one of your buildings for him!"

"How do you know these things? Is this what you're worrying about instead of studying cases to help the victims? Dad... I wasn't the one who suggested taking you out of the company, but the fact that you've lost five cases in a row is making my team worried about the results!" she yelled, stomping her feet.

Her father froze, clutching his chest, and soon collapsed unconscious on the floor. An ambulance had to be urgently called.

They managed to provide first aid, and now they were on their way to the hospital until they got stuck in traffic. Even with the ambulance siren, the cars wouldn't make way.

"What's going on?" Lavínia asked, desperate.

"If your father doesn't get to the hospital in time, he won't survive!" the driver warned, as the paramedic tried to revive him in the back.

"Why aren't the cars making way?!" she shouted, panicking, as the driver kept honking relentlessly.

Suddenly, the door of a car ahead opened, and a young man stepped out.

Lavínia froze as she saw the man exit, looking grumpy. He was wearing dress pants and a button-up shirt with sleeves down to his wrists.