Pretense

Veronica POV 4

"Tyler, is that you?" I asked incredulously when I saw the man in front of me.He has a new look with his haircut and beardless face. He looks more handsome with his dark suit. 

"Yes, ofcourse, why don't you recognize me?"he asked.

 "Wow, you look more handsome with your new look," I said , smiling. 

I see he shook his head and smiled sparingly.I also smiled and he immediately opened the car for me.

 "Let's go," he said.

"Goodluck!" Drey said smiling and I only answered with a smile.

 As he was driving down the road to their house, I was restless because of my nervousness. I felt my hands were sweating and he noticed it.

 "Relax.I know we can do it," he said calmly.

 I took a deep breath and lit a cigarette to calm myself. I saw that he was frowning and, as I expected, he scolded me.

 "What the hell are you doing ?!" he said, frowning.

 "I just want to calm myself down. You can see that I'm very nervous, right?" I asked. 

“We can smell cigarettes here. What if you face my dad? Your breath smells like cigarettes! ”he said irritably. 

"Relax, you are a meticulous guy!" I replied. 

I immediately threw away the cigarette and took the breath spray and perfume.I sprayed it in my mouth and on my clothes.

 "Oh there, don't be angry anymore" I said smiling.

 I saw him gasp while driving. I wanted to laugh at this man's behavior. Sometimes he was kind and often I was overwhelmed by his conservative nature in things. 

"We're close. Prepare yourself" he said seriously. 

"Don't be too serious. I'm even more nervous because of you" I replied. 

I saw him smile at what I said and somehow I really mustered up the courage to do our plan properly. I don't want to disappoint him tonight because he didn't let me down in treating my mother's illness.

After a while, we stopped in front of the huge gate.The two guards opened it immediately.

 When the car entered, I was amazed at the beauty and size of the mansion. I didn't expect that their family was so much richer than I thought.I can't blame him for why he does everything for Wealth and Victory.

 I immediately wiped my sweaty hand and he immediately went down to open the car door. He held my hand as if I were a princess just arriving at the mansion. I saw a man standing at near the door while looking at us.He is White, handsome but looked arrogant and boastful. I heard Tyler speak softly.

 "Please don't disappoint me" he said softly.

 "I won't" I said smiling.

 I was even more encouraged during those times. I knew it was new to me compared to my previous job. I knew it was harder but I can do everything for my mother. 

I clung his arm and we started walking inside.We met the man in front of the door and I noticed the bad look of the two of them.

When we get inside, I  smiled at him and I saw he shook his head. 

“Who is that?” I asked Tyler. 

"His name is Steven.Be careful of him" he answered weakly. 

"Ahh okay" I replied. 

Even though I wanted to asked more about that man, I didn't want to tease Tyler anymore.I know he is not in the mood.

 I was very amazed at the beauty of the interior of their mansion. You can see the large paintings placed in each space. It is very comfortable to look  because of the light paint.

 "Ohh welcome to our family" I heard a deep voice from the stairs.

Looking up the stairs I saw an old man sitting in a Wheelchair while two maids supported him down the stairs which were straight so he could easily get down. This was the first time I met his father and I immediately smiled very sweetly at him. I waved and kissed him full of confidence. 

"Nice meeting you Uncle.My name's Nica'' I greeted her with a smile. 

"Ohh no, please call me daddy" he replied smiling.

 “Dad…” Tyler moaned.

 "It's okay love. We're going there too" I said smiling. 

"You're right Nica. I can't wait for your wedding day" her father replied smiling.

I saw Tyler sigh and I just smiled even though I didn't like what his father said. We went to their dining table full of delicious food and Tyler helped me to sit next to him.

 Suddenly a woman came with the man in front of the door earlier, Steven. They were also accompanied by two young boys who immediately hugged Tyler's father. I looked at Tyler and saw the annoyance on his face while looking at the two children. 

"Tyler, introduce us to your girlfriend," Steven said with a smile. 

Tyler didn't answer right away so I preceded him because I didn't want them to doubt.I stood up to shake hands and kiss the couple in front of us.

 ‘Hi, My name’s Nica. Nice to meet you” I greeted the couple with a smile. 

``Nice name.Nice to meet you too Nica” he replied.

 "Anyway, where did the two of you met?" Steven asked with a smile.

 I can already smell this man's suspicion and I can feel Tyler grip my hand.

"I met him at a coffee shop," I replied, smiling. 

"Ohhh Coffee shop? as far as I know you don't like to go to such a place Tyler"Steven said to him.

 “W..Who told you?” Tyler asked. 

"In fact, I often go to the Coffee shop to take some breaks," he added. 

"Well, we will discover a lot from you because of your Girlfriend" Steven replied with a smile.

 I could feel the hot tension between the two of them so I thought of a way to talk about other things and that was also to ask Tyler's sister about their married life. 

Their father was happy because of my cheerful attitude.I also feel the good treatment of his sister towards me.

I just don't like her husband's behavior.If you look at him at first glance he looks really arrogant. I knew he still doubted the two of us but I just ignored that.

 "I'm glad to meet you Nica. Now I have proven that you are worthy for my son" his father said smiling. 

"He has a right choice," he added.

 "How can you be sure dad? You'll just get to know her. You don't fully know that woman's true character or personality yet!" Steven interrupted.

 Suddenly my blood heats up because of this man.What right does he have to judge me immediately? I couldn’t quite understand why he seemed to be insulting Tyler in front of his father. Tyler immediately stood up and spoke in front of us with traces of anger on his face.

“You have no right to judge my girlfriend! Are you really that desperate to ruin me in front of dad ?! ”Tyler said in a high voice. 

"Son,Calm down" his father said calmly. 

"Chill, you're too high blood bro. I'm just concerned okay?"he said with a sarcastic smile. 

"I don't look like a murderer, do I?" I said smiling. 

"No, you are not. Steven apologize to her.You shouldn't say that to our guest!" his father's sermon.

 "Okay, I'm sorry" he replied obviously just being forced.

 After we ate, his father asked me to talk to him just the two of us. I immediately agreed as a sign of respect for his father. We were outside the mansion as I sat near their garden.In fact I was not comfortable talking to his father in depth.

 "You don't know how happy I am to meet you.Finally my son found a woman to love" he told me with a smile. 

"For a few years since he was a young guy, he was just focused on helping me. He has many achievements in the company and i'm so proud of him. I can't even tell him every day but I love my son Nica”he added. 

"Tyler loves you so much too" I replied smiling.

 I didn't expect to hear this from his father.  It was really different than I expected.

 I couldn't quite understand Tyler why he wanted to prove so much to his father if he had already proven himself for a long time. 

"You are the first woman that my son introduced to me and I am very grateful. I just want him to have a happy and complete family.I don't want him to be like me because I don't want him to regret at the end"his father said seriously. 

"Tyler is lucky to have you Uncle" I replied smiling. 

"Please call me Dad" he replied smiling. 

I just smiled even though I was not comfortable with what he said.He also smiled at me and spoke again.And i was very surprised by what I heard from him.