Part 17

Antony immediately frowned at the girl's question, but before he could ask, Claire spoke up again.

"It's not that I don't want to help. As I told you before. I'm not very close to Flavia. I'm afraid that instead of helping you get closer, I'll end up widening the gap between you. If you ask Sir Altezza for help, he can understand your characteristics and perhaps find a more appropriate solution."

'Because I also want to approach you at the same time.' Antony replied in his head. 'Or are you actually able to read my intentions and this is your subtle form of rejection?' He asked again silently.

Indeed, if you think about it with common sense, Antony's request to Claire doesn't make sense and Claire's advice is much more on point. But Antony is just that ruthless and impatient. Apart from wanting to regain Flavia's trust, Antony also wants to get Claire at the same time.

And Claire's character was exactly what Antony had expected. She is not like most women who would use his request as an opportunity to get Antony's attention. Antony has to find a reason for Claire to help him so that they can interact more often.

Antony unconsciously scratched his temple. "I won't deny that Flavia is closer to her uncle than I am." Antony admitted honestly.

"Yes, Sir Altezza is indeed more approachable." Claire's murmur sounded like a compliment to Antony's ears and he did not like the sudden jealousy he felt.

Antony ignored Claire's words and continued "And it's not that I don't want to ask him for help. It's just..." He paused as he thought about what to say. "I thought approaching a fellow woman would be easier." He replied which, although it sounded like foul talk, sounded more natural.

Claire raised one eyebrow, not hiding her suspicious look. Then she shrugged her shoulders. "Then you can ask my mother for help." Claire replied casually.

"Y-your mother?" Antony's great-grandson was confused but he quickly covered his confusion. "That's not a bad idea. But it would be weirder if I asked your mother for help."

"Why?"

"Because I don't know her very well." Antony answered as he was.

"What difference does it make? You don't really know me either." Claire said again.

My God, why was it so hard to get the girl to accept his approach? Antony grumbled to himself. There was no way he was going to say outright that he wanted to reach two islands in one, right?

Luckily the elevator doors then opened and he had another pause to string together another excuse. They walked out of the elevator and were instantly greeted by the cheerful shrieks of familiar teenagers.

"Aunty..." The loud shriek was accompanied by a wide grin and a wave of the hand of the girl who was Claire's little twin. "Did the elevator suddenly die? Why is it taking so long? I almost starved to death waiting for you." The girl grumbled as Claire and Antony approached.

"You're still alive, and if you listen to your voice, you still have enough energy to last for the next two weeks." Claire's teasing made Abigail give her a sharp look.

"Let's go." Abigail pulled her aunt's right hand. But before the two could take a step, Antony held Claire's left arm.

"So?" Asked the man still waiting for the final decision from Claire.

Claire looked at Antony and the man's hand on her arm.

"Let's just say I'm an impatient person and don't have much time. It's still a long time until Altezza returns and I don't know what to do with Flavia during that time. If with your help my attempt to get close to Flavia doesn't work, then I'll ask Altezza for help when he returns." He said a little pleadingly.

Claire paused, and then nodded. "I'll think about it." She said softly. Antony let go of her hand slowly. "Where's Flavia?" Claire asked as she got close to her niece.

"She's at his house." Abigail replied with a suspicious look at her aunt.

"What?" Claire asked her niece.

"Are you and Flavia's father up to something?" Abigail asked suspiciously.

"Nothing. Don't think about it. Didn't you say you almost starved to death? So where are we going to eat tonight? Honestly, I'm too tired to cook." Claire replied and they got into her car.

"I'll cook for us." Abigail replied which made Claire glance in surprise at her niece.

"Are you sure?"

"Including washing the cooking and eating utensils." Abigail promised firmly. Claire just shrugged her shoulders and drove her car towards her private residence.

Claire lived in a single house in a housing complex not too far from the office. Within fifteen minutes, they had arrived at Claire's residence.

Beautiful, young and wealthy. Those are the facts about Claire Hampton.

At only twenty-five years old, she already has everything a woman her age might not have. A house in her own name, a car with a good brand and also a culinary business that generates a lot of money every month. And her salary as an accountant at Coskun is not small either. Not to mention that every month and every few months Claire gets a percentage of the profits from the shares of foreign companies she buys as well as the profits from her late father's company which is currently managed by her eldest brother.

Being the only girl in the family also gave Claire a lot of advantages. Because apart from the inheritance, she also definitely gets monthly pocket money from her three older brothers.

So, even without working, Claire is already very rich.

So why is Claire still working?

The reason is because one, her mother really doesn't like it when Claire only relies on her culinary business. Claire's mother always said that Claire must have a permanent job that can support her life if one day Claire's business goes bankrupt.

The second thing-according to her mother as well-was that working could help her find the right partner. Someone who is also economically established and has a degree.

Claire opened the portable garage and put her car in. They entered the house through the connecting door in the garage and went straight to her own room while Abigail went into the other room that the girl always used whenever she stayed at Claire's place. As Claire was taking off her shirt, her niece opened the bedroom door without permission, making Claire squeal and glare at her.

"Abby!" She screeched sharply.

At the door, the teenager grinned back at him. "Sorry, it's your own fault why the door wasn't locked." The boy said without feeling the least bit guilty.

Claire rolled her eyeballs but continued her activities of opening her pants and tossing them carelessly into the laundry basket.

"What do you want?" She asked as she grabbed the bathrobe and put it on.

"I was just wondering, what would you like for dinner?"

Claire frowned. "Anything you can cook. Just don't make a mess in my kitchen." Claire replied as she stepped into the bathroom.

"Okay. I'll just cook what's in the fridge." Abigail replied and closed the door again.

A few minutes later, Claire came out of the room with wet hair after shampooing which she wrapped in a small towel. Wearing a short-sleeved oversize T-shirt and cream-colored half-thigh pants.

"Let's see." She muttered as he glanced at Abigail who was busy with the knife. "What are you cooking?"

"Pasta." The girl replied briefly.

"Okay. What do I need help with?" Claire volunteered.

"Maybe you can set the table."

"That's easy." Claire replied walking over to get the tableware.

"For four people." Abigail replied which made Claire stop her movements and stare at her niece with a deeply furrowed forehead.

"Four?"

"I invited someone and..." The bell rang. "Looks like they've arrived." Abigail replied with a sweet smile. "Can you help me open the door?" She asked with a cute grin that made Claire look at her suspiciously.

"Who did you invite?" Claire asked coldly as she stepped towards the door.

"Flavia..." Abigail answered from the kitchen. "And her father." She continued as Claire opened the door.

'It's not one person, but two.' Claire grumbled inwardly with annoyance. Apparently, there was someone Antony had worked with first and she was sure that Abigail was not an ignorant girl.

"Good evening, Aunty. Abigail invited me and Papa to dinner here." Flavia said shyly.

"Come in, Abigail is cooking pasta for us." Claire replied as she gave Antony a faint nod. The man was still wearing the same clothes as in the office earlier. "Sorry, I didn't know that my niece invited 'you' to dinner here. If I had known, maybe I would have served a more luxurious meal or ordered food from a famous restaurant." Claire said as she closed the door and looked annoyed at Abigail who appeared from the kitchen.

"I accidentally invited uncle Antony here. Flavia said that I had accidentally brought his book, so she intended to bring it. When I asked her whether she had eaten dinner or not, she said she hadn't. And since I happened to be the one cooking, I invited her to eat with us here." Abigail replied with a wide grin as she pulled Flavia to help her in the kitchen. 

"Well, it feels very coincidental." Claire quipped to her niece right beside the girl. "I will prepare the cutlery." Claire made the announcement.

"Why don't we eat in the backyard?" Abigail offered, which Claire did not respond to but agreed to.

Claire carried the tray of cutlery to the back of the residence while Antony stood where he was, not knowing what to do and not knowing what to say.

Arriving home, Antony saw his daughter hurrying and said she was going to Claire's house to pick up her book that Abigail had carried away. Hearing Claire's name, Antony suddenly offered to take his daughter away. At first Antony didn't think anything other than he just wanted to know where Claire lived. But when he heard Abigail cooking for four people, Antony felt like this was something Abigail and Flavia had secretly planned.

Antony looked at his daughter and asked himself if his daughter knew that Antony was interested in Claire and wanted to help him approach her?

And that question was drowned out when he saw Claire's appearance which he thought was extraordinary. Claire, who he had seen all this time neatly dressed in her work suit, now looked absolutely stunning in her simple yet seductive casual clothes.

Her long, white legs look smooth and tantalizing to the touch. And the top, an oversized T-shirt, makes Abigail look stunning. Her usual white arms covered by a long-sleeved shirt are now exposed and her breasts look rounded, tantalizing for him to squeeze and her white, slender neckline adorned by naughty hairs that come out from behind her small towel seems to invite Antony to kiss her.

Oh my God, what kind of temptation is this.

Like a buffalo by the nose, Antony followed Claire to the back of the house and almost got in her way when she wanted to go back inside to get something.

"You can sit or do something while you wait for the food to be ready, Sir." Claire said in a slightly brusque tone that made Antony awkward.

The round table was indeed perfect for four people. Antony saw that Claire had wiped it down quickly and placed placemats and cutlery on each side opposite the chairs.

Not used to serving others, Antony was actually quite surprised to see his daughter come in with a tray of empty glasses and a cold drink that Antony guessed was orange juice or perhaps mango juice?

Claire and Abigail came together with a plate of pasta in each hand. As Abigail put down her plate and Flavia's, the girl said "Let's eat" enthusiastically.

"Thank you." Antony said as Claire placed the pasta in front of him.

"You can fill your own drinking water because there are no servants here." Claire's reply sounded like sarcasm to Antony. Was that the reason why Flavia was serving herself while at Antony's parents' residence, Antony was used to Flavia being served everything.

"Think of it as a picnic." Flavia muttered suddenly which made Antony watch his daughter closely.

"Yes, like a family picnic." Abigail replied flatly. "Dad, mom and us kids." Abigail replied, which made Flavia chuckle. "Isn't that right, Uncle?" Claire asked Antony.

Honestly, Antony was stuttering because his dirty mind was only thinking of how he could touch and strip Claire who was now sitting beside him and giving off a soft floral scent.

"Y-yes. I guess I wouldn't mind being a father to you two." He replied with an awkward smile as he felt caught looking lustfully at Claire.

"Aunty, please be polite. Are you going to eat with a towel on your head?" Abigail commented when she noticed her aunt's appearance.

"Never mind, just ignore it. We're having dinner at home, not at a five-star hotel."  Claire replied while rolling the pasta with her fork.

"If uncle Gladwin finds out, he'll scold you." Abigail muttered advisedly.

"He won't know if you don't open your mouth." Claire replied again indifferently.

'But who is Gladwin? Is Gladwin Claire's lover?' Antony asked silently with sudden jealousy.