Landon’s words moved Gabriella, causing her to realize that only her own family would truly care about her.
Holding that thought, her expression drastically changed when she recalled how caring Larry was toward Joan.
However, she recovered her composure quickly as she didn’t want to lose her temper in front of Landon.
When she saw that her father was waiting for her response, she gathered her thoughts and explained to him what happened without any hesitation.
However, she left out one key detail. She only declared that she was in love with Larry but didn’t mention Larry was in love with Joan.
Out of jealousy, she accused Joan of coming in between her relationship with Larry, and that Joan was the third party. Furthermore, Gabriella also claimed she was manipulated by someone else into causing the whole drama to unfold.
Throughout her explanation, she never admitted her role in the matter. All she did was blame her own impulse.
“Tell me, were you the one who went to the press about the matter?” Landon asked skeptically once Gabriella had finished.
“No, it wasn’t me. All I did was scold Joan out of anger. I didn’t expect the matter to escalate to such an extent.”
Gabriella pretended to be in agony. “It’s all my fault. If I hadn’t made the wild accusations, this wouldn’t have happened. I wouldn’t have ruined our family’s reputation and caused my good friend, Joan, grievous hurt. Dad, you should punish me for what I have done.”
When he saw how repentant Gabriella was and the tears that welled up in her eyes, Landon’s heart ached for his daughter. He consoled her, “Gabriella, although you acted on impulse this time, it isn’t entirely your fault. It’s obvious someone has been using this episode to do harm to our family. Going forward, you have to remember to keep your calm and think before you act.”
Evidently, Landon loved his daughter greatly. Not only did he believe Gabriella’s words entirely, he even saw her as the victim and comforted her.
“I’ll keep that in mind and won’t repeat my mistake again, Dad,” Gabriella promised as she smiled sweetly at her dad.
As long as my dad supports me, there’s nothing for me to worry about, Gabriella thought smugly to herself.
“Gabriella, what happened to your face?”
When she looked up, Landon noticed the red print on her cheeks.
As she had returned home hastily, she forgot the mark that was left on her face. Now that Landon had noticed it, she was stumped by his question.
“Tell me the truth, who hit you?”
Landon was obviously angered. “Who dared to hit my daughter? Do they have a death wish?”
Despite feeling encouraged by her dad’s support, she still pretended to be pitiful. “It was Larry’s bodyguard that hit me. I wanted to apologize to Joan at the press conference but he didn’t allow to me enter. Instead, he ridiculed me and even gave me a slap.”
Tears streamed down Gabriella’s cheeks as she related what happened to her father.
Regardless of whether it was done on purpose, her tears caused Landon to be outraged. “How dare a lowly bodyguard hit you. I will call Larry to complain right away!”
Just as Landon picked up the phone angrily, Gabriella quickly stopped him.
“Dad, don’t. If you get into a quarrel with him, our family will be the ones to suffer. For the sake of our business interest, let’s just endure it for the time being.”
Although Gabriella made it seem like she was concerned about her family, she was actually worried that Larry would expose her lies once both men started arguing.
If that happened, the trust that she painstakingly gained from Landon would disappear, and she would fall into dire circumstances.
For the sake of her long-term interests, Gabriella decided to bear with her grudge for the time being.
When Landon saw how sensible his daughter was for prioritizing the interests of the family, he couldn’t help but smile in contentment.
