Simon rubbed his forehead in mock annoyance. “Because you’re the only one who comes in without knocking on the door.”
After closing the door and locking it, Nancy sat in front of her father, all prim and proper. When she realized he was too immersed in the pile of documents on the table, she willfully snatched them away from him.
“Is your daughter not as important as these papers?”
Simon sighed loudly. “Very well then. What brings my precious daughter here? But please, keep it short.”
Nancy held the documents against her chest as she stared at her father. “I’m getting a divorce.”
Like her father requested, Nancy had gone straight to the point, leaving Simon in a state of bewilderment.
“What? A divorce? Did I hear it right?
“You heard right. I’m getting a divorce.”
“Why?” Simon’s frown deepened as he continued, “Was it something Caspian did?”
“It’s not him. It’s something that I’ve done.”
Simon was even more confused now as he gazed at his daughter. “Nancy, please tell me, what have you done?”
“One of the reasons I want a divorce is that the person I had let slip in the past is now back. But the main reason is that I don’t love Caspian anymore. I can’t see myself living with him any longer. Two people should be together because they’re compatible, not because they’re constantly accommodating the other.”
“Someone you had let slip?” Simon mumbled to himself. “I don’t recall you ever talking about other boyfriends. Isn’t Caspian your first love?”
Nancy held her father’s gaze as she continued, “Dad, do you remember a few years back when I rejected a marriage proposal from Alpire Group?”
Simon fell back into this chair. “Please don’t tell me you’ve fallen for someone from the Alpire Group.”
“I won’t lie to you, Dad. It is him. I rejected him back then because of some misunderstandings and rumors. But now he’s back, and he still remembers me! I think this must be fate.”
“Jory Synder?” Simon almost choked on his words as he pounded his fist on the table.
Nancy twitched from her father’s sudden outburst and nodded. “Yes. You know him, Dad.”
“Don’t you know that Jory’s despicable and ruthless? Haven’t you heard about all the problems he had caused?” Simon’s brows furrowed deeper as he tried to talk some sense into his daughter.
Nancy was visibly agitated now. “It’s because of those baseless accusations that I rejected the proposal and ruined the working relationship our families had!”
“You’re still speaking up for him? Who was the one crying about wanting to reject the proposal back then? Because of you, I ditched all my plans to work with Alpire Group. Don’t you think I’ve done enough for you?”
Seeing how furious her father was, Nancy softened her voice. “That’s not what I meant, Dad. Back then, I only had people telling me how awful Jory was, and that’s why I misunderstood him. But now I have the opportunity to get to know him better.”
Simon stood up, his naturally majestic aura filling the space around him as he scolded his daughter, “No. Your engagement with him is over! Don’t forget that you are both of completely different statuses!”
Nancy remained silent as she pondered her options. She knew her father was high-principled, and she couldn’t persuade him the way she did with Joan. If she did, he would criticize her for being shameless and rude.
Once Simon got angry, there was no holding his words back. He leaned into her, ready to give her a piece of his mind. “You have let Caspian down, and I’m sure it’s hard to break this to him. But since you have the guts to do it, I’m sure you wouldn’t be afraid of others talking behind your back, right?”
“Yes…” Nancy mumbled. She thought she had mentally prepared herself enough to face the inevitable storm that’d come her way. But when her father scolded her as expected, the full brunt of his words still proved too much to bear.
