The elevator doors opened with a ‘ding’, and the secretary outside of Justin’s office greeted Amber politely when she saw her. “Hello, Miss Amber. President Burton is still in a meeting. What brought you here today?”
“I made some chicken soup and brought some for him. It has been very busy in the company recently, and all of you have worked hard. So, I ordered some pastries and they will be delivered soon.”
At this, the people at the reception table looked happy and started thanking her.
“You’re always so sweet, Miss Amber.”
“Thank you, Miss Amber.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll be waiting for Justin in his office then.”
The secretary at the reception quickly stood up and said, “Miss Amber, why don’t you wait in the lounge? There’s already somebody waiting in his office.”
“Somebody?” she repeated, her eyes narrowed. “Who is it?”
“It’s Charlotte,” the secretary replied.
Amber was relieved when she heard that. She had initially thought that it was another C-list celebrity who had come to throw herself at Justin. “Why did Charlotte suddenly come over today?”
“No idea, but she arrived in the early morning.”
“It’s fine,” Amber said with a smile. “I’m bored anyway, so I can chat with her since Justin will be finished with the meeting soon.”
Everyone at the reception exchanged glances as they watched Amber disappear into Justin’s office. It was an open secret that Charlotte had a dislike for Amber.
Most of them reckoned that Justin was still not marrying Amber because of Charlotte’s disapproval. Besides this reason, they couldn’t think of another logical explanation.
Someone sighed and said, “The door’s unlocked. Let’s check it out.”
“I hope nothing happens.”
“Yeah, that’s our boss’ precious daughter. We won’t be able to answer him if anything happens to her.”
“But Miss Amber is his fiancée, so we can’t afford to offend either side.” They discussed among themselves as they gathered in front of Justin’s office and stuck their ears to the door.
In the office, Charlotte was seated on Justin’s chair, dressed in her black and white-colored skirt with suspenders. Her legs were dangling in the air, and the red rubies embedded in her tiny white leather shoes sparkled in the sunlight.
She was in a really good mood, for she was even humming a nursery rhyme as she sucked on a lollipop. Upon hearing the sound of the door behind her, she turned around quickly and exclaimed in delight, “Mom-”
But the moment she saw the person who came in, she swallowed her words and her expression became indifferent. “Why is it you?”
With a thermos in her hand, Amber flashed her a smile and said, “I’m here to bring lunch for your daddy. What did you call me earlier, Charlotte?”
“No, no, no!” Charlotte looked disgusted. “What do you think I was calling you? You must be imagining things because you want to be my mommy so bad!”
Despite her answer, Amber was not the least bit angry. “It’s okay. It doesn’t matter whether you call me ‘Mommy’ or not. We’ll be mother and daughter by name after I marry your father. This is a fact that can’t be changed with just a form of address.”
All along, she had never regarded Charlotte highly. Once she had a boy with Justin, he would be the sole heir to the Burton Family’s fortune, and this girl would be nothing by then.
Charlotte rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “My daddy won’t ever marry you.”
“That’s not up to you to say. Even if Justin lets you get your way, he won’t let a child decide his marriage. In the end, your influence is limited.” As she spoke, she placed the thermos on the desk and
stared at Charlotte silently, the huge desk between them. With the usual friendly pretense she had in her eyes, she added, “You’d better be a good girl, or your life won’t be so easy anymore after I marry your father. Do you understand me?”
Charlotte’s pupils contracted, and she nodded cautiously.
“You’re pretty smart.”
Tentatively, Charlotte pointed a finger at the thermos and asked, “Miss Amber, what did you bring for Daddy?”
“It’s chicken soup. Why?”
“I haven’t had breakfast, so I’m a little hungry now. May I have a little?”
Since she was rarely this obedient, and she didn’t go against her on this day, Amber was rather pleased. Thus, she said, “Sure. I brought quite a lot anyway. I’ll pour some out for you. If you’re a good girl, I’ll treat you as I would my own daughter. Here, try it.”
Then, she passed her the bowl of soup that she had just poured out in front of Charlotte. Suddenly, the look in Charlotte’s eyes changed and she raised her hand.
With a loud thud, the bowl and thermos flipped over. The soup scattered from the desk to the floor as Amber shrieked. Quite a lot of the soup had spilled onto her dress as well.
“You wretched girl! Are you crazy?”
Charlotte jumped off the chair. There was a sly and proud look on her face as she said, “I’m sorry, Aunt Amber. I didn’t hold it properly because the soup is too hot.”
“You did it on purpose, didn’t you?” Amber shouted, looking at the spilled soup on the floor furiously.
She raised her hand and was about to grab the little girl when the anxious voice of a woman came from behind her, which made her stop suddenly. “What are you doing?”
Amber’s expression darkened, but Charlotte had already dashed over while shouting, “Mommy!”
After lowering herself to pick Charlotte up, Rachel asked, “Are you okay?”
Charlotte batted her eyelids, and something glinted in her eyes. Then, her eyes misted over with tears when she thought of something. “Mommy, why did you only come now? Somebody almost killed me!”
Shocked, Amber asked, “Charlotte, what did you call her? Say it again!”
For five whole years, she had painstakingly taken care of this brat. From the time she could only babble to the point now when she would talk back to her and make fun of her, Amber had tolerated her. However, not only did she gain nothing, but she immediately called Rachel ‘Mommy’ the moment she returned after five years of disappearance. Rachel doesn’t deserve this! she thought angrily.
Charlotte’s cries became louder, and she snuggled in Rachel’s arms as though she was terrified. “Look at her, Mommy!”
As Rachel wiped away the little girl’s tears, she cooed, “Hush now. Don’t cry anymore.” Then, she placed Charlotte behind herself and gaze at Amber with stony eyes. “You don’t have to hear the same thing twice if you’re not deaf. Of course, I won’t mind telling Charlotte to call me Mommy again just for you to hear.”
The color drained from Amber’s face as she shouted, “Rachel Husdon, do you have any idea what you’re talking about? What gives you the right to be her mother?”
“Are you qualified if not me?” she snapped. After scanning behind Amber, she added, “You almost scalded her. If I didn’t arrive in time, would you have hit her as well? Is this how Justin allowed you to take care of her?”
“What nonsense are you speaking about?”
“Then explain to me what happened!”
Amber was so furious that she was on the verge of pulling her hair. “I can’t explain this to you, but when I see how capable both of you are at framing people, I have to admit that you two are really mother and daughter!”
Mother and daughter? Outside the door, everyone started whispering among themselves at the shocking news.
Earlier, when Charlotte called out ‘Mommy’, the employees gathered outside already had their jaws hanging, but now, even Amber had confirmed it to be true. So this woman is Charlotte’s real mother and our boss’ ex-wife?
