“Oh? Does he miss you that much?” Hannah asked with a smile.
“You can return if you want to. You’re not really doing anything here, anyway.”
Her nonchalant response miffed Lydia.
“Who said I’m not doing anything? I’ve been keeping Grace company ever since you left the villa! That girl is practically stuck to my side.”
Hannah froze for a few brief seconds, but she quickly mustered a smile.
“Is that so? Now, I’m worried you might corrupt her innocence.”
Lydia huffed and rolled her eyes.
‘s
“Hey, I invited you to lunch because I have something important to tell you! Well, forget it. I’ve changed my mind!”
“Fine, fine. I’ll stop teasing you. What is this serious matter that’s bothering you?” Hannah coaxed Lydia.
Lydia hesitated for a moment and pursed her lips.
“My father is still considering my marriage with that bastard, Alick! That’s why he wants me to go back.”
“What?” Hannah asked in surprise.
“I thought he was aware of your relationship with Brayden? Why is he suddenly clamoring about an arranged marriage again?”
“Do you even have to ask? It’s because I’m not interested in marrying Brayden, which means that I won’t be getting his family’s assets. My good-for-nothing father is likely desperate for money.
He’s only pushing my marriage with Alick to secure the Shaw family’s support and serve his own interests,” Lydia sneered.
“He has no talent for business at all, but he definitely has a knack for selling me out.”
That Last bit amused Hannah. She took a sip of her coffee and said, “Your father probably got himself into trouble again. If I remember correctly, Brayden has helped him out a lot.”
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“Now that you mention it…” Lydia rolled her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh.
“He was actually scammed by his latest mistress into buying some kind of shady investment. She told him that he would reap 35% in profits, and the fool believed her. He invested fifty million! Can you believe that? He lost everything in just a matter of days.”
Hannah almost choked on her coffee. She wiped her lips with her napkin and gaped at her friend in disbelief.
“Your father has been in business for over 3@ years, and you’re telling me that he bought into an investment scam that promised him 35% of profits? That’s just too good to be true, no matter how you look at it. How could he be so careless?”
Lydia didn’t have the answer to that, of course.
“I won’t be surprised if his mistress sweet-talked him into it, or some more disgusting method. Fifty millions is already a massive loss, but that’s not the worst of it. We were supposed to be participating in a bid over a piece of land in the next few days. Given our circumstances, however, I don’t think my family would even be let through the door.”
The waiter appeared again, and placed two exquisitely plated portions of steak on the table.