[This chapter is dedicated to our new power stone fairy, Sona1210. Thank you! ]

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"Truce?"

"Truce," she replied as she accepted the cup of coffee her father made for her. "But I won't promise you anything."

"That's okay. This much is fine with me."

"Is there something that happened back home that made you come here?" She gripped the coffee mug in her hands, wondering if her nanny back home forgot to tell her something.

"I celebrated my 40th birthday and didn't hear anything from you." He gave his daughter a tight smile.

Taking a sip of coffee, she leaned back against the backrest of the sofa. She watched her father from the rim of her coffee mug, watching her.

"You're doing your internship now, right?"

"Yes."

"I had a layover in Tokyo, coming here. I met your aunt Joy. She told me about your internship."

"Hm-mmh," she replied, sipping her coffee. So that's what happened. Ellise found out about her father coming because her father met her aunt, she thought to herself.

"She said, you are doing your internship in one of the top three pharmaceutical companies." He said, the corner of his eyes were twitching for Jess just gave a one-word answer and mumbled.

"Your aunt also told me that you have to make time to talk to your lawyers about some business matters. Did she already transfer some of her companies to your name?"

"Not yet." She put down her coffee mug on the table.

"Your grandparents from your mom's side of the family also talked to me when they heard I'm coming here. They reminded me for the nth time that you need to sign the papers about your inheritance from your mother."

"Take care of it," she picked up the throw pillow on the couch and hugged it on her lap.

"That old man would kill me if I ever opened my mouth about your inheritance from your mother." He shook his head from the memory of that meeting.

"How did you talk to grandpa Cui if you didn't open your mouth?"

"I nod and shake my head. But mostly nod," he grimaced of the thought of meeting Old Cui. He never forgave him for ruining his precious daughter's life. If the old man wasn't thinking of Jess being an orphan, he had been killed a long time ago

Jess didn't give any comment about that. She just picked up her coffee and finished it.

"Your sisters will be coming at the end of the month. I would love to be with your three here, but it was the twins' birthday…"

"Which sisters?" She scoffed.

"Christine and Sarah."

"Why?"

"They got invited to a friend's birthday."

She exhaled a deep breath, thinking of Sarah and Christine. They were the same age, sharing the same birth month but were born from different mothers. One can easily assume how it happened. To have daughters from two different women who gave birth two days apart.

Jess didn't have much memory of the scandals that happened. She was too young to know what had happened.

She was just three years old at that time. She heard the story from their household helpers that talked about her father's casanova lifestyle as if it was a teledrama that they watched on TV.

No one could blame them because Christine and Sarah's mothers were both candidates for a beauty contest. They got disqualified from the competition because they were found out to be pregnant.

Her grandpa Cui, her mother's dad, put a bounty over her father's head when the scandal broke. In some twisted fate, Christine and Sarah grow up to be best of friends. Maybe because, unlike their stupid father, Christine and Sarah's mothers were mature and liberated enough to let their daughters be friends.

She scoffed thinking how their family sounds like a cheap teledrama because of this man, they all called father, that's currently sitting across from her.

She wondered how her relationship with her father would change. She tried to observe herself if she's feeling anger but she felt nothing. Just tired.

The tiredness that she felt after her outburst won't leave her body.

"I'm thinking since it is Saturday, can you help me shop for your sisters' birthday?"

"No."

She heaved a deep sigh when she saw the disappointment on her father's face. "I'm tired, Papa. I would like to lie down today."

"Oh, okay. The internship must be difficult, huh?" He smiled swallowing his disappointment. He has a long way to go to work out his relationship with his daughter. "Go back to your room. I'll clean up the kitchen."

He was expecting Jess to offer help with the kitchen but she stood up from sitting on the couch and went to her room without a word.

He followed her with a worried gaze. She looked so worn out. He trod to the kitchen with their dirty coffee mugs. He has to sweep the broken glass in the dining room.

A lot of progress had already happened today. They were able to sit down with just a short outburst. Had a conversation without hurling angry and hurtful words. It was already huge progress. He should be patient.

"One step at a time," he muttered to himself while transferring the leftover food in the glass container.

Meanwhile, Jess took off her shorts and dove under the bed cover. She lied on her back in the middle of her bed, but after a few minutes, she rolled to her side, then not even a minute she rolled to her other side.

"Hah!" She got up and stared at the wall. A nagging idea was ticking at the back of her head but she was wondering if it is a good idea to act on it.

She pulled the first drawer of her bedside table. Took out his phone and checked if she had any message.

She got a message from Luke asking if he should bring her car today. He has to bring her car today or tomorrow because she needs it to drive to work on Monday. But then, Noah promised to drive her to work.

She threw her blanket off her body and got out of bed.

"One more regret won't make any difference," she muttered under her breath.