The three friends stood at the entrance, waiting for the man who stepped out of the car and approached them. They observed how he was dressed formally and appeared quite young. Austin couldn't determine if he was in his late forties or early fifties. The man exuded a dashing aura with his firm walk and black sunglasses that matched his outfit.

His PA was dressed formally too, as she walked with confidence and trailed the boss.

Austin smiled politely and greeted, "Welcome, Mister Lawrence." The man smiled warmly and shook hands with the young CEO. "Thanks for having me." He responded politely, glancing at the other two young males standing behind Austin.

The brunette turned towards them, and they took that as a clue to step forward. Perks of working with friends, given they knew each other's actions and facial expressions.

"He is Jake, our finance head, and he is John, our marketing and social media head." Austin introduced his friends, who now stood beside him.

"Hello, sir. Nice to meet you." The two spoke and shook hands with Mister Lawrence, getting a response in return, "Likewise, kids."

"Let us proceed towards the conference room now, shall we?" Austin let out politely, and Mister Lawrence was quick to state enthusiastically, "Lead the way, young man."

As they made their way inside the building, Mister Lawrence couldn't help but be impressed by Austin. He felt the CEO was young and enthusiastic. Under his leadership, he noticed how the company had reached greater heights. He was confident that partnering with Austin's company would be beneficial for him as well.

After arriving at the conference room, everyone took their seats and engaged in random conversation as Austin waited for his assistant with their coffee.

"Come in," Austin replied coldly when he heard a knock on the door.

As the door opened, he saw Ana moving cautiously and muttering something to herself. The girl's antics caused Austin to roll his eyes. He clenched his jaw when he noticed her hands shaking as she held five cups of coffee on a tray.

However, instead of saying anything, all he could do was pray for the girl not to embarrass him.

When Ana noticed a man's back facing her, she couldn't help but ponder, "Oh, who's this? His back seems familiar. Have I met this man before? Ana, for that you need to see him from the front."

"Miss Anderson, could you please hurry up?" When he saw her halting in her tracks, Austin murmured, feigning a grin through his gritted teeth.

Ana placed the tray on the table and walked past the man. She was going to give him the coffee when she caught a glimpse of the man's face, who was now grinning broadly at her. The smile reached his eyes even when he extended his hand to take the cup of coffee from Ana's hand.

The assistant's eyes started to well up with tears, and her hands started to tremble. The man gave her a troubled glance. He wanted to comfort her and hold her trembling hands. Unfortunately, he was unable to, particularly given the girl's apparent vulnerability. She continued to shake her head in horror.

No, that's not possible. What is he doing here?

Suddenly, she dropped coffee on Mister Lawrence, and she quickly lowered her head in disappointment, or perhaps to hide the tears that began streaming down her cheeks. "I'm sorry," that was all that came from her mouth as she stood there frozen.

Meanwhile, the three friends jumped out of their chairs in surprise. Austin raised his voice when he noticed how embarrassing Ana was. "What's wrong, Anastasia? I told you to act appropriately for a day, didn't I? Look what you've done."

Austin used her name instead of Miss Anderson for the first time. This was the first time he spoke her name so coldly that she instantly regretted being clumsy. She wanted the ground to open up and engulf her.

Since morning she was trying her best not to embarrass her boss, but she was the definition of embarrassment. "I'm sorry, sir. I'm sorry d- Mister Lawrence." She quickly apologised, making sure to not raise her head even a little. Her heart would have hurt to notice Austin glancing at Ana with disgust. She didn't want to disappoint him, not today at least.

"It's alright bab- dear. Can you show me the bathroom?" Mister Lawrence questioned her sweetly instead of the other three, which perplexed her.

This made the girl quickly look at his face with wide eyes. "You mean me?" She pointed at herself, not believing her ears.

Austin quickly stepped forward to avoid further embarrassment. "Sir, let me show you." He walked ahead to lead the way, but Mister Lawrence grabbed his hand as he was ready to escort him. "Can Ana take me?"

The request made by the elder shocked the three young men. Also, the way he referred to the assistant caught them off-guard. How did he know her name? And if he knew by any chance, why would he refer to her as Ana and not Anastasia?

"Sure, sir." Austin smiled and then glanced at Ana before warning her sternly. "Miss Anderson, be careful now. You'll be fired if you make one more mistake. Keep that in mind." His cold voice sent chills down Ana's spine.

"Mister Smith, I'm fine. You don't need to be harsh on my little girl. She didn't do it on purpose." Mister Lawrence came to the girl's rescue when he noticed how sad she looked.

"If you say so." Austin's stern gaze was fixed on Ana as he responded. He was left confused for a few seconds when he observed how the girl was lost in her thoughts.

What is this old man doing? Is he not satisfied with what he has had us go through in the past that he's suddenly showing concern?

Ana quickly pulled out of the trance once she made sure to talk with the man and confirm why he was doing what he did. "Sir, follow me." She continued walking ahead without looking at the elder man's face.

Austin was already enraged when they left the meeting room. To calm him down, John approached him and patted his shoulder.

Jake, on the other hand, stared at the closed door and inquired, "Austin, don't you feel anything strange?"

"What do you mean, Jake?" Austin questioned back, not understanding what his friend was trying to point out.

"He referred to Ana as 'my little girl.' Is it possible that they are acquainted? She also dropped the coffee when she saw his face. I guess something is wrong." Jake let out his doubts, his mind wandering back to the events.

"She dropped the coffee because she is clumsy." Austin yelled at his friend, expecting him to stop talking, but instead, he continued, "You're wrong, buddy. Something is definitely wrong. I'm following them because I'm certain there is something going on."

"Have you lost your mind?" Austin gave a are-you-serious look with a raised brow.

"Well, I agree with Jake," John said lowly, scratching his nape nervously.

"You guys are impossible." Austin sighed and shook his head. He looked at friends who were approaching the door.

"Are you following us?" Jake inquired as he held the door open and John stood still beside the elder too.

"FINE!" Austin spoke annoyingly and walked after them. They followed and kept a safe distance from Ana and Mister Lawrence.

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"Come to my office," Ana responded harshly, without looking back at the man, who was smiling sweetly at the girl.

He couldn't believe how beautifully she had grown up. She grew tall as well.

"How are you, baby?"

"Don't baby me. Simply follow me. I'm not going to listen to a word you say until then." Ana cautioned, causing Mister Lawrence to sigh, "Okay, daughter."

When they arrived at Ana's cabin, she shut the door and ordered Mister Lawrence to take a seat.

At the same time, the three friends made their way to Austin's office. Jake locked the door and opened the window blinds, while Austin quickly opened the laptop, which was connected to the listening device. John stood there frozen, not understanding what his friends were up to.

"What are you doing here?" Ana inquired sternly; her hands folded over her chest.

"Sweety, is this how you talk to your father?" Mister Lawrence asked sadly.

"YOU ARE NOT MY FATHER. ARE YOU SPYING ON ME?" Ana shouted as she emphasised each word.

"I promise you, my girl, I had no idea you worked here."

"Okay, then. You are free to resume the meeting. Just don't reveal anything to Mister Smith. I won't join you all in the conference room. It won't bother me if I'm fired today. You can't back out of the agreement with my boss. This meeting is crucial for him. He has put in a lot of effort."

"Are you dating him?" The male quickly questioned his daughter, and she looked at him with disbelief. "Is that all you got from what I said? And how does my dating life matter to you?"

Mister Lawrence looked at her sadly. "You're hurting me now."

"So were we when you made things worse for us in the past."

Ana's words were hurting his heart. He knew whatever he did was wrong. But he loved his daughter and he wanted to apologise for his sins with his actions.

"Baby, can you come and stay with us?" Mister Lawrence reached out to touch Ana's hand, but she stepped back.

"And why do you think I'd do something like that? You abandoned us for another woman. You were unconcerned when my mother died. And now you'd like me to return?" She tsked when she spit venom through her words.

"Sweety, I did it solely to ensure that you and your mother had a happy life. Look at how hard I worked to become a successful businessman."

"You wanted to give us a good life by being unfaithful to your wife?" Ana laughed sarcastically. "Who are you fooling, Mister Lawrence?"

"Can't you call me father just once?"

"You're not my father. My father is the one who I'm living with. He didn't abandon me as you did. And loves me dearly."

"Please don't be so hard on me, baby." Tears began forming in his eyes when he heard Ana being harsh with her words. How could he hear her daughter calling someone else her father and giving a stranger the place in her life that he wanted? But could he blame her? No!

Ana continued to stare at his face. She wanted to embrace him when she noticed how he was trying his best not to cry. But soon she pulled a stoic face again when she remembered something. "There's one thing I don't get. How could you possibly recognise me after all these years? When you left us, I was a small child."

"I once did a check on you a few years back. I asked my previous PA to check as to how you were doing and whether you were doing well or not."

"Seriously?" Ana raised her brow and looked at him in disbelief. "So now why do you want me back? Are you not happy with your second family?"

"No, I'm happy with my wife."

"You don't have a child?"

"No. We don't have one. She can't give me a child." Mister Lawrence looked down, feeling overwhelmed as his daughter bombarded him with questions.

"Ah, now I see. You want me back since she can't give you a child. How cheap!! You can never change." She gave him a disgusted look.

"You're getting it all wron-"

"OUT of my cabin right now. I don't want to see your face ever again. Just get out." Ana screamed angrily. Deep down, she hoped for genuine care and concern from her biological father for once at least. But seemed like he was a jerk and he had no hopes of changing.

"But my child-"

"OUT!!!" She motioned to the door.

Mister Lawrence couldn't do anything. He just smiled weakly as he stood up and turned around since he knew deep down that he deserved all of this.

"Daughter, one last thing I'd like to say before I leave. I genuinely apologise for what I did. I'm really ashamed. But I loved you then, and I love you now. I really want you back, but I think that's not going to happen. Is it okay if I hug you one last time?"

Ana turned around with tears making their way down her cheeks. Mister Lawrence couldn't control it as well. They both hugged and cried.

"I hate you." She hugged him tightly. "Why did you leave me? I was homeless when my mom died. Why were you not there by my side, WHYYYYY?" Tears kept streaming down her face as she was engulfed by the warmth of her father.

She adored him when she was a little girl. She loved to hug him and play with him. But after her mother died, she craved her father's touch. She wanted him to embrace her and assure her that things would get normal and that she had him. She had nothing to worry about because her father was there to protect her. Sadly, none of this happened, and she was left alone to console herself.

"I'm sorry, my child. I failed miserably as a husband and as a father." He patted her back to calm her down.

He continued to hug the crying girl while mumbling sweet nothings until she calmed down. If this was the last time he was getting to hug his daughter, he wanted to make sure to keep his little girl in his arms for a bit longer.

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Did you see this coming? And did you imagine Henry not being her biological father?

Y'all must be wondering where the hell is Mystery till now. Well, just wait and watch ;)

I hope you enjoyed it so far. Don't forget to rest.

Keep smiling. I love you all.❤️

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