Chapter 27

The moment we stepped outside, I was totally floored. There, right at the entrance, was a freaking Rolls-Royce. And if my memory served me right, the license plate read 8888—yep, that was my dad's ride.

Fast forward ten minutes, and Jason had my dad chilling in the office.

"Rachel, come here," my dad called out to me in this low, serious tone from across the room.

I glanced over at Jason. He was giving me this intense look, clearly not wanting me to move an inch. So, I stayed put, like a good little soldier.

Dad, on the other hand, was cool as a cucumber, like he had this whole thing planned out. He waved his hand, and one of his bodyguards stepped up, placing a box on the table.

Dad pushed the box towards Jason. "Ten million bucks. Give me my daughter back."

Jason didn't say a word. He just shot me a look, then casually opened the box to peek inside.

"Honestly, it's not about the money," he said, all nonchalant.

"What, not enough for you? Don't push your luck!" Dad snapped, his temper flaring.

"Dad..." I whispered, trying to calm him down.

"Rachel, you don't need to be scared of him. Come over here," Dad insisted, reaching out to pull me over. "This is a society of laws now. What's he gonna do to you?"

Jason just smirked, leaning back into the sofa like he was watching his favorite TV show.
"Dad, I still owe him some money. I... I can't go back with you," I whispered, feeling the weight of the situation.

"How much?" he asked, his voice firm.

"Let me think... probably over twenty grand."

"Your old man's making a comeback. What's that chump change?" Dad said, pulling out three bundles of cash and slamming them down in front of Jason. "Now, is this enough?"

Jason glanced at the money, shrugged, and said, "I got no problem with it. Ask her."

All eyes turned to me.

"Rachel, what's that red mark on your neck?" Dad's brows furrowed as he asked, "Jason, did you dare to hit my girl?"

I felt my face heat up, totally embarrassed and at a loss for words. Jason, of course, was still smirking.

"Is your girl so easy to provoke? I've got just as many marks on my neck as she does," he said, unbuttoning his shirt to reveal his collarbone, which was covered in hickeys.

I flashed back to last night. I had hugged him and tried to bite him, but he stopped me.

"Don't bite," he had said, covering my mouth. "How are we supposed to show our faces at the car repair shop tomorrow?"

"But, I read in a novel that boys like it when girls do this. Uncle, do you not like me?"

"It's not that I don't like you. Why are you so childish?" he sighed. "Come on, a little lower, or I'll be laughed at for another year."

So, without a second thought, I left a series of marks on his collarbone, forming a peach heart. Now, looking at it, that area had turned a deep purple.
It had turned into a purple peach heart.

"Rachel, did you hit him too?" my dad asked, his eyes narrowing.

I hadn't even opened my mouth yet.

"Good hit! You should've! Who gave him the right to tie up my daughter? My daughter isn't someone to mess with!"

Alright, I had nothing to say to that.

Just then, Uncle Bear burst in from outside.

"Boss, what kind of tea does your father-in-law want to drink?"

Me: !

Jason: !

My dad's face went from zero to sixty, muttering, "Father-in-law?"

Uncle Bear looked puzzled. "Yeah, father-in-law."

"Who is whose father-in-law? Make it clear," my dad was about to blow a gasket.

"Well, Rachel and our boss are together..." Uncle Bear stammered, then turned to Jason, "Boss, your father-in-law doesn't know?"

Jason took a deep breath, "Get lost."

"Alright." Uncle Bear backed out of the room.

"Jason!" my dad slammed the table.

"What is it?" Jason straightened up, ready to listen to my dad.

"What have you done to my daughter?"

"Dad..." Seeing things were about to get ugly, I tried to pull my dad back.

"We're together," Jason admitted, not even flinching.

"You!" My dad was so mad he could barely speak. "You scoundrel! You have no regard for anyone. I only owe you some money, and you dare to make a move on my daughter. Are you even human?"
"Rachel, tell me, did he bully you? Dad will back you up and make sure he goes to jail."

I panicked and blurted out, "Dad, it was me... I liked him first."

Slap! In his rage, my father slapped me. "Do you know what you're saying?"

"Why are you hitting her?" Jason rushed over, wrapping me in his arms to protect me.

"What business is it of yours? You should know I still keep the recording where you threatened me. With just one phone call, I can send you to prison."

"If you send him in, I won't live either," I cried, my voice breaking.

"You wicked child!" My father was so furious he raised his hand to hit me again.

Jason shielded me, blocking his hand. "Whatever do you want to do to me is fine. But if you dare touch her again, I don't care if you're her father or not, I'll fight you to the death."

The tension in the room was suffocating.

I clung to Jason, crying and shaking. I'm not stupid; I knew what my father's blackmail recording implied. I didn't want Jason to go to prison.

"Rachel, I am your dad, I am your family. What is this with your kidnapper? You're confused." My dad sat down, trembling with anger.

"When you went for the paternity test, did you consider me your daughter?" I asked him through my tears. "I get bullied and humiliated at home, and you turn a blind eye. Do you consider me your daughter?"
"I was kidnapped, and when you heard my voice, you hung up the phone. You were the one who said you gave me to him to pay off debts. Did you consider me your daughter then?"

"Now that you're saying this, don't you feel like you're slapping yourself in the face?"

My dad's face grew darker and darker.

"Rachel, listen to Dad's explanation. That previous test report was tampered with by your stepmother. She used someone else's hair to fabricate it. Dad later used the hair from your comb. You are my daughter."

"It's all her fault, she caused us to be separated for over a year. Dad is here to take you now."

"All her fault? You're not to blame?" I cried and then laughed bitterly. "You only decided to come find me after getting the new test report, right?"

"You didn't care about me at all this past year. Do you know how I managed to get through this?"

"It was Uncle who took care of me, protected me, provided for my education, taught me how to be a good person. Everyone here treats me better than my own family. I really can't tell who my real family is."

"Your daughter Rachel died a year ago. I won't go back with you."

"You!"

Jason didn't care about my dad. He hugged me and handed me a tissue, gently wiping away my tears. "It's okay, it's okay."

"Aren't you afraid my dad will really send you to jail? I'm worried..."
"You cries make me want to punch him. I can't care about all that anymore," Jason sighed. "I've raised you for so long, it's not in vain. You even know how to worry about others."

My dad watched us, seething with anger.

After a tense standoff, a middle-aged man suddenly walked in from outside.

"Who wants to send my son to jail?"

Jason pulled me behind him. "Dad."

Dad?

"Mr. Wright, why are you here?" My dad quickly stood up.

"If I don't come, someone will send my son to jail!" Jason's dad walked over, giving my dad a sidelong glance.

My dad pointed at Jason, his face turning slightly blue, wiping away some sweat. "Jason Wright is your son?"
"What's wrong? I'm surnamed Wright, shouldn't my son be surnamed Wright too?"

"No, it's all a misunderstanding." My dad eased his tone.

"How come I heard that you owe my son ten million dollars? I lent you a billion to make a comeback, and now you want to send my son to jail?"

"Misunderstanding, it really is a misunderstanding." My dad was scared, sweating profusely. "Actually, we were discussing marriage."

Marriage?

My dad's expression changed drastically.

Jason's dad's face suddenly brightened. "Jason,your mom said you have a girlfriend. Is this her?"

"She really tells you everything," Jason looked somewhat helpless.

"I am your father. If you have a girlfriend, you should tell me, right?"
Jason pulled me along, saying, "what does my girlfriend have to do with you? Can't you just leave us alone?"

"Don't rush off, let me have a look," his father walked over curiously, pushing Jason aside to get a better view of me.

Seeing me, he was taken aback and quickly grabbed Jason, lowering his voice to say something in his ear, "Why is she so young? You scoundrel."

"Hello, Mr. Wright," I said, slightly frightened, unsure if I should greet him or not.

"Hey there, sweetheart," his father beamed at me, "Why are you crying? You're Mr. Green's little daughter, right?"

"Yes."

His father stepped back, "Harold Green, you've bullied my son, and now you're bullying my daughter-in-law. Pay up!"

"No, Mr. Wright, I haven't, truly haven't."

After this spectacle, my head buzzed for the entire day.

Later, my father kept saying sorry. Jason's father even treated me as his daughter-in-law, constantly wanting to talk to me.

"If you have any questions, ask me. Don't bother her," Jason had had enough and pulled me back to our rented house.

Later on, I found out that Jason didn't have a good relationship with his parents.

"My parents divorced when I was very young. Both of them were too stubborn. After the divorce, my mother sent my father to jail for a few years, and when my father was released, he sent my mother to jail for a few years."
"Then they got old and started fighting over me again. Why should I have to live with them? So after I graduated from college, I didn't go to any of their companies. I became a contractor on a construction site. Later, after your father owed us money, I came back to Fatso's hometown with him and opened an auto repair shop here.

"The 31 years before meeting you, I lived aimlessly, without much meaning. It wasn't until you came that suddenly I felt relied upon, trusted, depended on, and needed...that I realized I could live a different kind of life."

That night, he opened up to me so much, and in the end, we held each other tightly and fell into a deep sleep.

On my birthday, we moved in together. He was very careful, considerate, and took care of my feelings, but that didn't stop him from unknowingly torturing me on the bed. Then he held me as we fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, he softly asked me, "Do you know that I used to frequently have this dream, a dream with you in it? So every time I woke up, I couldn't face you, it felt like a crime..."

I couldn't bring myself to tell him that I had the same dream.

After he finished speaking, he planted a kiss on my forehead, "Goodnight, little one."

I turned over sleepily, wrapped my arms around his neck, and said, "Goodnight, uncle."