Chapter 444 What Are Your Feelings for Daphne Now?
Charles shot Austin a cold look, "You for real?"
"Yeah, dead serious," Austin replied, not backing down.
Charles glanced at the document in his hand, but his mind was miles away.
Austin, getting impatient, pushed, "Can you just give me a straight answer?"
After what felt like forever, Charles finally said, "Alright, I can help you, but this stays between us. No one else can know."
Austin didn't hesitate, "Deal."
"Cool," Charles nodded.
"Any other conditions?" Austin asked.
Charles's eyes had a glint of something.
Austin, trying to guess, said, "You don't want me to break up Daphne and Benjamin, do you?"
No way he could agree to that. Daisy would be furious, and it was just plain wrong.
He wasn't about to do it; he had a daughter to think about.
"Just keep an eye on Daphne whenever you visit Daisy," Charles said, his voice heavy with hidden pain. "Don't snoop or anything, just tell me what you see."
Austin hesitated, looking conflicted, "You..."
Charles cut him off, "Do you agree or not?"
"She's got a boyfriend," Austin reminded him.
"I know," Charles said, unfazed.
"They're really into each other and probably won't split," Austin added.
"I don't need you to tell me that," Charles snapped.
He knew how much Benjamin loved Daphne since the day he left Gedser.
He also knew Benjamin would never let Daphne get hurt again.
Austin, still confused, asked, "Then why do you still..."
"Just do what I say," Charles said, his voice tight with emotion. "Do it, and I'll double Hill Group's performance this year."
"Fine, no problem," Austin agreed quickly.
It was just reporting what he saw; nothing shady about that.
Charles grunted in response.
Seeing the exhaustion on Charles's face, Austin patted his shoulder, "Man, you need a break. Come have a drink with me. You look like hell."
"I've got stuff to do," Charles declined.
"Whatever it is, it can wait," Austin insisted.
Ignoring Charles's protests, Austin dragged him out.
Mark watched them leave and followed in a car. Once they were inside a club, he texted Austin.
Mark: [Mr. Hill, Mr. Lancelot hasn't had proper rest or meals for almost two months. Please don't let him drink too much.]
Long periods without rest and irregular meals had made him not suitable for drinking.
In these two months, Charles had developed stomach issues. If he drank and made it worse, Mark wouldn't know how to explain it to Hayden and Laura.
Austin saw the message after ordering drinks. He replied with an "okay" and then asked someone to get some food.
The staff, confused, said, "Mr. Hill, we don't serve food here."
"Hey, grab some food from next door, something easy on the stomach," Austin said, handing over his card and a tip.
The staff hustled off to get it.
Charles, looking puzzled, asked coldly, "Are we here to eat?"
"The food's for you," Austin said bluntly, noticing Charles looked worse than usual. "You probably haven't eaten. Get something in you so you don't get wasted too fast."
"Not necessary," Charles shot back.
Austin just smiled, not pushing it.
Soon enough, the staff came back with some light, stomach-friendly food.
When Austin handed it over, Charles ignored it and reached for his drink instead.
"Daisy lives super close to Daphne now, just one villa apart," Austin said, trying to negotiate. "If you eat this, I'll make more trips to Gedser."
Charles paused, glass in mid-air.
After a moment, he rubbed the glass and asked, "Will she even see you if you go?"
"Yeah," Austin said confidently.
Charles gave him a skeptical look, thinking he was too sure of himself.
Before Charles could drink, Austin added, "Daisy and I have a kid. She said I can visit Molly anytime, and Daphne even gave me a key card to the villa area."
Charles froze, like someone hit the pause button on him.
"Eat first," Austin said, taking the glass away and handing him the food. "I promise, every time I go to Gedser, I'll bring back news about Daphne."
Charles didn't say anything, just started eating.
Good thing they were in a private room; otherwise, this scene would have definitely drawn some stares.
"Charles," Austin called, feeling weird about his reaction.
Charles ate gracefully, keeping his usual aloof vibe. "If you have something to say, just say it," he said.
"What are your feelings for Daphne now?" Austin asked, worried about Charles's state. "Are you still hoping she'll come back, or are you just waiting around?"
"Neither," Charles said, knowing exactly what he was doing.
He knew Daphne wouldn't come back, and no matter what, they couldn't go back to the way things were. But he couldn't control his heart.
Austin looked conflicted, "Then what are you thinking?"
"Not much," Charles lied.
After dinner, Charles joined Austin for drinks.
Knowing how bad Charles was doing, Austin wasn't really in the mood to drink, but he stuck around anyway.
"Think you and Daisy will get back together?" Charles asked, downing his fourth glass.
"I don't know," Austin said honestly. "But as long as she's not with someone else, I'll keep visiting her and Molly until she agrees to marry me."
Austin knew that if it weren't for that accident, Daisy wouldn't have married him.
As an artist in the entertainment industry, Daisy had chosen to marry late. If she made a comeback now, she probably wouldn't consider relationships, so he still got a shot.
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