Chapter 622: Outsmarted

Lisa left the Lee building feeling as though she had outsmarted everyone. Drew Loam would never confirm what she had spoken about with Ian and if Sasha Ivanov were a smart man, he would avoid the Lee's. She had successfully thought of a way to get between Mina and the man who should have been hers, all thanks to Luna's constant drunken complaints about the woman.

In their last meeting, she said that Mina had a severe guilt complex that made her feel liable regardless of if a situation was out of her control. Luna had even told her that Mina was so dedicated to her friends that she insisted for them to have their own guard detail, which cost the Lee family more money than Luna felt was necessary.

It was all Lisa needed to put her plan in place, if she could make Ian separate Mina from her friends while simultaneously causing the woman to believe that she is the reason they are in danger, it would put a strain on their relationship because Mina could be torn between her loyalty toward her friends and keeping them safe.

It was cruel to hope for a person to have a mental breakdown, but it was all Lisa could do. She knew from before her contacts within the Lee group were outed that Mina made the company more money than she spent, so she could not go to Ian's family to make the woman look bad. She had to hurt Mina on an emotional level, a place where it was hard to recover from.

"Do you feel any better?" Shai asked after Lisa climbed into the car. She shrugged because she did not feel any better. Despite having Shai, who was extremely sweet to her, he was not exclusively hers and he was not the man she had always told herself that she would be with. His name held none of the grandeur she desired, and while he had a decent amount of revenue, it was mostly stagnant as the man did not know how to professionally manage it.

"I will feel better when she is out of his house," Lisa admitted, still feeling bitter.

"If I didn't know any better, I would say that you sound envious," Shai commented, feeling jealous himself. He had been investing more time into Lisa than he had with any other woman, and even when she had come drunkenly crying to him, he did not take advantage, wanting to show her that he saw her as different from everyone else.

"I am jealous, but not in the way you think." Lisa leaned on Shai's arm and sighed deeply. "It's hard to let go of someone that you thought you would spend your life with overnight. Please give me more time." Shai nodded, knowing that there was truth in Lisa's words despite never having experienced it himself.

----

When Mina walked into the Lee mansion, she did not expect President Lee to be waiting for her. The man must have had his staff ready to call him when she arrived because he was standing in the foyer, looking as though he had the worst possible news to tell her. She studied the man's expression, and the first thing to come to her mind was her parents.

Mina broke down crying, making the man blanche before he picked her up from the ground, telling her that nothing bad had happened, but she could tell by his tone that he was holding back in his words. Although he was assuring her, it was not a promise. She asked the man why he looked so gloomy, and he told her the reason without filters. He told her that her friends were in danger, and he told her that it was best for her to cut all ties with them.

Tears once again started to spill from Mina's eyes as she thought about the people she had collected as family. She could not imagine her life without them, and she could not imagine being selfish by putting the innocent life, that had not yet had a chance to experience anything in the world, in danger by wanting to hold onto those connections, but at the same time, she wanted to be near them so that if something went wrong, she could be there to save them.

"President Lee, Olivia's birthday is in two days. Everyone will be gathered, and I do not want to miss it. Can I please go? Dom will be there." Ian took a deep breath, understanding that for Mina, her friends were a replacement for the familial love that had escaped her for most of her life.

"Yes, but Mina, please don't try anything stupid. You know I would never ask you to abandon your friends unless I had reliable information that they were better off…" Ian paused, realizing that what he was going to say was something that, while true, was too cruel. He racked his mind, trying to come up with the proper word, but Mina beat him to it.

"They are better off without me," she whimpered out, and it was then that Ian realized how deeply Mina cared for people. It was not a terrible quality to possess per se, but it was definitely not a healthy way for her to express her affection. It was as if she were collecting siblings, wanting badly to erase the scar of losing her sister.

"That isn't what I was going to say," Ian lied, and Mina nodded, allowing him to rub her back as he handed her a tissue to wipe her face. "I heard you went to visit Mills," the man said, trying to lighten the mood. Mina sniffled before replying. She fiddled with the tissue in her hands, staring at it as she folded it into smaller and smaller pieces.

"I think I ruined her wedding," Mina joked, remembering the seriousness in Drax's tone when he was about to tell her that he had all night to get Mills pregnant.

"I heard," Ian replied with a chuckle and then he reminded Mina that Mills would not be among the group of women she needed to leave behind, and neither would Ash, who, unbeknownst to Mina, was now working against the President of Sani on behalf of his cousin.

----

Olivia stood in front of the cake that Mina had baked, and Willow had decorated, excited to finally know if Ollie was a boy or a girl. Everyone had gathered, except Ash, who said she was coming, but was running late. Cylus had come and so had Oric and Connor, who were shocked to see her stomach, which seemed to have grown over night. She was now too big to continue working, which was fine, because she had finished all she needed to do with Chance Morgan, and Willow was now good enough to work without her. All she was waiting on was the courage to board the plane and leave the country for good, but as the days passed, it was getting harder and harder to do. She loved all her friends, and she did not want to leave them, but at the same time, she knew what was best for the child that she had decided to keep.

"I can't believe Olivia is going to have a kid before me," Connor said, staring at Mina who remained melancholy even though her face bore a smile. "I would be halfway to engagement right now if I hadn't been an idiot," he said more loudly, making Jay nudge Mina, who finally looked at the man.

"Were you talking to me?" Mina said innocently, and Connor frowned at her.

"Why do you look so sad?" Oric asked, sensing that his friend was not reading Mina's mood correctly. She was not envious of Olivia; she was deep in thought.

"Olivia made Willow the godmother," Mina said bitterly. It was a lie, but she did not want to spoil the mood. She wanted everyone to have fun before she told them that she would be leaving the country, another lie.

"Don't be jealous," Oric teased, and Mina smirked.

"I'm not. I was just thinking that she made the right choice, being that it would make you the godfather." Oric's face turned toward Willow, who made the 'you idiot,' expression before he realized that Mina had laid him into a trap.

"I KNEW IT!" Olivia said loudly. "So, you 'made up' with your family?" Willow rested her hand over her eyes and looked down, clearly embarrassed that she had gotten caught, much to the enjoyment of Mina, who disliked that her friend felt the need to lie. "We have a lot to talk about later, but first, I want to open my gifts."

Olivia flicked Willow's forehead, while Oric tried hard to pretend he was taking the longest drink of his strawberry flavored cocktail. Jay had made two sets of frozen drinks, blue raspberry, and strawberry, but so far Mina, Cylus and Dom were the only ones walking around with blue cups. Mills helped Olivia sit in a heavily decorated chair, while Emma handed her the first set of gifts which were from Dom, who insisted. The woman opened the first bag and her eyes widened when she held a combat knife in her hands. She looked at Dom who wore a satisfied smile.

"Mina and Mills invented that, and it has a whistle." Olivia pressed a small button on the knife and a piercing sound rang through the apartment, making Cylus give Dom a thumbs up, obviously appreciating the gift. Dom's next gift was a promise for free fighting and shooting lessons, making Olivia glare at him. "What? The boy has got to learn to take care of himself." Mina nodded at the man's words, making Jay nudge her again.

The rest of the presents were typical pregnancy gifts and baby items; body oils to prevent stretch marks, postpartum belly binds, and bath oils to help Olivia relax. She loved everything, especially the gender-neutral clothing that Cylus made. The last gift was from Mina, who had purposefully hidden her gift so that Olivia would open it later, but Mills insisted that she was being too modest and needed to show off a bit. Mina watched her friend open the small box first, pulling out a bracelet that had a single charm which had Olivia's last sonogram image printed on it.

"I can't take full credit for that. Dom helped me get a copy of the sonogram." The man winked at Olivia who stood up so that she could give him a hug.

"You are already the best uncle," she said to the man, making Cylus clear his throat loudly.

"I haven't been given a chance,"

"Actually, you were," Jay interjected. "And you were caught drinking on the job."

"Okay, okay, hurry up and open Mina's last gift," Mills interrupted excitedly. Everyone watched the woman unwrap the oddly shaped present and when she revealed a bank folder the entire room grew quiet with curiosity. Olivia opened and shut the folder quickly, feeling tears fall from her eyes before she could stop them.

"I can't accept this," she said, making Mina cry as well.

"That's good, because it isn't for you." Mina stood up and hugged Olivia. Curious, those who did not know what Mina had gotten crowded around Olivia, who told them what the gift was without revealing the sensitive information of the account. Only Cylus was privy to such details, and he tried to reject the gift on Olivia's behalf, but Mina ignored him. "Enough," Mina said playfully. "Let's find out if I'm actually getting a nephew."

Olivia picked up the sealed envelope and took a deep breath as she moved to open it. Everyone was on edge as she slowly tore the paper, making little blue pieces of confetti fall out of it. Mina Cylus and Dom started to jump and clap, already knowing the answer.