7. Strong women

What kind of woman would let her fiancé have dinner with another woman if not Lily? The secretary had meticulously prepared a romantic dinner setting, as instructed by Alger. She went all out, ensuring every moment carried a romantic and elegant touch.

Once she was sure everything was in order and there were no more tasks left at the office, Lily headed straight to her car and left the café. A satisfied smile appeared on her lips.

"Finally, my work is done," she muttered softly, sending proof of the full café reservation for her boss's dinner straight to Alger's phone.

"Everything is set, Sir. And since I have no more work at the office, I'm taking my leave to rest." That was the message Lily had just sent to Alger.

"Don't think I'll get jealous or hurt by your actions, Sir. This strong woman will never be affected by your pathetic little games," Lily smirked.

This was originally Alger's plan to make Lily realize that he wasn't joking about his words. But what happened instead? Alger ended up being played by the cunning girl he had once thought was naïve.

At the office, Alger immediately picked up his ringing phone. A message from Lily, along with a photo, made him frown.

He gripped his phone tightly when he read the message saying that Lily had booked a café for his romantic dinner with Genifer.

"Why did this turn out like this? I never intended to have dinner with Genifer."

Without hesitation, Alger pressed the call button. It didn't take long before Lily answered.

"Yes, is there something I can help you with, Sir?"

"Where are you? Get back to the office right now. You said you were sick, but you've been wandering around?"

Lily was silent for a moment before replying.

"What do you mean wandering around, Sir? I was just doing my job, which is part of my work, right? I booked a café for your romantic dinner with Genifer, and now you're making a fuss about it? Don't tell me you still have feelings for me instead of holding a grudge?"

"How dare you say that? Get back to the office right now, Lily. This is an order, or else—"

"Or else what? You haven't forgotten what I said at the hospital, have you? And now it's almost half past five, my work is done, and the doctor told me to rest so my brain doesn't overheat and break down. So, with all due respect, I'm not coming back to the office. Sir."

Lily immediately hung up. It seemed her patience had reached its limit. And this was just the first day—there were still more days to come that would drive her even crazier. Not to mention, she was going to marry an arrogant CEO who did as he pleased. Wouldn't that just mean more headaches and fainting spells in the future?

Alger stared irritably at his phone screen, the call having ended just five seconds ago.

"How dare she threaten me? I'm the one who should be in control. I'm the CEO, and I'm supposed to be the one making Lily suffer! Why is this turning out the other way around?"

Shaking his head in frustration, he threw his phone onto his desk. "This is ridiculous. I thought she was the right choice, but she has absolutely no manners."

It seemed Alger had no intention of attending that dinner. Besides, who would want a romantic dinner with Genifer? His only goal had been to make Lily suffer, but clearly, he had failed. Lily didn't care at all about their relationship.

Without waiting for the official end of work hours, Alger got up from his chair. It seemed he didn't care anymore—he was going home.

"Heading out?" James asked, standing at the doorway with a stack of documents in his hands.

"Put the files on the table, I have an urgent matter to attend to."

"What's the matter?"

Alger didn't answer. He looked at James and then flashed a smile. "Please cover for me tonight to meet the client at Bugenfil café."

"But tonight..."

"I'll add a bonus this month."

"Got it," James replied quickly.

Alger tilted his smile, looking at James with a scowl. "You're quick to respond when it's about a bonus."

"Money isn't everything, but money can buy everything. So, when else will I get a bonus when the CEO is working for the first time?"

Alger didn't respond. He chose to leave his office, leaving James confused.

"This isn't like him. Usually, when Alger is abroad, he works like crazy. Why is he leaving so early today? Could it be true that he's not motivated at work because Lily isn't around?"

A second later, James shrugged indifferently and entered Alger's office. "It's a good thing if Alger likes Lily. That means he's normal, just like any other man who can fall in love."

James really understood Alger. Even though they were separated by distance, their friendship still remained strong. Alger had even suggested James become his personal assistant at his father's company so that James wouldn't be like a confused person, struggling to find a job after graduation.

Lily stared in confusion at the flowers placed on her mother's grave—fresh flowers—before turning her gaze to look around, searching for anyone who might have visited her mother's resting place. Unfortunately, no one was there near her mother's grave.

"Who just came?" Lily wondered as she knelt by her mother's grave.

"Mom." Lily whispered.

She had only just greeted her, and already tears fell down her cheeks.

"Sorry for just coming now, Mom. Maybe I was wrong for only complaining to you when I came, but I had no one else to talk to except you. I didn't want to tell Dad because I didn't want his health to deteriorate again. I'm selfish for keeping him by my side, Mom. I didn't want to lose him for the second time."

Lily wiped her mother's gravestone, resting her head against it. "Mom, can I say that I'm tired of life? I'm going through that phase right now, where I'm so tired of carrying this heavy burden on my own. If I could say it, I actually want to marry a man who can accept me as I am, Mom. But why doesn't reality approve of me? Why do I have to be in such a complicated relationship because of money? If you said I wouldn't accept betting my happiness with Dad's life, you were wrong, Mom. I do accept it, even though it feels unfair, even though it feels like I have to sacrifice and forget my own happiness. But honestly, I also want to be happy, just like other people, Mom."

Lily took another deep breath, wiping away her tears roughly. "I'm going home now, Mom. If I'm not too busy, I'll come by more often. Maybe I can recover the memories I've lost, especially since Dad always hides the reason for Mom's passing. He never tells me anything, just says 'let the past go' and not to bring up old wounds. I'll leave now, Mom."

From a distance, a woman immediately hid behind a tree, pressing her chest as it felt tight.

"I'm sorry, Lily. I'm sorry."

The woman stepped out of hiding when she saw Lily's car leave the cemetery area.

"If you knew the real story, maybe you could never accept our family."

Elsewhere, Alger had just arrived at his apartment, only to be surprised by his father sitting in the living room with a tablet in his hand.

"Dad."

"I knew you'd come back here. What have you done, Alger?" Daniel asked, handing his tablet to Alger. "You've just started working, and you're already planning to fire Lily? You know she's wanted by so many companies. And you want to let all that go? Do you want to bring the company down like before?"

Alger loosened his tie, which was choking his neck, with a wry smile and sat beside Daniel.

"Such a snitch."

"Lily didn't say anything about this. I know you have unresolved issues with her, but do you know that..."

"If Dad and Mom knew I had a past with her, then why did you arrange for Lily and I to be together? Do you want to make my life linger in the shadow of my past? Lily is just being professional in her work, and it's not like you should make her a potential wife for me."

"You're the one who accepted this arrangement, not me forcing you. But what you need to know is that parents never put their children in trouble or make them live in misery. So before you act, find out the truth. Let the past be the past, move forward and fix what's broken from that time. That's better, Al."

"Dad, go home. Remember what I said, don't make the wrong decision, especially firing Lily without telling me first."

Alger smiled bitterly as he watched his father leave his apartment. "Am I the child, or is Lily?"

"It's getting more suspicious. If my suspicion is right, maybe Lily has brainwashed Dad and Mom and made it seem like all the mistakes are mine."

"Such a schemer."