Chapter 2: Denial

A few more seconds passed before Keir answered his mother, Yana.

"It’s better if I’m the one who suffers, Mom; I couldn't bear to see Elaine get hurt when she finds out the truth," Keir said sadly.

"Keir, son, Elaine is twenty years old; she’ll understand if you tell her the truth," Yana said with concern.

"It hurts me, too, to see you struggling," his mother added worriedly.

"No, Mom," Keir said firmly.

Keir's mother knew that her son have developed secret feelings for Elaine and that he was finding it increasingly difficult to suppress.

Yana understood her son; Elaine was a wonderful girl whom she had watched grow up. Since they were the ones who had raised her, it was understandable that Keir would fall in love with Elaine.

To Yana, there was nothing wrong with Keir's feelings for Elaine because they were not biologically related. Moreover, there had never been any legal adoption papers, as the family had always believed that caring for Elaine would only be temporary.

Elaine took several deep breaths and wiped away her tears.

She stared at her reflection in the mirror, fixing her hair and making sure there were no signs that she had been crying.

After a few moments, she forced a small smile.

No...

She couldn't let anyone know that she had overheard everything.

She gathered all the courage she had left and composed herself.

No matter how much her heart ached, she would pretend she knew nothing.

Not yet.

She wasn't ready to confront her fake father.

Elaine thought to herself, "Maybe that's why he's been avoiding me."

Elaine was on her way back to her desk when the door to Keir's office suddenly opened.

Grandma Yana stepped out.

Grandma Yana immediately noticed her.

"Elaine, darling! What are you doing here?" Yana asked in surprise as she wrapped Elaine in a warm, tight hug.

Elaine hugged her grandmother even tighter.

"I'm Dad's new secretary, Grandma," she said with a bright smile.

"Does your dad know that you're his new secretary?" Grandma Yana asked, clearly surprised.

"Not yet, Grandma," Elaine replied hesitantly.

"Alright. I should get going now. Go see your father," Grandma Yana said with a warm smile.

She gave Elaine one last hug and kissed her gently on the cheek before walking away.

Elaine let out a quiet sigh of relief as soon as her grandmother was gone.

If Grandma Yana had stayed any longer, she wasn't sure she would have been able to hide her emotions. She might have broken down and confessed that she had overheard everything.

She glanced around the office.

Everyone was busy with their work, and no one seemed to have noticed her conversation with Grandma Yana.

Only then did Elaine let out another quiet sigh of relief.

Elaine flinched when the telephone on her desk suddenly rang.

It rang a few times before she finally picked it up.

"Bring me a coffee."

The cold, commanding voice on the other end belonged to Keir.

The line went dead the moment he finished giving the order.

He had already hung up before Elaine could even respond.

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