Page 28 of Billionaire's Baby Mistake

I face him with a pounding heart, hoping he isn’t about to hate me for what I’m about to say. It will take this problem back to its origins, which could go in the best way possible, or the worst. In any case, it has to be worth a try. I just hope that everyone else agrees.

“Jenny,” I eventually whisper, “your mom. If anyone can get through to him, it has to be her.”

Alex goes pale, clearly seeing both outcomes, before nodding slowly to agree. “I think you might be right; this might be out only chance. Let me give her a call.”

As he does, everyone stares at me in shock. I feel terrified. I just hope this works… it has to… it is our only chance.

Alex

“You’reonyourway?”I hear Zaya ask Nina anxiously. “Yep, okay we’ll see you there.”

We have decided to confront David just before he heads into his meeting with the Chinese manufacturers. We will do our best to stop him before he goes through with his plan. There are so many things that could go wrong, which makes me extremely nervous, but we just don’t have time to come up with something better.

David could have lied to Van too. If he was capable of lying to his daughter, he could do it to just about anyone. The meeting could have already happened, or seeing Mom could simply anger him further. There aren’t any guarantees, and I prefer certainty - but what else can I do?

“Is everything going to plan?” I ask as she hangs up the phone. “Mom on board?” She was on the phone and would do anything to secure the future of the company, but I prefer to be certain.

“All is fine,” Zaya replies in a shaky voice. She’s worked up about this, and I know it’s because she blames herself; but to be honest, I’m beyond all of that now. I just want this done. All I care about is getting the formula and my other research notes back. Then I can start worrying about everything else. “They shouldn’t be much longer.”

“Okay, fiancée.” I don’t know if now is the time to make a joke, but I have to address it.

“Yeah, about that…”

“Don’t worry,” I reassure Zaya. “You can tell me all about it later.”

If there is a later. Who the hell knows what’s going to happen next. This has been a mess since day one with so much drama that I don’t know if I can handle anymore. There’s so much unspoken between Zaya and me, but we have to wait. We need to find patience - somewhere. This has to come first.

We’ve been sitting in the car outside the Chinese offices, just waiting for David to arrive. The more the clock ticks, the closer to midnight we get and the more possible issues I start to think of. The tension and anticipation are killing me…I just need to get this started…

“Wait,” I hiss quickly, spotting headlights. “Is that them?”

Zaya sits up straight, following my line of sight. I watch her face change totally, telling me it’s time. “He’s here,” she hisses. “What do we do? We aren’t ready yet. Nina and Jenny aren’t even here.”

I gulp everything down, trying to ignore my pounding heart. There’s no point in worrying that our plan isn’t fully playing out; to be fair, it isn’t much of one anyway. “We just need to do what we can with what we have. Let’s just get out of the car and confront him. If we wait for the others, we might lose our chance completely?”

“Yeah… okay…” she doesn’t look convinced, but she goes along anyway, first sliding out of the car alongside me.

“David,” I yell angrily, grabbing his attention the moment he steps out of his car. “It’s time for this to be over. Give me the formula.”

I expect him to scream at me, but instead, as he looks my way, a massive smile crosses his face. “Ah, wow, I am impressed.” He steps closer, causing me to panic. Surely he should have freaked out by now; this reaction isn’t normal. “Then again, it should be easy to find now that my daughter is on your side…”

“You lied to your daughter,” I react, my temper flaring at his words.

“I lied because I knew that she couldn’t be trusted, and guess what? It looks like I was right! She’s here with you, isn’t she? Turning her back on her father, the only family she has left, the man who raised her and gave her everything. All I wanted was this one thing from her, and she couldn’t even do that right.”

“Stop!” Zaya yells, the sobbing evident in her voice. “Stop it, Dad, what the hell is wrong with you? I’m not betraying you. I’m trying to do what’s right.”

“The formula is mine…”

“Wasyours,” I threaten. “You may have started it, but my dad, my company, andIhave progressed with the research to turn the drug into what it is today. I will not have it fall into your hands. All you will do is sell it for a massive profit, and so will the Russians. The only people who will lose out in this scenario are those suffering from cancer, the people we can help.” I don’t know if reasoning with him will work, but I have to give it a try.

“No, they aren’t the only people who will suffer,” he growls, rage returning to his expression. “You will too. You’ll lose your company, your reputation, your father’s legacy… everything handed to you on a plate.”

“Handed to me?” I exclaim, wondering if this has been a part of his problem all along. “My dad didn’t tell any of us, not until the very end. None of us was prepared for it, least of all me. I’d been working at the company for a while, trying to learn the ropes, but I never took it seriously. I was always more interested in messing about with… women and drinking. Then I inherited an entire business and a whole load of people relying on me. I had no experience nor idea what to do, but I took to the challenge, and I’ve worked my ass off ever since. Things weren’t just handed to me. I have crafted every damn day.”

He doesn’t answer this tirade but simply moves nearer to me, with his fists raised high. I get the impression that he’s just about ready for a fight, which is unexpected. My heart thunders louder as I shove my shirt sleeves up my arms. I’m not much of a fighter, and this certainly isn’t something I thought I would have to do, but I can’t just stand here and take it.

“Dad, no, stop it!” Zaya screams. “Stop this madness now. I will not have it.”

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