Chapter 81. Sudden Suffocating Interest

Chapter 81: Chapter 81. Sudden Suffocating Interest

Chapter 81. Sudden Suffocating Interest

"Do you know what? I do not even want to talk so much about this. I am expecting you to be wise enough to know what is best for you, Rosa. You always seem smarter than this. I mean, come on—you’ve literally been at the top of your class since your first semester in your first year, so what is going wrong? Why the sudden, stupid hesitation?"

Mrs. Lee’s voice snapped sharply through the speaker. Rosa clenched her teeth until her jaw ached, but no sound escaped her throat. What was she even supposed to say? She dreaded hearing whatever offer Mrs. Lee had prepared for her, yet at the same time, she knew that ignoring this call entirely was going to ruin everything for her.

She breathed out a quiet, unsteady breath. Maybe I should have just accepted Mia’s request, she thought, her pulse hammering against her ribs. Wouldn’t that be nice? I really don’t have a choice here. She shook her head quickly, trying to clear her mind. Once this call is over, I’m just going to have to call Mia.

But won’t it be a burden?

"I don’t know whatever is going on in your head," Mrs. Lee continued, her tone dripping with stern authority. "If you are thinking of meeting somebody else to buy you off, to disconnect you from the signed relationship we have regarding ownership of your school fees, you are clearly making a very big mistake here, Rosa."

Rosa flinched, her eyes widening in sheer shock. Goodness me, is she fucking reading my mind? Blinking rapidly, she pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at the screen as if it were some sort of demonic device. Her lips hung open, trembling in complete disbelief before she slowly pressed the phone back against her ear.

"I mean it, Rosa," Mrs. Lee pressed on, cold and unrelenting. "Don’t you dare make any foolish moves. If that’s what you’re thinking, I am already two steps ahead of you. I can promise you I have lawyers and authoritative firms ready to bring you down if you try to orchestrate some malicious behavior like that. It’s a breach of contract, and you have no right to want to disconnect yourself from whatever legal binding we have as your sole guardian. This was stated in your father’s wish. He stated to us that we are to primarily be your guardians, and nobody else is supposed to take over you. Do you really want to go against your father’s wish? Do you really want to disappoint him? Do you think if he’s alive right now—or his spirit is standing somewhere watching this—he will be pleased with you making that decision?"

Rosa closed her eyes tight, grinding her teeth together until her temples throbbed. Is she fucking kidding me? Her breath hitched, not from sorrow this time, but from an extreme, overpowering rage that burned hot in her chest. Is she seriously trying to use the father card against me? Using my father in his absence?

She stopped thinking for a moment, letting out a sharp scoff and tilting her head to the side.

"What is that I just heard? Are you mocking me?" Mrs. Lee demanded from the other end.

Rosa clenched her jaw tightly, her hands gripping the phone so hard her knuckles turned white. I can’t believe just how far this woman is going to go, she thought to herself, blood rushing in her ears.

Before she could say anything, Mrs. Lee spoke again, her voice curt and final. "Let’s not drag this on. Let’s not even turn this into a debate. I’ll be waiting for you at the mansion. Come over so we can discuss this deeper. I don’t feel comfortable discussing this over the phone. You are far away, and the matters would not be addressed the way they’re supposed to be. Why don’t you come over to my mansion? You know the direction to where we live—you stayed there anyway."

The call instantly ended with a sharp click.

Rosa froze, one eyebrow raised in stunned silence. She slowly pulled the phone away from her ear, her hand trembling against the smooth metal device. Staring at the darkened screen, a sudden, heavy, crushing urge rushed through her—an overwhelming impulse to squeeze the phone until the glass shattered in her palm. Dropping her hand down, she let out a low scoff and looked off to the side, shaking her head.

"Wow," she murmured under her breath, staring at her now visibly trembling hands. "Wow."

"Who’s that?"

A familiar deep voice boomed through the living room, the low resonance vibrating through her bones. Rosa flinched and quickly turned around.

It was Don. He was standing a few meters away, brewing a hot cup of coffee. His dark eyes were fixed on her with a distinctly displeased look.

Rosa looked down at her hand like she was just realizing she had been holding a phone call. She forced a hollow chuckle and blew out a soft breath, quickly shaking her head. "Oh, it’s nothing you should bother about," she said quickly, her eyelids fluttering nervously.

Don frowned. He stepped away from the counter and moved toward her, his footsteps slow and calculated, as if he had all the time in the world. He stopped directly in front of her near the sofa. Rosa blinked and looked up at him, tilting her head to meet his eyes. He observed her in silence for a few long moments.

"You think I don’t know?" Don said, his voice dropping. "You do not have the liberty to lie to me in my own building."

Rosa lifted her chin, her eyes narrowing. "My own matters are my matters. Just because I’m in your building doesn’t mean I have to relate everything that goes on in my life with you."

Don’s jaw dropped, staring down at her with genuine disbelief.

Jesus, he thought to himself, watching the fierce spark in her eyes. Although she had been doing this quite a lot recently, he still couldn’t get over the fact of how sharp-mouthed her tongue had become. She was never like this years ago when she was still with her parents. Ever since the absence of her parents, she had grown so sharp, so dim-witted to her own safety, getting entangled with the darkness of the world without watching who she talked to.

He breathed out, smacking his lips together softly. I find it quite amazing, he thought, a dark curiosity settling into his mind. Wouldn’t it be so nice to tame her? To see that soft, vulnerable side of her that made me almost run crazy to make the decision to leave years ago?

He chuckled under his breath and shook his head before he could say anything else.

Rosa quickly got up from the sofa. "I need to go," she murmured, scanning the room. "I can’t find my books anywhere."

Don raised an eyebrow, his frown deepening. "Your books, you say?"

She looked back at him, holding his gaze. "Yeah. I left them here last night. I forgot to pick them up. Do you know where they are?"

He chuckled, taking a slow sip from his cup of coffee while the warm steam wavered in front of his eyes. Looking off to the side, he stretched out his shoulders, fully aware that he held the cards now. He slowly lowered the coffee from his mouth. "You want your books? Well, I certainly do know where they were placed. I arranged them in a specific spot for safekeeping."

Rosa forced a tight smile, bowing her head slightly as she prepared to make her exit. "Thank you so much. I really appreciate you lending me your studio. Thank you so much for your help, but can you please give me my books now? I would love to go."

Don frowned at her, ignoring her gratitude completely. "Who was that with you on the call just now?"

Rosa let out a soft scoff and looked off to the side, biting hard against her bottom lip. Lord, she thought, feeling the tension rising. He is really not going to let this go, huh?

She turned back to look at him, keeping her voice as flat as possible. "It was nobody."

A visible cloud of annoyance crossed Don’s face. He took a swift step closer, towering over her with his invasive height. Rosa instinctively stumbled backward, but her leg hit against the edge of the sofa. Her balance gave out, and she found herself crashing back down onto the cushions, sitting down swiftly as her head tilted back to keep him in view.

Before she could move, Don bent down, pressing his hands firmly on the sofa on either side of her legs. Rosa had to tilt her head all the way backward until she felt the backrest of the sofa brushing the back of her head in a desperate attempt to keep her face away from his. But he leaned even closer, keeping her completely boxed and trapped against the leather.

Her eyes widened. A soft gasp escaped her lips as she stared at him in dismay.

"Unfortunately for you, oh cute little Rosa," Don purred, his dark eyes locked onto hers with dangerous intensity, "there is no way I’m letting you leave this mansion of mine if you do not open your mouth and tell me who the hell you were talking to just now on the phone."

Rosa blinked at him in utter disbelief, her heart pounding as she wondered what on earth was driving his sudden, suffocating interest in her phone calls.