”Of course not. Why would you ask that?” Taya asked candidly, making Tiana pinch her lips and say with a shrug, “I don’t know. Since the past few months or right after some time, Dorian joined our family, you seemed to have changed…more than I ever could imagine. Previously, you rarely ever showed your face in this house, but now you frequent here more and also spend time with me. You also seem happier than in the past.”
Taya didn’t expect that Tiana would notice all this and realized yet again how wrong she was to ignore her family for all these years.
Still, she couldn’t help but ask with a smile, “I didn’t know I changed that much. But what makes you think it is because of a man?”
Tiana looked up as if in contemplation and said casually, “I don’t know. I had read stuff from the internet and from others that when a woman changes suddenly, it is usually because of a man. So I just had to ask.”
Taya couldn’t help but shake her head with a smile, though inwardly, she was astonished at how right on point Tiana was. She wished she could tell Tiana, but then she knew it was not time yet. Not when danger was still out there…hiding in plain sight. There was still yet to gain any leads on who attacked Umilia that night a week ago.
She knew that if Tiana knew the truth, she would somehow make herself involved in all this, especially through Viktor, and that was something she didn’t want.
”Anyways, I am glad that you aren’t seeing anyone. It is better that you don’t have your heart broken by another man, and I heard step-fathers can be real assholes. No man in this world deserves a beautiful and talented woman like you,” Tiana said with a relieved smile as she hugged her mother.
Taya’s expression became a bit complicated as she kissed Tiana’s head and patted her back while having no idea how things would pan out in the future. If she were to marry Viktor in the future, what was she going to tell Tiana?
Meanwhile, Sayana was sitting in her room, sitting in her chair while blankly staring at her laptop, her fingers frozen still on the keyboard.
On the laptop screen, she had a hacking script running, and all that was left was just a single click to get all the information from a certain someone’s phone…someone in this house whom she cared about a lot and considered as family.
However, her heart was stopping her from taking the final step since she knew it was wrong and also the fear that she might find something she may regret.
She usually wouldn’t think of such a matter, but for some reason, whenever she thought about Dorian and his sudden disappearance, it made her very restless and made her have thoughts she never expected she would have, just like the thought of hacking the phone of someone close to her.
But all these thoughts seemed to come from an inner voice…something that was soft as a whisper yet enough to move her mind sometimes.
”Stop it…This isn’t me…” Sayana mumbled with a grimace as she clutched her head as if she was trying to suppress something.
She was continuously shaking her head and got up from her chair as she closed the laptop before taking a deep breath.
*Knock*
Suddenly a soft knock sounded on the door before it slowly opened as a mature beauty with pale green eyes came in with a soft smile, “Saya. Are you free to discuss something now? If you are busy studying, I can come later.”
Sayana threw her thoughts to the back of her head as she smiled and shook her head, “No, mummy. I am free.”
Umilia came inside and sat down on the edge of the bed near Sayana’s chair and lovingly caressed her cheek as she said, “Saya, you have been a bit quieter than usual for the past few days. Is this about Dorian? Since he went to settle his personal affairs, you seem quite off.”
Sayana felt her heart tense up a bit as she timidly shook her head, “N-No…I was just worried since he left without any message. But after aunt Taya explained why…I understand now.”
Umilia firmly pressed her lips together as she gently held Sayana’s hand and asked, “You can tell me…Do you like Dorian?”
Sayana forgot to breathe the moment her mother asked her this question, and feeling her mother’s eyes looking at her, she lowered her head and wanted to deny it, but at the same time, something within her was preventing her from denying it.
Seeing Sayana suddenly become silent while avoiding her gaze, Umilia inwardly sighed, not knowing how to deal with this since she had never had to deal with anything like this. But she was not surprised, and instead, she always expected that something like this would happen, especially when she asked Viktor to stay close to her.
She had lived long enough to know when a girl was in love, especially someone as young and innocent as her daughter. Previously she only had suspicions, but it became obvious the moment Viktor disappeared.
Which woman in this world can probably resist a charming and enigmatic man like him? Still, she couldn’t help but feel like scolding Viktor for not even sparing her poor daughter. Did he really have to go after every woman that sparked his interest, especially her own daughter?
’Viktor…you are so unfair…’
However, she knew Viktor was the only person she could trust her daughter with.
She also could understand what Sayana was feeling right now and patted her hand as she said softly, “It’s okay. I won’t scold you for liking a boy, especially when this is your first time. I was just a bit surprised since you never liked any boys in the past, and I thought maybe you won’t focus on boys till you graduate and get a job at least.”
Sayana slowly lifted her head, feeling relieved that her mother wasn’t angry or scolding her for liking a boy when she was supposed to study in college.
”But…are you two in a relationship?” Umilia asked with narrowed eyes.
