CHAPTER 45: HERE TO STAY

[Penthouse]

"..."

Lola opened her mouth, then closed it again. Her face contorted more with every passing second as she stood in the middle of the walk-in closet.

The question that had been in her mind? She just got the answer unexpectedly.

"When... did they get their things in my place?" She blurted out in disbelief, slowly spinning in place to scan the entire wardrobe.

All the empty closets and drawers were now filled with men’s clothes—ranging from formal attire to casual wear, and a bit of nightwear. Then, on the other side, there were kids’ clothes for a girl and a boy.

Lola just landed in the country a few days ago, so the walk-in closet wasn’t full. But now, it was! Even the accessory rack was stuffed to the brim—twins’ and their father’s accessories, a few of Lola’s, and some other women’s jewelry that weren’t hers.

These weren’t clothes for vacation.

With all of this before her, it seemed like they—the father included—were here to stay.

"Hah—" She narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "No way, right?"

A light chuckle slipped past her lips as her eyes swept across the clothes in her place. Chacha and Second were fine, but their father? That was just ridiculous.

"There’s no way Atlas will be that shameless to live in a stranger’s home."

RINGGGG!!

Her thoughts halted as the buzz from the main entrance suddenly echoed through the penthouse. Lola flinched, looking up before glancing at the door. Without a word, she sauntered outside straight to the monitor doorbell attached to the wall.

"Lola, you awake now?" Standing outside was Silo, carrying a bag of hangover soup and some medicine to ease her hangover. "I brought you some soup and meds."

Lola just stared at the monitor with her arms crossed.

"Lola?" Silo frowned, quickly pulling his phone out to call her. But just as he rang her phone, Lola pressed a button on the monitor.

With that, she turned and walked back to the closet to get changed.

Meanwhile, Silo raised his brows as he heard the door buzz open. When he walked in, his steps weren’t as careful as they had been. After all, just yesterday, he nearly had a heart attack because the twins pranked him. But they were gone now.

"Lola, I brought you some soup!" he announced, making his way to the dining room. "I’ll heat it up, so come out once it’s done!"

His steps slowed as he reached the dining area, catching sight of some leftovers under a food cover lid. Lifting it, his brow furrowed.

"She cooked?" He cocked his head to the side. "Doesn’t she always have a terrible hangover?"

Lola might have a strange tolerance for alcohol, but the aftermath often left her paralyzed.

"Well," he shrugged, still heading to the kitchen to transfer the soup.

Once Silo finished heating it, he simply placed the bowl next to the other leftovers. Walking back to the living area, he looked around and sighed.

"She’s probably still very sad," he said, staring at the coffee table where the twins would usually spend their time waiting for Lola.

The image of them drawing with their little hands flashed in his head.

"No," he shook his head, eyes shutting momentarily. "Lola’s already sad. I can’t be sad too."

With that, Silo slumped on the couch, waiting for Lola. It was still early, as her next appointment was after lunch in Lion Square. However, since he knew Lola’s current state of mind, he’d come earlier. Besides, he thought she needed help with a hangover.

"Silo, any word from Amala?" After a few minutes, Lola’s voice cut through the silence.

Silo instinctively turned his head, bracing himself for another of Lola’s looks. To his surprise, Lola didn’t have any makeup on her face. No false lashes, or prosthetics, or crazy wigs. If anything, she was dressed in a usual layered black outfit with a bare face.

And without that horrendous makeup, her dress looked more aesthetically pleasing as streetwear.

Lola stopped near the sofa, tilting her head. "Hello?"

"Uh—" Silo cleared his throat and blinked. "Lola, you’re not going to put anything on your face?"

"Why?"

"I mean, you’ve been putting all that stuff on your face," he said, waving a hand before his face. "So, I’m surprised you don’t have it yet."

Tilting her head, she asked, "So, you’re finally admitting that you like my art?"

"No!" He jumped from his seat, shaking his head profusely. "I mean, it’s not that I hate it, but I think this is much better!"

Lola was beautiful. If she had chosen to be an actress, she would surely have risen to the top. It was strange for someone so beautiful to hide it with layers of makeup.

Lola crossed her arms, studying the pretentious look on his face. "You hate it," she clicked her tongue. "But never mind that. Did Amala reach out?"

As those words escaped her, she sauntered toward the armchair and sat down. Silo sighed and took a seat on the long couch.

"Amala said something came up, so she might be delayed for a bit, but don’t worry! It’s nothing, she said," he reported with a shrug. "You know her. She’s quite the perfectionist."

"Hmm, and what about the Summit Partners?" She arched a brow. "You asked me for more days to find something about them. Did you get anything?"

Conflict quickly flickered across his eyes. "I’m sorry, Lola. I did my best and called everyone who could help, but it’s really hard to dig up anything useful about the Summit Partners."

"I see..." Lola rocked her head in understanding, not surprised that Silo still hadn’t found anything useful about the company.

The Summit Partners had once been a dying company, but was revived when it was bought and placed under someone else’s management. Now, the once-dying company was one of the leading companies in its field. Not only that, but many other companies—big and small—wanted a bridge to them. That alone was proof of how influential the company had become in the past four years since its takeover.

"Ahem!" Silo cleared his throat loudly to get her attention. He moved closer, making her raise a brow. "Lola."

"Why are you smiling?" she asked. "Is there any good news?"

Silo grinned. "Lawrence Young agreed to the price. We gave him a discount, but that discount is actually our original selling price since we initially quoted him a higher price, as you said." He chuckled. "He took the bait."

"See?" Lola pursed her lips as she peeled her eyes from him. Slowly, the corners of her mouth curved up because at least there was some good news.

"Prepare the papers," she ordered. "If he tries to haggle one last time, tell him we’re selling it to another interested buyer."

Silo furrowed his brows, watching her cast him a side-eye. "But you already turned down all interested buyers."

"I know." She smirked. "I’m just thinking... which one is better? Hurt his capital flow? Or... hurt his beloved daughter’s engagement?"