Jonathan watched Eleanor leave. A girl with a petite frame but sharp, determined eyes. Every word she uttered sounded straightforward, firm, and logical. Jonathan was momentarily amazed by her. Although Jonathan had heard a lot about her from the informant he had commissioned, after meeting her in person, Jonathan knew that the girl's worth was more than what his informants conveyed.
Well, the informants had told Jonathan a lot before he offered the deal to Chad Caldwell. Even long before the unfortunate incident befell the family. One could say that Jonathan was involved in the deception of the Chadwell family. It was wicked indeed, but Jonathan thought, only this could trap Eleanor. He needed a girl with a clear origin and worthy character to be his second wife. Jonathan didn't want his child to be born from just any woman. Because genes are something that will greatly influence the quality of his descendants in the future, and Eleanor was one of several girls recommended by his informants, coincidentally, Jonathan liked her the most among the recommended girls.
Jonathan's phone rang. He immediately reached into his pocket and answered the call. "Yes, Lizzy?" Jonathan greeted someone on the other end, his wife.
"How did it go? Is the girl willing?"
Jonathan smiled slightly upon hearing the question posed by Lizzy. It seemed that she was much more excited than he was. "Yes. She agreed," Jonathan replied, not trying to hide his joy at all. He knew that Lizzy had also been longing for the arrival of their child.
Lizzy's breath could be heard on the other end. "Thank goodness. I knew, no one can resist money."
"I think the reason isn't just because of money," Jonathan countered. Well, even though Jonathan didn't know why Eleanor accepted this marriage quickly—not according to his predictions—but after talking to her, Jonathan was sure that her reason wasn't solely because of money. "But anyway, I'm grateful she accepted this marriage without much drama."
Lizzy chuckled softly. "Alright. I'm glad to hear that. When will you be coming home? I'll prepare dinner for you."
Jonathan shook his head, even though he knew Lizzy couldn't see it. "I'll be back to the office. Father is waiting for me, Lizzy."
"Um, okay. Let me know if you're coming home." Lizzy sounded slightly disappointed, no matter how hard she tried to conceal it.
"Yes. You go ahead and eat first. I'll try to come home early tonight."
After hearing Lizzy's response, the call ended. Jonathan stood up from his seat. He left some money on the table and walked away from the bar.
***
The giant Turnerhail Company stood proudly in the middle of Helena city. Its tower could even be seen from a distance of several hundred meters due to its magnificence. Actually, the parent company was located in Manhattan, still run by Henry Turner to this day. While the branch in Helena, Montana, was managed by Jonathan since its establishment five years ago.
The elevator took Jonathan to the top floor, where his office was located. As he stepped out, he was immediately greeted by his secretary, Liliana, a woman in her early forties who had been Jonathan's secretary since he served in Manhattan as head of the marketing division. Just because Jonathan was the son of the CEO of Turnerhail Ltd, didn't mean he immediately got a high position. Initially, Jonathan was just an ordinary employee. The treatment he received was also the same as other employees. His rise to the point where he became the CEO of the Helena branch was achieved through his own hard work. The competition among siblings made Jonathan work very hard to gain his father's trust. He made various efforts to gain recognition from everyone. And all his efforts were not in vain, until the issue of descendants became a problem magnified by his competitors.
"Mr. Henry Turner is waiting for you, sir."
Jonathan nodded briefly, walking towards his office followed by Liliana behind him. As he opened the door, a figure with almost ninety percent resemblance to him turned. The man with sharp facial features very similar to his own nodded slightly to welcome his son.
"I heard you just met the girl, Jonathan?" Henry Turner, Jonathan's father, asked.
Jonathan approached the man, sitting on the sofa opposite him. Before answering his father's question, Jonathan glanced at Liliana first. Signaling her to bring refreshments for his father. Liliana, of course, already knew what she should bring for each guest who came to meet Jonathan.
"Yes. We will have the wedding in no more than a week," Jonathan said.
Henry didn't answer immediately. For a few seconds, he looked at his son, scrutinizing. "Are you sure about the decision you're about to make? And can you guarantee it won't cause any problems in the future?"
Jonathan nodded firmly. "I wouldn't go this far if I wasn't confident enough and didn't prepare everything thoroughly."
"I don't want any unnecessary issues to arise, then tarnish Turnerhail's reputation."
Jonathan chuckled softly. "Hasn't Turnerhail's image been tarnished since Dad married Amanda?"
The sarcastic question that was 'slightly' impolite made Henry hold his breath. He seemed to be trying to restrain himself from responding to the attack made by his second son. He knew well, as always, a heated debate would be very difficult to stop if he responded. While he and Jonathan were both strong-willed and unwilling to lose.
"Stop provoking me and just make sure everything goes smoothly," the old man muttered eventually.
Jonathan just smirked. Looking at his father with a slightly scornful gaze. Deep down, he had a strong desire to feed all of the man's ego and then bring him down in one fell swoop. But when he thought that the man still held the title of his biological father—and would remain so no matter what—Jonathan tried to be a little generous. He knew, no matter how stubborn Henry was, he was still a father who had once been a hero in his life.
"Has Dad ever seen me do anything half-heartedly? Or have I made a big mistake in my work?" Jonathan replied straightforwardly.
Henry nodded slowly. "What about Lizzy's family?"
"I'll take care of everything. Dad just needs to accept the outcome."
Jonathan stared straight at his father. The man who shaped him into a stubborn human, a hard worker—tending to be ambitious, a perfectionist, and a man of steel mentality. No one ever imagined that the child of the owner of such a giant company would go through so many difficult things. But Jonathan really went through it all. Besides being raised harshly, he was also raised with many wounds. Jonathan even still remembered all the types of wounds that Henry had inflicted on him up to now, and probably would never forget them no matter how long.
A slightly satisfied expression appeared on old Henry's face, making Jonathan relieved and hoping that everything would go smoothly as planned. Whether because he had the same genes as Henry—or because Henry's upbringing shaped his character—Jonathan more or less had the same traits as him. Jonathan wouldn't let small things affect anything he had planned.
Liliana entered carrying a tray of snacks and herbal tea that Henry had been consuming for the past few years. Perhaps his age, which was no longer young, made him aware of his health. Yet Jonathan remembered clearly, his father used to be a hard-line
alcohol lover. In his private room, the distinctive aroma of alcohol was always present. When the baseball bat flew and hit his leg, foul words came out of his mouth along with the smell of alcohol.
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