Chapter 7
I sent my bodyguards to buy more fruit and snacks, then looked around the small, 20 square–meter
apartment.
It was tiny but clean, though the stench from the neighboring units was pervasive.
I checked Justin’s bedroom. It was cramped, with only a small bed.
On the bedside table, I noticed a string of prayer beads.
Then I picked it up, Tina immediately said, “Auntie, you can’t touch Daddy’s things. Daddy says this is his most treasured possession besides me.”
His most treasured possession?
It was the prayer beads I had given Justin ten years ago, a keepsake from my late mother.
They weren’t valuable, but he had kept them all this time.
Not only that, but he had clearly been handling them carefully to avoid damaging the wood–he even wore gloves to do so. A pair of white gloves rested neatly on the bedside table.
My heart ached. Looking at Tina, I finally began to piece together the truth.
Just then, Justin rushed in.
He was running, his eyes red and tears streaming down his face.
He picked Tina up and backed away, asking through clenched teeth, “Why are you here?”
Taking a deep breath, I stood up, my voice trembling. “Tina… is she?”
“It’s none of your business!” Justin practically roared.
His reaction only confirmed my suspicions.
“Do you think you can hide it from me?” I countered.
Justin seemed to collapse, sinking to the floor with Tina in his arms. He cried as he said, “She’s my brother’s. But my brother and his wife had an accident–they’re gone.”
The Billionaire’s Hidden Daughter
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
You’ve been raising her in this environment for five years?”
I was angry and filled with regret.
Justin’s voice trembled as he said, “After what happened five years ago, I went to find you. But I saw you bringing different men home, and I…”
“Then…”
1
I was speechless for a moment but quickly regained my composure, my voice turning cold.
fen years ago, you humiliated me and chose Nicole Tanner. Why couldn’t I see other men?”
“Ten years ago, ten years ago…”
Justin Wells laughed through his tears, lifting his sorrowful eyes to meet mine. “Bonnie Bryson, you probably never knew this, but I secretly liked you the first time you helped me with a question. But I didn’t dare confess. Later, I couldn’t be with you because Nicole Tanner was chasing me. If I had agreed to be with you, she would’ve made your life miserable.”
His laughter turned into sobs as he continued, “Just before graduation, we promised to aim for the Ivy League together. But Nicole found me and said she wouldn’t force me to be with her as long as I rejected you. Otherwise, she’d lose face, and if she lost face, she’d make sure something happened to you before the exams. I had no choice but to agree.”
Hearing this, I couldn’t stop my tears.
Even though I’d already guessed most of it, it still hurt to hear it confirmed.
He went on, “Nicole said even after the exams, I could never be with you–not in this lifetime.
Otherwise, she’d find ways to ruin you. Her family was so rich, and I was scared.”
Wiping his tears, he added, “My grades suffered because of it. Even though I got into a university in Capital City, I secretly went to see you, but I didn’t dare approach you. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to control myself, and that would harm you.”
Justin looked at Tina and said, “If I hadn’t seen you with all those men, I would’ve thrown caution to the wind and gone to you for Tina’s sake.”
I didn’t know what to say.
-Justin continued, “Bonnie Bryson, I’ve stayed clean for you for five years. After that chance
The Billionaire’s Hidden Daughter
encounter, I stayed clean for another five years. But you already have jake by your side, and 1…
Jake is like a brother to me, and he’s going back home for a political marriage,” I quickly explained. “Justin, those men you saw were a misunderstanding. I never touched them. Please, chance to make it up to you and Tina.”
