Angeline was confounded.
Nevertheless, she quickly tamped down her gossip-loving urges. What was most important at that moment was to explain what had just happened.
After all, Evander Goldingâs daughter was not someone she could afford to cross.
Angeline started, âMr. Golding, Iâm so sorry. What happened earlier was a misunderstanding. Your daughterâ¦â
Evanderâs expression was as gloomy as a graveyard.
It seems like I didnât get the wrong person earlier. Itâs her. The âAngelâ that Floretta was talking about is her too?
Previously, she stole the spotlight at the Sorelle residenceâs banquet. Then, she was able to make Floretta ask to make Angeline the girlâs mother. It was difficult for him not to suspect that she had ulterior motives.
âStop trying to come up with excuses. How can things be different from what weâve seen? Youâre an uncivilized woman. I wonât hold you accountable for the collision at the hotel, but youâve even hit a kid this time and tried to run off!â Olivine pointed at Angeline before turning to the security guards behind Isaac Jansen. âWhy are you still all standing there? Hurry up and take this woman to the police station!â
Before Isaac could recover from the shock of learning that Evander had a daughter, he heard Olivineâs accusation. It made him even more flustered. As he hesitated and waited for Evander to give him the instruction, he muttered, âIâ¦â
âNonsense! Angel didnât hit me! Even if she did, she wouldnât have done it on purpose. Daddy, this has nothing to do with Angel. This is all my fault!â Floretta cried out as she tugged Evanderâs pants and stared at Olivine fearlessly.
Olivine never expected Floretta to speak on behalf of Angeline, and she paled. As she tried to grab Florettaâs hand, she said, âFloretta, youâre still young, so you still canât differentiate a bad person from a good one. Let me tell you thisâthis womanâs an uncivilized bad person!â
âYouâre the bad person!â
Upon hearing Olivine slander Angeline, Floretta turned furious. Like a tiny tiger, she stepped away from the spot behind Evanderâs leg and glared at Olivine. âTo me, only Angel has the right to be my mommy.
Thereâs no way youâre going to marry my daddy and become Mrs. Golding. No way!â
Her words struck Olivineâs sore spot, and Olivine paled before grimacing. âYouââ
âThatâs enough!â Evander yelled to stop Floretta from saying any more.
His voice was a thunderous one, and Floretta promptly clamped her mouth shut to stop talking.
Nevertheless, she still glanced at Angeline and winked at the woman.
Words eluded Angeline at the girlâs action.
Iâve only seen her once, but why is she so adamant about making me her mommy? Itâll be impossible for me to clear my name with how smart Evander is.
âMr. Golding, there are surveillance cameras in the underground parking lot. If you donât believe me, you can always ask them to show you the footage. Iâll admit that I was wrong to have bumped into your daughter. I donât mind if you request compensation or something along those lines, and I promise Iâll bear the full responsibility for this,â Angeline sincerely told him.
Olivine scoffed. Right as she was about to retort Angeline again, Isaac cut in to say, âOur hotelâs underground parking lot has been under construction for three months straight a while before, so some of our surveillance cameras have yet to be installed. The spot where the incident happened might be at a blind spot.â
At that, Angeline fell silent.
Evander lowered his eyes.
If this is also part of the womanâs plan, then I must have underestimated her.
Evander then lowered his head to glance at Florettaâs still-bleeding arm before lifting her up with one hand. In a much softer tone, he asked, âDoes it hurt?â
Floretta froze for a second before biting her lower lip and nodding honestly.
In the next second, Evanderâs cold eyes landed on Angeline, and his tone was as glacial as his demeanor. âMs. Sorelle, you should know that the Golding family does not need your compensation.
Floretta is my precious daughter, and Iâm certain a childless woman like you, Ms. Sorelle, would not understand the protection a father seeks to give his daughter. If anything were to happen to Floretta today, the Sorelle family would never be able to live in Hallsbay ever again.â
With that said, Evander turned and left with Floretta in his arms. At the same time, he called out, âSylas, drive. Weâre going to the hospital.â
Olivine sneaked a glance at the frozen Angeline and sneered. After she vengefully hit Angelineâs shoulder with her shoulder, she left with Evander.