Chapter 85 - Daddy Dominant's Good Girl

Ken gave me a cheeky grin and held his hand out. Reluctantly, I handed him his snacks and shook my head. He was such a little planner.

I glanced at Ellis, who was still smirking, a glow of fatherly pride in his eyes.

“Could you try not to look so proud?” I grumbled at him.

“I can’t help it,” Ellis said, chuckling. “Ken is very smart.”

The doorbell rang and I tuned out the sound, knowing the butler would take care of it. I went to the refrigerator to get Ken a glass of milk to go with his snacks.

“As long as you aren’t sick, you can drink your milk with your snacks,” I said. I put the glass on the table and patted the chair. Ken climbed up and started munching.

I heard a noise in the entry hall and creased my brow. The butler had raised his voice and I heard some of the maids murmuring.

“What is going on?” I muttered. I stepped out the kitchen doorway so I could hear what was going on. The entry hall was too far for me to see, but I heard another female voice responding to the butler.

“Are you expecting company?” Ellis asked, giving me a suspicious look. It wasn’t hard to tell what he was thinking.

I glared at him. “I told Bennett not to come. Ken didn’t want him here,” I said, smoothing out Ken’s hair while I stood behind his chair. “I should see what is going on.”

I left Ken and Ellis in the kitchen and went down to the entry hall. The butler and two maids were there, barring Bethany at the door. She wasn’t alone and she had the smuggest smile on her face like she was about to ruin my day.

“Bethany, what are you doing here?” I asked. I crossed my arms and came up behind the maid and butler.

“Oh, Olivia, it is so good to see you,” Bethany said, flashing me a fake smile. She was dressed nicely, as always, with sapphire and diamond jewelry dripping off of her. She just couldn’t help showing off her wealth.

The gemstones were real but it bordered on tacky, how she wanted to flaunt the money she now had.

“You’re not welcome in my mother’s home, Bethany. You renounced us as family,” I reminded her.

I noticed several other people standing behind Bethany. One of them was a man in a nice suit with a briefcase. He looked like a lawyer.

“Actually, you’re not welcome here,” Bethany said, her fake smile stretching wider.

“Leave, Bethany, or I’m going to call the cops. Take your ragtag posse with you,” I said, nodding to the people outside.

Bethany scoffed. She held her hand over her shoulder and snapped her fingers.

Snap. Snap. Snap.

The lawyer looking man stepped forward and handed Bethany a few papers out of his briefcase. She flipped through them quickly and then waved the pages in front of my face.

“You see these? These are deed papers and transfer of ownership,” Bethany said, continuing to dangle the pages for me to see.

“I know for a fact that my mother wouldn’t transfer ownership of anything she owns, let alone her house, to you,” I said. I glared harder at her.

Bethany’s smile faded, her careful façade broken for a moment. Then she scoffed and started laughing.

“I never understood why Daddy didn’t divorce mom after she found out about his affair and basically kicked him aside,” Bethany went on. “Turns out, it was all so he could give me everything I never had.”

Bethany shoved the papers into my hands and I sighed, looking them over. They were deed papers and transfer of ownership. I saw my father’s signature on them and the seals on the pages were all official. I didn’t think that they were forged, not with a lawyer standing there. If he was even remotely good at his job, he’d be able to tell a forged document.

“Where did you get these?” I asked, flipping through the pages for a second time.

“Daddy called me to the hospital a few days ago. In his current state, he is feeling certain regrets, like never claiming me as his legitimate daughter. So, now, he has signed over all assets to me. He’s in a coma and medically incapacitated, so the rights of ownership switch to me until he becomes conscious again, if he ever does,” Bethany explained.

“No,” I said, shaking my head.

“You can’t argue with the paperwork,” Bethany said, shrugging dramatically.

I ran my thumb over one of the notarized seals. Why would my dad sign over all his assets? Almost everything he’d had with my mother was a joint asset but I knew that after they separated, my mother converted the majority of her assets into cash and put it in accounts separate from my father.

That way, if they ever did get a divorce, she wouldn’t lose anything. Since they were still legally married, he’d allowed her to live in the mansion they had in the city, especially since he’d been traveling more for work and had downsized to an inner-city apartment instead of a whole mansion.

“He wouldn’t do this,” I muttered.

“Well, the paperwork says he would and it isn’t like you can ask him, now,” Bethany sneered.

“Don’t look so happy. Our father is dying,” I reminded her, shoving the papers back into her hands.

Bethany shrugged indifferently. “I’m just glad to be getting what is owed me. After living so long in your shadow, now Daddy has left me everything and you nothing.”

“I guess I have no choice,” I muttered. Bethany had come prepared with reinforcements, like a lawyer and some buff looking members of her family.

She held her chin up. “The staff are more than welcome to stay. I’ll keep them well paid as long as they prove their loyalty to me and the Diaz family,” she said, smiling as nicely as she could at the butler and maids.

“We won’t betray the Richardsons,” the butler said. He’d been employed by my parents since I was two years old. I knew all the staff loyalty ran deep.

Bethany scrunched up her nose. “Fine, then you can leave too. I want all of you out of here, immediately. This is my property now and every single one of you are trespassing,” she said snidely.

“We’ll leave,” I assured. “Can we have a little time to pack our things?” I asked.

Bethany held her chin high and straightened up so she appeared taller. “You have until the end of the day. Then, you’ll be out on the streets. And I can’t wait to see you, sister, homeless and on the streets.”

I shuddered at the thought. I had a son to take care of and a little bit of money. My mom would need to get a new place, too. It would be expensive to relocate us all. We’d be on hard times for a while, especially with how bad business had been.

“Fortunately, none of the Richardsons will end up homeless on the street,” Ellis’ deep, smooth voice filled the space as he came up behind me.

Bethany’s face paled slightly. “Wh-what are you doing here?” she asked, glaring.

“I don’t believe that is any of your business,” Ellis said casually.

“It is! This is my house now. I have a right to know what you’re doing here,” Bethany said, her composure crumbling as her voice rose.

I smiled a little, enjoying how she couldn’t stand up to Ellis while keeping her image up. She always lost it around him like a whining child.

“And along with Olivia and Ken, I will be out of here by the end of the day. But you will not get the satisfaction of seeing Olivia or your adopted mother struggle financially. I have many Peterson properties throughout the city, vacant and fully furnished,” Ellis said.

My cheeks warmed and chanced a quick glance at Ellis. His dark eyes were focused on Bethany, boring into her like nails. I didn’t care if he was telling the truth to help my family or if he was just denying Bethany the satisfaction of thinking I’d be on the streets.

Even if Ellis wanted some ‘payment’ for his favor this time, I would come to an arrangement with him. He was right, he had the real estate to put us up. I’d pay him back, whatever it took.

“Well, aren’t you just the white knight?” Bethany sneered.

“Sling whatever you want at me, Bethany. There is one thing I’ll always have that you never will,” I said.

“And what’s that? I’ve already taken your inheritance, your family home, your father’s love, and your ex-fiancé,” she said.

I shook my head. It was just low for her to bring up Carl after so many years.

“I have true friends, loyal friends, friends that care about me because they like me not because I paid for their loyalty,” I said.

Bethany’s jaw dropped open. “Get out of my house!” she screeched.

“Come, Olivia, I will take you mansion shopping through Peterson real estate. By the end of the day, you’ll have a new house so big and luxurious, this one will fit in the front yard. Your staff are welcome to relocate as well,” Ellis offered, giving Bethany a dark smile.

“Why are you helping her?” Bethany asked, pointing at me. “Ellis, you and I could be a powerful team together. We could do great things. Just drop her and get in business with me.”

Bethany shifted her hips back and forth like she was trying to be seductive. I didn’t think Ellis would ever fall for something like that but due to our conflicted past, I still looked at him, biting my lower lip.

Ellis sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Sorry, Bethany, there’s nothing you can offer that I want,” he said bluntly.

Again, Bethany’s jaw dropped. She crossed her arms and her face turned beet red.

“Olivia Richardson is a close friend of the Peterson family, in fact all the Richardsons are. While that remains true, I will not let any of them live in poverty or under financial strain. Perhaps, Bethany, you shouldn’t have renounced the Richardson name,” Ellis continued.

Bethany’s nostrils flared and she gripped her hand around the deed papers, scrunching them together. Her arms shook.

I bit the inside of my cheek to hide my smile. I didn’t know how he did it, but Ellis always knew exactly what to say to get a ride out of other people.

As spiteful and rude as Bethany was, I knew that Ellis would make good on his word and see us taken care of, even my mother.

I felt my heart opening up to trusting him again.