Chapter 46 The Sharp Lila
Hearing this, Tyler's eyes flashed with cold light. Just as he was about to approach me and make his next move, the door was pushed open and a small figure squeezed through the gap.
"Mommy, it's time for my bedtime story."
The standoff between Tyler and me was broken by Jasper. I quickly walked over to Jasper and picked him up. "Okay, I'll tell you a story."
Before leaving, I glanced at Tyler, my tone cold. "I'm sleeping with Jasper tonight."
With that, I left.
I didn't know how Tyler would react, but I knew he must be very angry. However, I didn't care, because he had never considered my feelings—not before, and not now.
-
Because I was with Jasper and didn't have time to check my phone, it wasn't until noon the next day that I saw the international student Zachary mentioned had added me on WhatsApp last night.
After accepting the friend request, I sent an apology first: [Sorry, I was with my kid and didn't check my phone]
The other person replied quickly, "You have a child? How old?"
I found this response strange, but still replied, "He'll be starting first grade next year."
It took about five minutes before they replied, "I got back to the country last night. Let's meet today and get to know each other."
Just got back last night and wants to meet today?
For some reason, even though the other person hadn't said anything unfriendly, my sixth sense told me something was off.
After hesitating, I still agreed.
Before I could ask about the time, the girl directly sent me an address.
Seeing a recent graduate younger than me using this commanding tone, an ominous feeling welled up in my heart.
But I quickly forced myself to control my emotions. She's just a kid fresh out of college—maybe I'm thinking too badly of her.
After lunch, since it was our first meeting and we'd be working together in the future, I took care to dress myself up nicely before heading to the appointment.
She'd chosen a dessert shop, even though I'm not really into sweets.
The meeting was set for 3 PM. There were very few customers inside, just a few couples. I found a seat and sent her a message.
But she never replied.
Time ticked by. After more than ten minutes, the dessert shop door was pushed open, and a stylishly dressed cool girl in a blue suit walked in.
She looked around, and I could tell right away she should be the international student.
So I waved, and when the girl saw me, she walked over and sat down across from me. Her eyes kept sizing me up.
This kind of look made me uncomfortable, so I spoke first. "You're late. Did something come up?"
The girl didn't answer my question, but smiled and said, "My name is Lila Donovan. What's yours?"
My brow twitched slightly, but I still answered, "I'm Sophia."
"Sophia..." Lila murmured, then said, "Sorry, I just got back to the country yesterday. When my dad heard I got a good job, he wanted to reward me with a car. We got held up at the dealership."
I looked her over politely. She was very pretty, but in a sharp way. Her eyes felt unfriendly, like she was constantly judging you.
I didn't respond to her showing off, but said, "The branch office construction is still in its early stages. At the earliest, it won't be fully operational until the end of this year or early next year. Right now we're just doing preparatory work for the branch."
Lila tilted her head back proudly, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly, her eyes showing an air of superiority. "That's fine. My dad's in business—he does renovations. I can have him do the company's renovation. He'll definitely give the best price, and work will go fast too."
I smiled slightly and declined Lila's "kind offer." "No need. I've already found a renovation company. They're already working on it. This can proceed normally—no need to rush it."
Lila crossed her arms, her eyes still sizing me up. "I heard about you when I was joining the company abroad. Everyone praised your abilities. I actually always thought you'd be the career woman type. When you said at noon that you're already married with a kid, I was pretty surprised."
"What's surprising about that?"
"Because once you're married, most of your energy goes to family and kids. Do you still have the energy for a career?"
At this moment, I was certain—Lila was not someone easy to deal with.
But I still maintained a polite smile. "That's my own business. My abilities will speak for themselves. It has nothing to do with whether I have kids or am married."
"How can it not matter? It matters a lot."
"Then explain."
Hearing this, Lila laughed, as if she found me amusing, or perhaps mocking me. Her laugh was three parts ridiculous, seven parts sarcastic.
"What did you do before?"
Watching Lila's dismissive attitude toward me, a feeling of disgust rose in my heart. I found Lila's voice extremely irritating.
I suppressed the urge to leave and answered honestly, "I got married right after college graduation. I haven't worked until now. But this is my privacy—you don't need to ask about it. And, I'll be your supervisor in the future. I think calling me Sophia isn't quite appropriate, but whatever, call me what you want."
Perhaps my deliberate mention of being her supervisor irritated her. She sneered and shrugged indifferently. "Let's wait until the branch is fully established. After all, nothing's set in stone yet."
I understood what Lila meant, of course. I remained calm and smiled slightly. "I don't think there will be any changes. If you have any objections, you don't need to tell me—just report to headquarters."
The corners of Lila's mouth lifted unconsciously, with a hint of smugness and mockery. "Sophia, don't misunderstand—I don't mean anything by it."
For some reason, Lila's manner now reminded me of Ava.
These two spoke in exactly the same way.
"I'm not misunderstanding anything. This is also your first job after entering society. I just hope we'll work together well in the future and develop in a positive direction together. That's all."
Lila laughed happily, her laugh smug and unrestrained. "Of course. Sophia, I understand what you mean. I'm just worried you won't be able to handle both family and work. Nothing else."
"These are all issues headquarters will consider. What you and I say doesn't count."
Perhaps my words were too direct. Lila's face showed a flash of anger. She picked up her phone to scan and order, asking casually, "I like desserts. I wonder if someone your age likes them?"