The CEO's Favorite

Chapter Twenty

Last night when I was with my friends, there was something Racheal said that stuck.

After I told them about my experience with Shawn, they asked me if I reported him to any authority because there was no other plausible reason for investors to start pulling out all of a sudden. My answer was negative. I didn't want to bring that kind of attention to myself because there was no way a story like that wouldn't make it to the tabloids.

It made me remember the time when Gabriel asked me the name of my boss and when I relayed this to them, Racheal pointed out that Gabriel may have done something.

I plan to ask him about it during dinner. I drive up to the address Gabriel's father gave me and there is some kind of button on a railing leading up to the gate. Guessing it's an intercom, I roll down my window and press on it. The gates open not long after.

Driving in, I notice that there's no other car outside. It's either Gabriel lives here (which I doubt because of the kind of relationship he has with his father) or he's late. Then, there's also the fact that I may be a little early. I check the time. It's literally 6:58 pm, so I guess not.

Leaving Lucas with Racheal wasn't a good idea, but I didn't have any choice. They're likely to still be up by 11 pm doing God knows what, but it can be excused because he's still suspended and doesn't have to go to school until next week. His schoolwork next week will be crazy though.

The compound is huge, but I don't expect less from someone like him when his son is an actual billionaire.

I walk to the door and ring the bell. Gabriel's father opens the door almost immediately. He's dressed casually in a shirt and jeans and I'm happy I didn't dress as formally as I originally planned to. With Racheal's help, I'm putting on a blue blouse and black jeans, complemented by my only pair of boots.

"Aria, come in." He says with a big smile. "My wife would've joined us, but she is out of town at the moment."

That makes me realize I know nothing about Gabriel's family. I don't know if he has any siblings. I don't know if his relationship with his mother is as salty as the one he has with his father.

I smile back at him and walk in, as I take in the decor of the house. It'll be a bit weird having dinner with my boss's father, but at least, Gabriel will be here to make things less weird. Hell, I wonder why he offered dinner in the first place.

"You have a wonderful place," I say politely.

"I know." He grins. It's quite unsettling, but I decide to brush it off. "Thanks to the Mrs. She has good taste."

"I'm sure she does," I reply as he leads me to the dining room. There's no sign of Gabriel. I take a peek at my watch. It's 7:02 pm. "Is Gabriel going to be late?" I ask, moving on to a more neutral topic. At least, I know I'll be comfortable talking about him.

"My bad, I didn't tell you earlier." He pulls out a seat for me. "He won't be able to make it. He's swamped with work as usual."

I frown. Gabriel? Swamped with work? Is this because he has helped me with Lucas for the past two days? Knowing him, he'd drop everything to spend time with Lucas, making him fall short on his work. I don't know why they enjoy each other's company so much anyway.

"I'm sure my company isn't that bad, is it?"

I shake my head. "No, it's fine." It's just dinner anyway. It shouldn't take more than an hour. Even if I don't know what we will talk about, I am certain I'll be able to handle an hour with this man. Well, at least, I thought I would.

I wait patiently as he brings in the food, telling me that he made it himself and that I'll like it. When he's settled opposite me, he starts talking. "So how is it like working with my son?"

The question is unexpected. It catches me off guard because I don't know how to answer that question. Working with Gabriel is crazy. Some days, I don't see him and when I haven't seen him for a while, he calls me up to his office just to 'see my face'. The special treatment he gives me is obvious, which makes some of my colleagues dislike me. We have a relationship that's not very professional and I don't know how to feel about it.

I can't tell his father all this though, which is why I merely smile and say, "It's alright. I don't run into him much since our floors are far apart."

Patrick nods his head, taking a spoonful of his food. "You like working there, no?"

Surprisingly, "I do."

He nods again. His interrogation is making me suspicious, but I try not to be paranoid. Not everyone is out to get me. "And your son? Lucas. How's he?"

"How do you know about Lucas?"

"I saw him in Gabriel's office." He shrugs, blinking innocently. He completely dismisses his previous question, asking a new one instead. "How's Lucas' father?"

"He's not around anymore," I answer, my tone a little clipped. It's not like I don't like talking about him. It's just the way Patrick asks his questions; it makes me think he's up to something.

"And you used to work at Landon and co?"

I drop my fork hastily and it clatters on the plate, the sound reverberating around the room. "What?"

"I did my homework on you, Aria." His friendly smile leaves his face as he assesses me with a glare that has me confused.

"You ran a background check on me?" I ask incredulously and he nods, not feeling remorseful at all. "Why? Do you do that to all your employees?"

"Just the ones my son is interested in."

The statement takes me by surprise and has my face turning red. I know Gabriel is interested in me, but having his father know that too is kind of embarrassing for some reason, which is why I try to deny it. "Why would you think that? He's not!"

"It's not every day you see the boss babysitting his employee's son, Aria." He abandons his food and leans forward, looking as serious as ever. "Gabriel is interested in you, but you're not good for him, so I'd advise you to keep a distance."

My brows furrow. "What do you mean?"

"You have a child." He says this with distaste, like having a child is a bad thing. "You're a single mother. Gabriel doesn't need that kind of responsibility, caring for a child that isn't his."

"Oh, and you know what's best for Gabriel, how?" I don't care about being polite anymore. He lost my respect as soon as he brought Lucas being a burden into the conversation.

He ignores my question. "I have connections. I can get you a job anywhere else. Just name a place."

"This is why you invited me to dinner?" I ask incredulously. I thought I'd be able to handle him for an hour. It's not even ten minutes yet and I'm already sick of his presence.

"How much does Gabriel pay you? I can make sure wherever you end up working pays you twice as much."

"It's not about the fucking money, okay?" I snap, not caring that I'm cursing in front of my boss's father. "I love working at DH Tech and I am not going to quit."

"You're going to regret this, Aria." Patrick glowers at me. The first time he saw me, he was nice to me because he found out who my parents were, and now, he hates me just because I have a child. How shallow can this man be? "This is the easy way out. I don't think you can handle it the hard way."

His switch-up is concerning and his words instill a bit of fear in me, but I don't let it show. I can't. "Are you threatening me?"

"Just giving you friendly advice. You wouldn't want anything to happen to you or your son, would you?"

I shake my head, done with his stupid ass dinner. "You're a psychopath."

Not waiting for a response from him, I pick up my bag and leave.