Shut Up and Surprise Me

15. My Mouth is Shut

I run to Chloe and lower my body, my knees bending, to make sure my face is level with hers.

"Hey, I saw you in action on the videos Ashton sent me, and you were doing great. I'm very proud of you." I tuck her bangs behind her ears and wince. "I'm so, so sorry for not being able to make it to the performance."

Chloe doesn't say anything, nor nod at me. Her body is rigid, and her face is tense. Before I can say anything, she steps away from me and slips her hand into Ashton's palm. "Let's go home," she mumbles, and I don't know if her line is addressed to me or her father.

"Okay." I straighten my posture, my fingers fumbling with the car keys I forgot to put into my bag. "My car is parked outside, a little bit farther down the street."

"I'm going home with Ashton," Chloe says in a flat tone. "I came here with him."

I open my mouth, wanting to reply to her, but Ashton cuts in. "Alright. Let's get going. It's late, and it's dinner time for all of us." He shakes his head slightly at me, sending me an unspoken message that it's not the time to push our daughter further.

I nod in defeat because he's right. As much as I want to explain myself, she's too mad to listen to me, and getting caught in traffic jams is a classic excuse. Mom pats my shoulder, and Dad gives me a quick hug before they silently follow Ashton and Chloe to the building's main entrance. Sighing, I trudge in the same direction, completely forgetting that Danielle still stands beside me.

"Do you have a minute?" she asks.

I turn my head to Ashton's mom and nod. "Yeah."

"Let's go somewhere and talk." She looks around before striding to a door that brings us to a gym class.

I've been here a few times for the student-parent school activities. A basketball field is situated in the center of the room, surrounded by tribunes that create a U-shape that faces the podium. I can't see them clearly now since it's all dark. Only the light from the school corridor beams through the transom window above us, enough for us to see each other's faces.

Danielle doesn't wait until I close the door behind us. "I talked to Fred," she says.

If my heart tightened because I screwed up big time with Chloe, now my stomach churns from nervousness. Can my day get any worse than this? "Okay," I reply after I find my own voice. "And?"

"I'm taking his offer."

I gulp. "But didn't you talk to him like...this week?"

"This morning, to be precise."

"But why make a decision this fast?"

"Because" — she sighs and crosses her arms over her chest — "his offer makes the most sense for Trisure at the very moment."

"Emily agreed to this?"

"She will have to agree to what I decide."

Ugh. Of course. Why am I not surprised? What Ashton said about Emily being a puppet CEO is probably right. "So her opinion doesn't matter."

"That's not what I said. I'm still the official owner of the company, so I still have a full right to use my veto when necessary."

"What about Dickson? What did he say about this?"

"What does it matter to you?"

Maybe I just want to check if you're in the right mind right now. "I'm just worried that you don't get enough support from the rest, that's all."

"Well, he said I was taking a huge risk, but he understood our situation," she says. "We are sinking, and there is no use in denying it anymore. And Frederick came with an offer that was hard to refuse."