"Hello, Mirabel. I want you in my office right now," Mr. Roberts demanded over the phone, his voice laced with urgency.
Thirty seconds later, Mirabel entered her father's office, her face a mix of curiosity and concern. "Dad, you asked for me?" she inquired.
Mr. Roberts had managed to regain some composure, but his frustration still lingered. He asked her, "Where did you go yesterday?"
Mirabel didn't hesitate in her response. "I went to the beach," she said, wondering why her father was suddenly so interested in her whereabouts.
Her father continued his inquiry, "Did you offend anybody?"
Mirabel shook her head. "Nope, why would you think that?"
However, as Mirabel recalled the events of the beach trip, she couldn't help but mention something that caught her attention. "But wait, that reminds me. I saw the darling princess of Ethan Sterling at the beach. She introduced herself as Emily Hertz. I asked my cameraman to check if there was any big shot with a name like that, but he said no."
Mirabel's voice was filled with disbelief as she continued, "And you know what's even more absurd? I asked Mia, Ethan's daughter, and she said Emily was her new mommy. Can you believe that?"
Mirabel dismissed it as the feeble attempts of another admirer of Ethan, attempting to get closer to him through his daughter. However, she remained oblivious to the anger building in her father's face.
But before Mirabel could react, her father's rage erupted. He shouted, "Shut up, you good-for-nothing brat!" As his hand flew across her face in anger, Mirabel felt the sting of his slap.
Her father's voice quivered with anger as he continued, "Do you have any idea what you've just done? You've offended someone you barely know, and now our company is on the verge of closing up!"
As Mirabel processed the gravity of her actions, her father's thoughts raced. "What do I do now?" he wondered, filled with anxiety and regret as he paced back and forth in his office.