Stella paused for a moment. Olivia smirked, and Adam turned his gaze to Aurora. Even he was surprised.
"You are admitting to it?" Stella asked. She was taken aback because she had been waiting for Aurora to lie so she could catch her in her trap. Unfortunately, Aurora slipped away so easily.
"Why not?" Aurora stared at her, feigning confusion. "I did leave the country to get inspiration for Fruit Punch Champagne."
"Well done." Adam nodded proudly and continued eating, but his stubborn wife refused to let things slide.
She was already annoyed that Aurora didn't lie and now, she just learnt that she actually left the country. Who knows who Aurora met and what she did there without her knowledge?
"Which country did you travel to?" Stella questioned, her gaze narrowing.
"I think you can easily find that out just like how you discovered that I haven't been at my apartment," Aurora replied, turning her gaze away.
Adam's gaze darkened as he understood the situation she just hinted at. Immediately, his gaze snapped to Stella. "You had people following her?"
"N-No! W-Why W-Would—." Stella stammered, her gaze wide in fear as she tried to deny it. She never expected Aurora to find out or for Adam to think deeply about her response.
"Dad, Mum didn't do anything like that," Olivia quickly came to her mother's defence, but how could Adam believe them so easily?
He had watched how they went through every room in Aurora's apartment like a thief plus the silly questions Stella had posed. So, he didn't need anyone to tell him otherwise.
"Stella, is this why you sent your daughter to lure me into this surprise visit?" Adam interrogated as the corners of his lips turned downwards. He felt a blow to his pride at how the mother and daughter used him to achieve their goal.
How was he supposed to face Aurora now?
Stella glared daggers at Aurora before quickly explaining with pleading eyes, "I only did it because I was worried. Aurora didn't come home last week for dinner as you had instructed."
"Does this emotion of yours justify the reason you had people tail her?!" Adam jabbed a finger to her face. He was beyond furious. "Is my daughter a criminal that should be watched?"
"N-No—Adam, please calm down," Stella tried to plead, knowing the situation had turned against her.
Olivia joined to beg on her mother's behalf, saying she had done it out of love.
Meanwhile, Aurora continued eating as she watched the drama unfold before her.
"What stupid love?!" Adam flared up, rising to his feet. "The both of you, drop your cutlery this instant and come home with me!"
"Ah!" Olivia exclaimed, eyes, growing wide in shock. "D-Dad -But we are not done eating. We haven't even popped the champagne sister made."
"W-What?" Adam's jaw flexed. "You still have the guts to pop and drink champagne? Over what exactly? That your mother had unknown men keeping an eye on your sister?"
Olivia kept shaking her head in fright as Adam asked one question after the other, his gaze darkening with every moment that passed.
"You two planned this right?" Adam asked. The next moment, without having to repeat his earlier instructions to them, he slapped Olivia right across her smooth face.
Immediately, Olivia palmed the side of her face that was slapped as her eyes turned teary. It took her a moment to recover from the shock of getting hit by her father. She hadn't seen it coming.
Stella took a sharp inhale of air as she stood to her feet. She checked Olivia before directing an angry gaze at him. "Adam, did you just hit our daughter? How could you do such a thing?"
"Do you want to get hit too?" Adam threatened. And he meant every bit of that statement. "What part of 'drop your cutlery this instant and come home with me' did you not understand?"
Stella seethed. She glanced at Aurora and spat, "It's all your fault!" But the latter didn't even bother to look at her.
Aurora poured water into her glass and drank a mouthful before setting the cup in front of her. Then she picked up her cutlery again.
"Are you blaming her in my presence?" Adam asked. He was raging mad.
Stella shifted her gaze to him for a moment before taking Olivia's hand. "Let's go."
"Withdraw those men you put around Aurora. Failure to comply will lead to severe consequences. For example, facing stalking charges or even an arrest!" Adam threatened as he watched the mother and daughter leave his sight.
As soon as they were left alone, Adam sat down and apologized to Aurora. "I will ensure that nothing like this happens again," he assured her.
"Dad, I don't want any random visits without prior notice," Aurora stated clearly, her tone completely devoid of emotion. She had to make her stance clear otherwise, her father won't take the case seriously.
"I understand," Adam replied. "Find some time to come home this weekend."
"I'm busy with my product launch, I don't have time to sit and chat this weekend. I will come next week," she said.
Aurora walked her father to the elevator and as soon as the doors closed, the domestic team that had come with her stepped out from the corner.
"We will tidy up the apartment and escort you back to Mr. Scott's residence," the domestic secretary informed.
Xander was waiting for her in the living room when she returned. "How was it? I hope you didn't experience any problems?"
"There wasn't. Thank you for today." Aurora released a deep sigh as she took the couch next to him. If she hadn't gone back to her apartment, today, she wouldn't have been able to expose her stepmother in the way she did. And it was all thanks to him.
"I'm glad everything went well. Have you had dinner?" Xander asked, uncrossing his legs with his gaze on her.
"Yeah." Aurora relaxed into her seat, meeting his gaze. "How come your staff know how to do stuff like planting evidence? Did you teach them?"
Xander admitted with a smile, "They learn from the best."
Aurora watched him for a moment. She didn't think an ordinary CEO of a tech company would have such ideas, so she asked, suddenly remembering the secret path, "Are you a mafia boss or a criminal gang leader?"
Instantly, Xander's eyes lost their shine. He was offended by her question. "Aren't you thinking too much?"
At the other end, Olivia folded her arms and sniffed. She stared at the lighted roads on the ride back home thinking back to the humiliation she experienced.
"Mum, you have to get revenge for me," she said without looking at her mother who was sitting right next to her in the car.
"I will," Stella promised with determination, patting her hand gently.