The Day I Went Silent Chapter 14
“Dad brought me here.”
Meilani looked up, his little face slightly flushed with excitement, and gleefully pointed behind Olivia.
Olivia turned around and met the man’s eyes.
He wore a custom-tailored suit that accentuated his tall, upright figure. His facial features were sharply defined with a high bridge of the nose, and his dark green eyes exuded a hint of coldness.
Olivia’s gaze darted back and forth between that distinctly non-Eastern face and Meilani’s beautiful Chinese features. She asked hesitantly, “This is your… dad?”
Had she just stumbled upon a child trafficker?
“Meilani is not my child; he just likes calling me dad.”
The man rubbed Meilani’s head, a touch of helplessness in his tone, and then extended his hand to Olivia.
“Hello, I’m Levi Carter.”
He spoke in Chinese, his pronunciation standard, though carrying a slight foreign accent.
Olivia shook his hand, feeling the temperature of his fingertips — slightly cool, much like the man himself.
Levi was a man of great refinement. After sitting down, he casually chatted with Olivia, steering the conversation perfectly so there were no awkward silences.
Mostly, they talked about Meilani.
As they were wrapping up, Olivia confessed, “When my professor sent me here, he told me he hoped I could secure your investment.”
Surprised by her bluntness, Levi paused for a moment before the corners of his lips curled up. “Oh?
And how did Ms. Sterling reply?”
Olivia looked straight into his dark green eyes and shrugged. “I said I wasn’t very good at this sort of thing. It seems that’s true; I probably won’t be bringing him good news.”
Levi chuckled, his cold features softening. “No, I think Ms. Sterling is quite good at it.”
“To ensure I get to see Ms. Sterling again, I will seriously consider the investment.”
Olivia froze.
She was no stranger to that kind of look.
Before she married Julian, back when she was still in college, many male students used to look at her exactly like that.
Back then, she was still the radiant Ms. Sterling, not the exhausted and miserable Mrs. Vance, worn down by an unbearable marriage.
Olivia lowered her head, offering no response to his words.
Not long after, the old professor happily treated several research groups to dinner, announcing that he had secured Levi’s investment.
Levi also constantly invited Olivia out for coffee or meals.
Most of the time, Olivia refused, but on a few occasions, Meilani would run over to her, looking up with pleading eyes: “Aunt Sterling, come eat with us.
Please.”
After meeting Levi, the kid had changed how he addressed her from ‘Olivia’ to ‘Aunt Sterling.’ It didn’t take a genius to figure out why.
Helpless, Olivia crouched down and patted his head. “Meilani, I’m very busy. How about we eat together next time we get the chance?”
“Don’t lie to me.”
Meilani stared at her with big, watery eyes. “I already asked Mr. Winston. He said he gave you guys some time off.”
Dr. Winston was Olivia’s advisor.
She hadn’t expected Meilani to be so observant. Her eyes shifted thoughtfully before she coaxed him in a low voice, “Then tell your dad, and I’ll take you to the amusement park. How about that?
Just the two of us.”
Meilani’s eyes lit up, clearly tempted by the offer.
But soon, he pouted in disappointment: “Can we go to the amusement park next time? Dad won’t let me go alone with you this time.”
“We can just do it and tell them afterward. How would he know?”
Olivia quickly said.
Meilani looked completely lost, not quite understanding the phrases, and simply pointed behind her: “Dad probably already knows.”
Olivia stiffened and whipped around.
It was dusk, and fine snowflakes drifted down from the leaden sky.
Levi stood under the streetlight with a black umbrella, his figure appearing even taller and leaner.
He looked at Olivia with a half-smile, an oppressive aura spreading around him: “I didn’t realize Ms. Sterling hated me so much.”