Hearing that, Skylar threw herself into his arms. The scent of sandalwood he used to carry had already been overpowered by the stench of alcohol.
Nothing else happened. The couple merely held each other and slept through the night.
Owing to the effects of alcohol, Tobias slept particularly soundly.
It had been a while since Skylar saw him manage without sleeping pills.
As Tobias fell asleep sooner than Skylar the night before and with his phone set to silent, Claudia was unable to reach him despite calling three times in a row.
Skylar saw them but dared not answer, as it could prove quite problematic should she let the elderly woman hear her voice on Christmas Eve.
Kai did a rather impressive job spying and had sent her some photos via WhatsApp.
The potential future daughter-in-law Claudia had her eye on was there with her alongside her own family, and it was a different woman this time.
Claudia was very concerned about her son’s marital arrangements and almost obsessive about ensuring that the candidate was one whom she approved of.
Skylar no longer bothered to keep tabs as it had become a little tiresome. She was sufficiently satisfied that Tobias stayed by her side through the night.
When Tobias heard a knocking at the door, he opened it to see Thomas with bags both large and small in hand, and Miranda in tow.
The way the door slammed shut behind these two uninvited guests drew a frown from Tobias, whose demeanor betrayed his displeasure. “Could you keep it down? Skylar’s still asleep.”
“What’s that girl still doing in bed at this time? If she’s not even going to get up to prepare breakfast, how’s she going to become somebody’s wife?”
Miranda was eager to coax any sort of assurances out of Tobias for Skylar’s sake.
Tobias was a little conflicted about the word “wife,” as the last time he used that word was during his schooling days.
He had no idea where the woman whom he last hailed that way from that ill-fated relationship had gone, but that was both the first and last time that he thought about building a future together with anyone.
“Actually, Mr. Ford, I came by today hoping that we’d be able to discuss the issue of Quest Group. I’m sure you already understand the situation, so you should know that I cannot afford any more delays.”
When Thomas heard that Tobias would be staying over here the night before, he was apprehensive about calling in too early for fear of disturbing his rest, while simultaneously afraid that the latter would be gone should he arrive too late.
That was why Thomas stayed up all night waiting for the right time to come over.
“I understand, but I’ve no interest in Quest Group. The process of restructuring a family business like this one and trying to make it viable is just too tedious. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to help solve this pressing problem of yours.” Tobias declined it rather assertively.
“I know that you aren’t bullish about Quest Group’s potential, but as an established company, we have a solid reputation in the industry and a network of clientele that’s second to none.”
Tobias remained unmoved. “No deal. We’ve been through this three times already, so I hope that this will be the last.”
At the side, Miranda swallowed and appeared lost in thought. Tobias was a tough customer. Whenever he had his mind made up, there was nothing anyone could say even to cause him to flinch.
Skylar was halfway down the steps when Tobias’ words reached her ears. “Do your daughter a favor? I guess y’all must be mistaken cause I don’t think she’s deserving of such a huge one.”
As reasonable as that was, it was a hard pill to swallow.
Tobias’ eyes were drawn to the landing of the steps by the sound of Skylar’s approach and remained transfixed upon her.
He beckoned for her to come over, but she chose to sit next to Miranda. He had no idea how much of their exchange she had overheard.
Thomas was disappointed at Tobias’ uncompromising stance and how this was turning out to be much harder than he thought.
