The Heart Returns

Maldric never expected to see his own daughter standing there.

Naomi simply watched as her father’s expression shifted—from surprise to shock, then confusion, longing...

And then, all of it vanished, leaving behind a completely indifferent face.

“What brings you here today? Did your husband get into trouble again?”

That’s right. In Maldric’s mind, ‘husband’ still referred to Kael.

In the past, the only times his daughter ever sought him out were when Kael needed financial support. That was why he had hardened his heart. He knew all too well that the Rhodes family was using his daughter as leverage.

But his daughter loved Kael, so he could only remain firm. As long as he was around, as long as Swift Group stood, Kael and his family would never dare mistreat her.

Yet today, there was a hint of sarcasm in his tone that Naomi hadn’t noticed before.

Wait—did he think Atty got into trouble often?

However, looking at her father’s face, she suddenly felt that he seemed much older than she remembered.

Tears welled up in her eyes, on the verge of falling. “Dad...”

Seeing his daughter cry, Maldric panicked instantly. He jumped to his feet. “What’s wrong? Hey, don’t cry! Did those people bully you?”

He only had one daughter. And after what happened with his son... How could he not love her?

Naomi threw herself into her father’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably. “Dad, I missed you so much.”

Maldric sighed and gently patted her back, though his eyes burned with anger.

His daughter had always been strong-willed. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have gone two whole years without speaking to him after he cut off the Rhodes family’s funding.

He could only imagine how much the Rhodes family had mistreated her for her to cry like this.

This was the first time he had ever seen his daughter cry so heartbreakingly.

“It’s okay, Naomi. Tell me who bullied you, and I’ll burn their house to the ground.”

There was a rogue-like aura about him. After all, Maldric had been a troublemaker in his youth, known for getting into fights. If he hadn’t fallen in love at first sight with Naomi’s mother, he would never have become the CEO of Swift Group.

Naomi’s mother was the epitome of grace—a true lady of noble upbringing. She always wore elegant dress and carried herself with quiet dignity. When Maldric pursued her, he feared that his rough nature would scare her off, so he pretended to be a refined gentleman.

But at their very first meeting, he blew his cover. She saw him get into a fight. So, he simply stopped pretending.

No one had expected that this unruly man would end up marrying the most beautiful woman in Elaris.

“Pfft!”

Naomi couldn’t help but laugh. “Dad, if Mom hears you talking like that, you’ll be in big trouble.”

Of course, her elegant mother wouldn’t resort to physical punishment. But the moment she shed a tear, her father wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Seeing his daughter smile, Maldric finally felt relieved. “So, tell me, what’s going on?”

“Nothing really. I just missed you and Mom. Oh, and I really want to eat your mushroom risotto.”

Mushroom risotto were Naomi and her mother’s favorite dish. It was also the one dish Maldric had perfected.

Since she wasn’t willing to talk, Maldric didn’t push her. He simply doted on her. “Come home tonight, I’ll make them for you.”

“Okay! I’ll bring Atty with me.”

Maldric froze. Atty?

How long had it been since he last heard that name from his daughter’s lips?

Just as he stood there in a daze, Naomi had already called Atlas.

“Atty! Daddy’s making mushroom risotto tonight. Come over!”

Whatever was said on the other end must’ve been good, because his daughter’s face lit up. She happily said “okay!” and then hung up.

Maldric’s eyes shifted uneasily. “Sweetheart… are you and Atlas on good terms again?”

Ever since she met that bastard Kael, she hadn’t mentioned Atlas at all. They all assumed Naomi didn’t want to talk about him, so naturally, they tried not to bring him up either.

Naomi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Did she really, as Atlas had said, get mad at him just because he went on a business trip and didn’t tell her?

She looped her arm through her dad’s and pulled him toward the sofa. “Daddy, actually… I was in a car accident yesterday.”

“What?!”

Maldric had barely sat down before jumping right back up. “A car accident?! Where did you get hit? Did you get checked out? Come on—let’s go to the hospital right now.”

Naomi quickly grabbed her panicked father. She knew it—if he found out about the accident, he’d definitely lose it.

“Dad, calm down. I’m fine, really. Atty already took me to the hospital for a full checkup.”

Hearing that she’d been checked, and more importantly that it was Atlas who did it, calmed Maldric a little. In his eyes, Atlas was a good kid—so much better than that scumbag Kael.

Naturally, he assumed that meant his daughter and Atlas had made up. After all, they’d grown up together.

“Daddy, I’m okay now, but I do think there’s something I should tell you… um, it’s just a tiny little thing.”

His daughter was back on good terms with Atlas—whatever she wanted couldn’t be that bad. Maldric waved it off casually. “What is it, sweetheart? Just tell me—whatever you want, Daddy will take care of it.”

Then he hesitated for a second. What if she asked him to fund some project for the Rhodes’?

Naomi glanced at him nervously. “So… about the car accident. I wasn’t seriously hurt, but… I did lose part of my memory.”

Maldric: “...”

What did she just say? Why couldn’t he make sense of it?

He swallowed hard. “Sweetheart… what do you remember?”

She didn’t look like someone with amnesia.

***