Love’s Cunning Ruse

Chapter 243

Machu Picchu.

Daphne was so spooked that she hung up the phone without a second thought. After a moment of

contemplation, she felt a wave of unease wash over her and decided to switch off her phone, finally

letting out a sigh of relief.

Although Mr. Lionel was very powerful, he wasn’t at the point where he’s in full control. It was unlikely

that he could pinpoint her exact location with ease.

She knew Julie, her best friend, would never betray her. Even though she had heard Julie switch on the

speakerphone, her voice was barely audible, so Mr. Lionel

must not have heard.

With that in mind, Daphne felt a bit more at ease.

Just as she was lying in bed, trying to steady her breathing, there was a sudden knock on the door,

causing Daphne to bolt upright.

“Who’s there?” She exclaimed.

Then, she heard Edda’s voice from outside the door, “I’m your mom, who else could I be?”

Following her, Alaric’s voice echoed, “I’m your dad!”.

Only then did Daphne slowly open the hotel room door, “I’ve been sleeping alone for years now. Don’t

worry about me, go get some sleep yourselves!”

“You naughty kid. You didn’t even tell Lionel that you were taking us on this trip? You even turned off

your phone, poor Lionel has been calling non-stop. He had no idea we were going to Machu Picchu?

Why can’t you just be a little more considerate?” Edda gave Daphne a slap on the back.

All Daphne wanted to ask was, “Mom, you didn’t tell Lionel where we are now, did you?”

Edda looked genuinely surprised, “What’s wrong? Lionel’s practically family, why can’t I tell him?”

“Dad, why aren’t you controlling your wife? Look at her, calling him Lionel and saying he’s family! I want

to know when mom got so close to Mr. Lionel that she even has his number!” Daphne shot her father a

look, a mix of innocence and despair.

Alaric looked even more innocent and helpless…

Edda gave Daphne another pat on the back, “I can’t even save a phone number now? Lionel genuinely

cares about you, he considers you a friend…”

“I am not his friend!” Daphne rubbed her shoulder, glaring at Mrs. Flores, “Stop slapping my shoulder. If

you’re so bold, slap my stomach! Lionel’s baby is in there! If you can slap it away and make me pain-

free, I promise I’ll listen to you in the future!”

Daphne’s words were loaded, leaving Edda and Alaric stunned for a moment before they could react.

After a pause, Edda tentatively looked at Alaric, “Darling, I didn’t quite catch what Daphne meant…”

“Mom, I’m pregnant. It’s Lionel’s baby.” Daphne took a deep breath, then looked up at her mother with

determination, “Mom, I want to tell you that Lionel is not a good man. He only wants the baby in my

belly, not to marry me. He even plans to take me abroad to give birth and then decide what to do. Am I

supposed to be treated like this?”

After muttering ‘sorry, Lionel’ countless times in her heart, Daphne continued firmly, “Mom, Lionel and I

had sex because I was drunk, but he didn’t take any precautions. Even though I didn’t take any birth

control measures afterwards, I never thought of making him take responsibility! Although I don’t have

the courage to have an abortion, the baby is in my belly, and I have the right to decide whether to keep

it! He’s not even married to me, he’s never even dated me, why does he have the right to demand the

baby?”

Even though she just wanted to tell her mother about her grievances, she unexpectedly burst into tears

as she spoke.

The stress, fear, and uncertainty about the future that she had been suppressing these past days all

came rushing out at once.

Even though the Flores family wasn’t rich, Edda and Alaric only had one daughter, and they had doted

on her since she was a child. Under this pressure, she had been living in fear for a while, but now that

she could tell Edda the truth, Daphne felt much lighter.

She was crying so hard that she threw herself into Edda’s arms.

From Daphne’s intermittent sobs, Edda finally understood what had happened.

Her daughter had hooked up with a mega-star after getting drunk, and now her daughter was pregnant,

unsure whether to keep the baby, and the mega-star only wanted the baby, not her daughter…

Edda initially wanted to rant, but seeing her daughter’s pitiful state, she didn’t utter a single word of

reproach.

After all, this was her daughter, how could she not love her?

Alaric grumbled, “I’ve told you before that this guy is not trustworthy!”

He looked at his wife and said, “You too, acting like a little fangirl. Do you think all celebrities are

saints? There are drug addicts, sex addicts, cheaters among them. How could I let my darling daughter

be treated like this? I have to fight for justice for my daughter!”

Daphne, who had just been crying, immediately took her father’s hand when she heard this, saying,

“Dad, please… I haven’t figured out what to do yet!”

Daphne was crying uncontrollably.

Edda gave Alaric a glare, “You’re so impulsive. Every time there’s a problem, you go off like this,

without even asking what she thinks.”

Daphne was used to Edda’s scolding.

With tears blurring her vision, she reached for a tissue to wipe her nose, then grabbed Edda’s hand

tightly and said, “I don’t know what to do, mom, I’m sorry…” “Only now do you realize you were wrong?

You should have realized this earlier! I’ve told you before, as a girl, you shouldn’t drink when you’re out

and about. Drinking can lead to a lot of trouble. But you didn’t listen, and now that something has

happened, you come running to me.”

“Mom, I really messed up…” Daphne sobbed harder, her voice choked with tears..

Edda’s mind filled with confusion and panic, irritably shook off her daughter’s arm.

Despite her anger, she knew that it was her daughter who was suffering. No matter how much she had

favored Mr. Lionel before, it couldn’t change the fact that

Daphne was her own child.

She knew that what had happened had happened, and endless blame was meaningless. It was better

to actively solve the problem.

After a long silence, Edda looked at Daphne and asked, “Are you sure you’re pregnant? Could the test

have been wrong?”

Daphne shook her head, “I’ve confirmed it at several hospitals…”

Frustrated and angry, Edda suppressed her inner rage, pulled Daphne to sit beside her on the bed and

said seriously, “We can’t keep this baby. You’re still young, you’ve got your whole life ahead of you.

Being a single and single mother is a whole different ball game. Listen to me, even if Lionel doesn’t

fight you for the baby, you can’t stay single forever, right? If you have this baby, it will become a burden.

And let’s not even talk about marriage yet, can you even afford to raise this baby?” Daphne remained

silent, her face full of sorrow.

Edda continued, “Even if you can afford to raise this baby, even if you would rather stay single for the

sake of the baby. But have you thought about it from the baby’s perspective? It will be born illegitimate.

If the parents don’t love him, how could his childhood be happy? Every child is a gift from God. You can

refuse this gift, but you absolutely cannot destroy it.”

Upon hearing this, Daphne became even more distraught, tears falling like raindrops.

After a while, she managed to calm down, “Then stop fighting with Lionel and don’t contact him, Mom. I

want to be alone, please…

Alaric pulled his wife’s hand.

Before leaving, Edda looked at Daphne multiple times, “Should I sleep here with you tonight?”

Daphne shook her head, “I can handle it on my own, Mom. Please don’t tell Lionel where we are,

okay?”

“I won’t tell him,” Edda assured her.

Alaric suggested, “We should be decisive and make this public. Does such a person deserve to be an

idol?”

Upon hearing this, Daphne immediately grabbed Alaric, “Dad, it was consensual. If you make this

public, how am I supposed to face the world?”

Edda looked at Daphne, saying, “Don’t worry, your Dad won’t act rashly. I’ll keep an eye on him. You

just rest.”

After saying this, Mrs. Flores took Alaric and left. Although they didn’t say anything, their inner anxiety

kept them awake all night.

Daphne, not sure if she was extra sleepy because of the pregnancy, fell asleep unknowingly while lying

on the bed and thinking. Early the next morning, she booked a ticket to her destination.

She didn’t dare to turn her phone on.

On the car, Edda told her, “Julie called me this morning, and I told her where you are.”

“Oh, that’s fine, Julie wouldn’t betray me.”

“Julie asked you to check something on Twitter. I don’t have Twitter, not sure what that means. You can

check it.” After saying this, Edda handed her phone to Daphne.

Daphne took the phone, opened Twitter and was about to check when two little girls pointed at her

excitedly, “Oh my God! Are you Daphne?”

Daphne touched her face in surprise and looked at Edda in confusion, “Am I that famous?”