The Billionaire's Temptation: Love, Family and Revenge-Chapter 74: Mr Lugards Fury

Sia lay sprawled across her soft, cozy bed, a wide grin spreading across her face as loud laughter echoed through her room. Her eyes were glued to the television screen, where bold red letters screamed Breaking News. The scandal she had carefully orchestrated was unfolding exactly as she had planned, maybe even better.

The man she had paid to leak the damaging story had done a perfect job. Every detail was being dissected by the media, and Sia could hardly contain her excitement. Her plan was working.

Just as she was about to grab her phone to record the news for later enjoyment, a loud and angry banging rattled her bedroom door. It was the kind of knock that only came when someone was furious. Her mother’s voice followed immediately, thick with suspicion and rage.

"Sia! What have you done this time?"

Before Sia could even respond, the door burst open. Her mother marched into the room with the same energy as a storm cloud ready to burst. Her eyes scanned the screen and landed on Sia, who was right there on the news, laughing like nothing was wrong.

Sia barely glanced at her. "Oh Mom, what do you want from me again? It’s already late and I really need to sleep," she groaned, turning her back on her mother as if the conversation was nothing more than a minor annoyance.

"Will you face me while I talk to you!" her mother shouted, clearly furious.

Reluctantly, Sia turned around. Her face was calm, too calm. She looked at her mother with a cool, careless expression, as if she were completely unbothered by the situation.

"Mom, if you’re talking about the news," she said, sighing as if she were the one being wrongly accused, "please calm down. I didn’t do anything. Honestly, Ford has so many enemies, anyone could have done it. I’m actually surprised you’d think I would be involved."

She even added a little fake sadness to her voice, lowering her eyes for dramatic effect. It worked, at least for a second. Her mother, who had come in ready to yell, suddenly hesitated. All the anger she had built up inside seemed to freeze. She looked at her daughter and opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Taking a deep breath, her mother tried to calm herself. Deep down, she didn’t want to wrongly accuse her daughter. She wanted to believe her. But something didn’t feel right. There was something too smooth, too well-rehearsed about Sia’s words.

"But why are you so relaxed?" she asked suspiciously. "And I know I heard laughter coming from this room just a minute ago."

Sia shrugged, her tone still flat. "Relaxed? Should I be crying? And why shouldn’t I laugh when the woman trying to steal my Ford is getting roasted on national TV?"

Her voice was calm, but her eyes sparkled with a hidden satisfaction. Even though she tried to act innocent, the truth was buried in her smile. Her mother stared at her, uncertain, sensing that this moment was bigger than Sia let on but unable to prove anything.

Sia’s mother stood still for a moment, arms folded across her chest, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. There was something about her daughter’s calm demeanor that didn’t sit right. After a long pause, she finally spoke, her voice lower now but sharp with concern.

"Hmm, something seems off with you," she said, her eyes studying Sia closely. "But let me just hope, sincerely, that you weren’t the mastermind behind this childish game."

She gestured toward the television, where images of a scandal were still being shown. Angry news anchors and social media posts flashed across the screen. The photos were dramatic, clearly altered to spark controversy.

"Any reasonable person can see those pictures on the screen were photoshopped," her mother added, shaking her head in disbelief.

Sia, however, wasn’t fazed. She barely looked away from the screen. Instead, she casually responded, her tone laced with quiet defiance. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"But that’s not what the public is seeing," she said with a small smirk, her eyes still fixed on the chaos she had created.

Her mother exhaled sharply, her frustration growing.

"I keep telling you forget Ford Lugard. He’s not worth it.

"No mom, you know his worth it" Sia corrected.

" Don’t make mistakes that will end up falling on me to clean up. It’s exhausting, Sia," she said, rubbing her temples like someone carrying too much stress.

"We’re having a dinner meeting with the Lugards soon," she added, straightening up. "And if I find out you’re behind this mess, you are not coming with me."

With that final warning, her mother turned on her heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Sia remained frozen for a moment, then slowly turned onto her back, a wide smile spreading across her face.

"A dinner? Soon? Oh my, I can’t wait," she whispered to herself, her voice filled with giddy excitement.

She rolled around on the bed, hugging her pillow. But then she paused, her smile slowly fading as another thought crept into her mind.

"What if I get Mom to take down the news for Ford?" she wondered aloud, staring up at the ceiling thoughtfully.

But just as quickly, she dismissed the idea, shaking her head.

"No, no... it needs to stay up. It needs to linger for a while," she decided with a mischievous grin.

She sat up straighter, her eyes glittering with emotion. "Besides," she said coldly, "it’s not my Ford they’re tearing apart it’s that bitch. Elena."

Turning back to the television, she watched the segment that was now fully focused on Elena, people debating her character, dissecting her background, and tearing her image apart. But then, a short video began to play, showing Ford holding Elena close in a loving embrace. Sia’s mood changed instantly.

Her face twisted in anger. Without a word, she grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. The room fell silent.

She reached for her phone, unlocking it quickly. Opening her gallery, she scrolled through a collection of photos, intimate pictures she had secretly taken at Ford’s house. Each one was a memory she held onto tightly, even though she knew they didn’t mean the same to him.

As she stared at one of the images, she smiled, tracing his face on the screen with her finger.

"You’re mine, Ford," she whispered softly.

Lily couldn’t sleep. She had been tossing and turning for hours, but her mind wouldn’t settle. Finally, she gave up on sleep altogether and began pacing slowly around her room, clutching her phone tightly in her hand. Her eyes stayed glued to the glowing screen, where a flood of breaking news and online gossip filled every corner. The images and headlines were disturbing and personal.

The story had broken just a few hours ago, but it had already spread everywhere. It was about her Friend Elena. Her heart pounded with anxiety, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t look away. The scandal had taken the sleep right out of her eyes.

She had tried calling several people her brother, her cousin, even some family friends but none of the calls were going through. Every number she dialed went unanswered, and she finally gave up, assuming they were all busy trying to leave the hospital or avoid the press.

Just then, there was a knock at her bedroom door.

"Come in," Lily said calmly, though her eyes didn’t move from the phone screen for even a second.

The door creaked open, and her father, Mr. Lugard, stepped into the room. He stood at the doorway for a moment, observing his daughter’s restless movements. She was pacing like someone with far too many thoughts in her head and nowhere to put them. Shaking his head slightly, he already had an idea of what had stolen her peace that night.

He walked further into the room, his steps slow and deliberate. Still, Lily didn’t acknowledge his presence. Her full attention remained on the phone, as if she was under some sort of spell. Finally, without saying a word, Mr. Lugard gently reached out and took the phone from her hands.

That’s when Lily looked up, startled. Her eyes widened as she finally registered who was standing in front of her.

"Oh, Father! I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was you," she said, her voice soft and full of guilt. Her face wore a tired and worried expression.

"And you still wouldn’t know now if I hadn’t taken your phone," her father replied, glancing down at the screen that had captured her so completely.

He sighed deeply as he saw the same headlines she’d been reading. Shaking his head, he spoke again, this time, his voice carrying both concern and frustration.

"These days, your brother seems... off. Distracted. And it’s bothering me a lot, Lily," he said honestly.

"I even called his office. They said he hasn’t shown up for work in three days," he continued, folding his arms as he leaned against her desk.

"It’s not like he traveled. He knows we have a very important business deal going on right now. But still, there are all these distractions popping up again and again. First, there was the scandal I had to help clean up. And now this."

He looked at Lily with tired eyes.

"This kind of behavior isn’t just bad for him. It’s bad for our image, for the company, for the family name. We can’t afford to keep dealing with things like this especially with the low class."

Lily nodded slowly, her father’s description of Elena’s status hurt her but she understood his anger and worry. Alot was at stake.

"If I may ask, why is your brother so entangled with this lady... yes, Elena. That should be her name, right?" he asked, his tone sharp and direct.

"Who is she to him?" He asked curious waiting to hear Lilly’s reply.