My Child and I Married a Billionaire

Candy wasn’t his daughter. Regardless of whether it was his idea back then, his family had done such a terrible thing to her. And now he wanted to see her? Wasn’t that a bit hypocritical?

She could handle anything that happened to her, but when it came to her daughter, Cecelia was reluctant.

Seeing the look on her face darken, Damien Vaughn quickly tried to explain.

"When everything happened, I didn’t know she’d been sent to an orphanage. I had Ryan go look for her afterward, but he couldn’t find her. I’ve been worried about her ever since. I never let adult grievances affect children. I feel a connection with Candy—I’m truly fond of her."

’He sent Ryan to the orphanage to look for Candy after what happened?’

She recalled the time she had lived with the Vaughn family after they first met. Damien Vaughn’s affection for Candy had never seemed fake. Besides, they were about to become business partners. After a moment of silence, Cecelia took out her phone and called Candy.

"Mommy’s home. Could you be a dear and come open the door for me?"

"Mommy’s home! Mommy’s home! Annie, let’s go open the door for her together!"

Across from the Grant family villa, Damien Vaughn sat in his car, watching the two children come bounding out the door and throw themselves into Cecelia Archer’s arms. They were so lively and happy, as if the recent turmoil hadn’t affected them at all. He quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Cecelia was so worried about the company that she couldn’t sleep. She ended up leaving for the hospital first thing in the morning.

Shane Grant was just waking up when he saw her. He was both happy to see her and ready to complain.

"Didn’t I tell you to stop running around? I have people here to take care of me. You don’t need to come anymore."

"I came because I have something to discuss with you."

Damien Vaughn wanted her to lead the Grant Group’s side of the project, which meant Cecelia needed to obtain authority from the company. There was no way to bypass Shane Grant, so she had to come clean.

"Shane, I did something behind your back these past couple of days."

Shane Grant had a gut feeling it wasn’t anything good. His brow furrowed slightly. "What is it?"

Cecelia gave him the condensed version of events: trying to secure funding, failing, and then running into Damien Vaughn.

"Long story short, he agreed to let the Grant Group partner with the Vaughn Group to secure the project. The Grant Group won’t have to put up any capital, just manpower. I thought it was an excellent proposal, so I accepted on your behalf."

Just as she expected, Shane Grant’s reaction was vehement.

"This is absurd! Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? You didn’t just go out behind my back, you made a huge move like this! You... Damien Vaughn is a wily old fox; he never does anything unless there’s something in it for him. This is a golden opportunity to crush me once and for all. Why would he pass that up? He’s probably set some other trap for me. Don’t be so naive!"

Cecelia had, in fact, considered that possibility.

’But the Vaughn Group isn’t asking for any capital, just for us to send a few people over.’

’Even if he has a trap waiting, the worst we’d lose is some manpower. We can still afford to pay those salaries, can’t we?’

’Turning the project into a complete disaster wouldn’t benefit the Vaughn Group either. They wouldn’t be that foolish.’

So Cecelia insisted, "Regardless, I think the potential benefits outweigh the risks. We should take this chance."

But Shane Grant still refused. "No. Don’t say another word. You think you’re completely safe just because your identity is out in the open with Damien Vaughn? That he won’t come after you again? You’re too naive! Go home and stay there. I’m checking out of the hospital today. I don’t want the Grant Group anymore. The assets I put in a trust years ago are more than enough for the four of us to live a quiet life forever. I’ll take you, Candy, and Annie abroad."

Ever since his accident, Cecelia had been very docile around him. So much so that Shane Grant had started to believe she no longer had opinions or a temper of her own.

But when Cecelia was truly stubborn, she was immovable.

"You can’t leave the hospital! Your condition is terrible right now. If you don’t focus on getting better, you’re being irresponsible toward Annie. He’s already lost his mother. Do you want him to lose his father, too?"

Shane Grant was speechless.

Cecelia continued, "I know what’s really bothering you. You’re not against this project because you’re afraid it will fail. You’re afraid of something happening between me and Damien Vaughn, aren’t you?"

Shane Grant’s gaze flickered away almost imperceptibly. Cecelia saw right through him and let out a self-deprecating laugh.

"You’re overthinking things, Shane. Why would a family like the Vaughns ever be interested in a woman with my background? Have you forgotten how his mother died? Or why Candy was sold? I did live in his home for a while for certain reasons, but it wasn’t because of love."

"Maybe his uncle and aunt were right. His childhood sweetheart, Gwen Morgan, hadn’t returned from overseas yet. He probably used Candy as a stopgap measure to secure his position in the Vaughn family and keep the old master happy. Now that they’ve reconciled, you’ve seen what happened to Candy and me. How could I possibly repeat that mistake?"

Shane Grant said, "You said it yourself. He was so cruel to you and Candy. Now he wants you to lead this project? He definitely has ulterior motives. Are you just going to rush in and let him torment you?"

"I don’t care if it’s just some verbal or physical torment. Even if I have to walk through fire, I’m willing to do it if it means saving the Grant Group."

Cecelia looked at him earnestly. "Do you know why? Because I don’t want to be so deeply in your debt. I don’t want to watch the company your grandfather spent his entire life building turn to nothing in your hands. I don’t want all those employees, all those innocent families, to lose their jobs and their livelihoods because of me."

"You might say that you don’t care, so why should I? But that’s where we’re different, Shane. You’re the one who helps others. You don’t have to carry the moral and mental burden. But I do."

"My parents taught me from a young age not to take a single thing from others—not even a needle and thread. If I ate a piece of candy without their knowledge, they’d make sure to pay the person back. All these years, I’ve never taken advantage of anyone. But I’ve taken so much from you, and you want me to just run away? To let the company collapse, go abroad, and live off your savings as if nothing happened? Do you think my conscience would ever be clear? Do you want me to live with that guilt for the rest of my life?"

This was why Shane Grant was so in love with Cecelia.

In this age of rampant materialism, many women would cast aside not just their morals, but all human decency for money. Yet she, in order to stick to her principles and preserve her inner peace, cared for none of it.

Some might call her self-righteous or say she hadn’t suffered enough.

But to a man, that was a fatal attraction.

"It seems you’ve made up your mind. If I don’t support you, I’ll be the one in the wrong."

Shane Grant watched her determined expression for a moment, then slowly pushed back the covers.

"Alright, then. I’ll go to the office with you."

"To the office? But you..."

"We need to hold an executive meeting. I’ll introduce you to everyone and grant you the necessary authority. How else are you going to get any work done?"