She’s With Me — Single Dad Spoke Calmly, The Billionaire Heiress Stood Frozen at the Table
Chapter 4
Daniel left the Ashford estate before the dinner ended.
Emma followed him outside.
“You should have told me.”
“Told you what?”
“That the billionaire heiress was the woman you loved.”
Daniel stopped beside his old car.
The rain had started.
“No.”
Emma folded her arms.
“No?”
“I should have told you enough for you to decide whether to stay near me.”
Daniel looked toward Lily.
His daughter was asleep in the back seat.
Emma’s expression softened.
Daniel had met Emma three months earlier.
She worked mornings at a small bakery and spent her evenings caring for her younger brother.
Lily had wandered into the bakery after school and cried because she had lost a bracelet that had belonged to her mother.
Emma had closed the shop for fifteen minutes and helped her search every street between the bakery and Daniel’s apartment.
Daniel found them sitting on the pavement.
Lily was smiling.
Emma was holding the bracelet.
After that, Lily asked about her constantly.
Daniel tried to keep his distance.
He had learned what happened when the people he loved stood too close to him.
But Emma was difficult to avoid.
She brought soup when Lily was sick.
She repaired a torn dress without being asked.
She never treated Daniel like a tragic single father.
She treated him like a stubborn man who forgot to eat when he worried.
And Daniel had slowly begun to trust her.
Now Emma looked at him beneath the rain.
“You never told me why Lily’s mother died either.”
Daniel went still.
“I know.”
“Why?”
“Because every time I say it out loud, it feels like I’m bringing danger back to my daughter.”
Emma stared at him.
“What kind of danger, Daniel?”
Before he could answer, a black car stopped beside them.
Victoria stepped out.
Daniel sighed.
“Of course.”
Victoria ignored him.
“Get in.”
“No.”
“We need to talk.”
“No.”
Victoria looked at Emma.
“Alone.”
Emma immediately stepped back.
Daniel reached for her hand.
“She’s with me.”
Victoria froze again.
But this time, Daniel did not look away.
