“That Car Is Worthless” the CEO Said — Then a Single Dad Did the Impossible
Chapter 13
Five years later, Lily was twenty.
She was studying mechanical engineering at university.
Ethan’s company had grown into one of the largest affordable electric mobility companies in North America.
Victoria remained CEO of Sterling.
Together, they had built something neither had expected.
A life.
Their relationship eventually became public.
Some investors objected.
Others didn’t care.
The board had learned one important lesson.
Ethan wasn’t simply Victoria’s partner.
He was one of the reasons the company had survived.
One evening, Victoria arrived home and found Ethan cooking.
She smiled.
“What’s the occasion?”
“Dinner.”
“That’s suspicious.”
Lily walked into the kitchen.
“You’re both impossible.”
Victoria looked at her.
“You’re home early.”
“I have news.”
Ethan turned off the stove.
“What happened?”
Lily held up an envelope.
“I got accepted into the graduate engineering program.”
Ethan hugged her.
Victoria joined them.
For a moment, everything was perfect.
Then Lily looked at Ethan.
“I want to work with you.”
“Of course.”
“But not for free.”
Ethan laughed.
“Where did you learn that?”
“From Victoria.”
Victoria smiled proudly.
Years passed.
Lily joined the company.
She worked in advanced mobility.
And Ethan began stepping away from daily operations.
He had learned something important.
He didn’t need to personally repair everything.
Some things could be trusted to the next generation.
At sixty, Ethan sold his first company stake.
But he kept the foundation.
The foundation funded technical education, affordable transportation, and scholarships for single parents.
Victoria became chairman of the board.
Lily became head of engineering.
One evening, Ethan and Victoria sat on the porch.
“You ever regret it?” Victoria asked.
“What?”
“Calling me out that day.”
Ethan smiled.
“You mean when you insulted my car?”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because if you hadn’t insulted it, you wouldn’t have come back.”
She laughed.
“You really think that’s why?”
“Yes.”
Victoria leaned against him.
“Maybe.”
They sat in silence.
Then Ethan noticed something.
His old sedan wasn’t in the driveway.
“Where is the car?”
Victoria smiled.
“Lily took it.”
“What?”
“She said she wanted to show it to her engineering students.”
Ethan laughed.
“Our daughter stole my worthless car.”
“She learned from you.”
The next morning, Lily returned.
The sedan had been polished.
She handed Ethan the keys.
“I fixed something.”
“What?”
She opened the trunk.
Inside was a small metal plaque.
Ethan read it.
The Worthless Car That Changed Everything.
He stared at it.
Then laughed.
Victoria hugged him from behind.
“Still think it’s worthless?”
Ethan looked at his family.
Then at the car.
“No.”
Victoria smiled.
“Good.”
But the biggest moment was still coming.
Because on Ethan’s sixty-first birthday, Victoria had one final surprise.
And it had nothing to do with business.
