The Billionaire’s Aloof Wife

Leila took a deep breath and finally rang the doorbell. After a few seconds, the door opened, and a familiar face greeted her. It was Uncle Morris.

When the latter saw Leila, a smile blossomed on his lips. He beckoned her to come inside, and Leila nodded.

As soon as she set foot inside, a pin-drop silence engulfed the entire living room.

Philip, who was happily chatting with his daughter, lost his smile. His eyes went wide as he stared at Leila in astonishment.

The shock Talia felt at this moment was no less than her father's. The apple from her hand fell, and it rolled to Leila.

"You! Why did you come back?" Philip snapped out of his trance and pointed at Leila with a hint of anger. Just two hours ago, his subordinate reported Leila was still in New York, reading magazines!

'How could she appear here now?!' he screamed inside his heart.

Leila forced herself to calm down. "As your filial daughter, it's only right for me to come back when our company becomes like this, isn't it?"

She heaved a deep sigh and continued, "Father, you really disappoint me. When you forced me to transfer my shares to you, I thought you would at least see my mother's face and run the company well. Now I finally understand how foolish I was. You're a greedy wolf in sheep's clothing!"

Her eyes, sharp as knives, almost bore through a hole in Philip's body.

"Leila! How could you say that to Dad? You don't know how distressed he is because of the problem at the company. He couldn't even eat and sleep, so how could you accuse him like that?!" Talia interjected.

Leila calmly swept her gaze at Talia.

Talia was her half-sister, who had been living a pampered life because she was the 'Princess' of the Wright Family. At age twelve, she began attending social gatherings for upper-class people and even became one of the top socialites that everyone envied—including her.

Her lips curled up into a sneer as she asked, "Then how are you doing?"

A vicious glint flitted into Talia's eyes, hearing her offhanded remark. She pinched her thigh, and instantly, tears brimmed through her eyes. "Lei, are you still blaming me for taking your place? Please don't blame dad. It's not his fault. I-"

Leila smiled at her coldly and spoke sardonically, "No. How could I blame you? It's my mother's fault for loving someone like him. She was too weak to fight against your cunning mother, who became my father's mistress. I was only nine when she died, so I couldn't do anything when you occupied my home, coveted my property, and even banished me from the family. We end up like this because we deserve it! We couldn't fight-"

A crisp slap landed on her cheeks before she could finish her sentence. Leila's face immediately turned sideways because of the impact. Her cheek turned red, and it began swell because of Philip's force. He struck so hard that she felt her face burning.

"Shut up for me!" Philip roared.

Leila swallowed the metallic taste down her throat and wiped the blood on the corner of her mouth without showing any expression. "This is all your retribution!"

Philip felt a little guilty when he saw a bright palm print on Leila's face. However, when he heard her words, his guilt immediately vanished into thin air.

"I don't care if you look down on me inside your heart. Only Shiela and Talia are my family! Even if you're my daughter, you shouldn't forget your surname is Wright and not Clark!" he seethed.

Leila's breath hitched. Deep inside, she was still hoping that her father would also look at her the way he looked at Talia. But his words were like knives, cutting her heart into pieces. Her fist coiled into a ball, her nails digging deeply into her flesh.

"Dad, don't be angry. Your health is important. Lei, don't fight with Dad, okay? I'll call Zach later and ask him to help us," Talia said softly, but her eyes gleamed with smugness when she mentioned Zachary's name.

Philip abruptly looked at Talia and asked dubiously, "Is he willing to help us?"

He was doubtful. After all, Zachary Leighton was cold-hearted and infamous for being ruthless in business. He didn't even spare his father, let alone them, Leighton's biggest competitor. How was it possible he would help them?

A bashful smile blossomed on Talia's lips. "Of course, Zach is very kind."

Hearing her words, Leila inwardly scoffed.

"It's good if Zachary is willing to help so Wright's family will be saved," Philip said and sighed.

When his eyes darted at Leila, his face turned dark with impatience. "I gave your previous room to Talia, so just stay in the guest room for now."

Leila's jaw tightened. This was her own house, yet she had to live in a guest room. It seemed that she no longer belonged to this family in their hearts.

She silently went upstairs. As soon as she got inside the guest room, she tiredly flopped on the bed and unknowingly fell asleep.

The following day, blinding sunlight peeked through the gaps in the curtain, shining over Leila's sleeping face.

Her brows furrowed, and soon after, she woke up. She sat up and sighed. Even now, her cheek still stings.

She rose from the bed and went downstairs. While descending the stairs, Leila stopped in her tracks when she heard the vague conversation and hearty laughter.

'What were they so happy about?'

When she reached the last step of the stairs, a familiar tall and majestic figure sitting on the sofa entered the line of her sight.

'Zachary? Why was he here?' she wondered.

Leila was rooted to the stairs. Her gaze shifted to her father, who had a fawning smile plastered on his face.

"Mr. Leighton, we're delighted to have you grace us with your presence!" Philip said in exhilaration.

Even though Talia promised him yesterday, he was doubtful whether Zachary would come. But now, the renowned business mogul was in front of him. Philip was convinced Talia held great importance inside Zachary's heart.

"Talia called me last night and asked if I could help. With such a big incident in Wright Corporation, and on account of being familiar with each other, I'll help you," Zachary said lightly. He leaned languidly against the sofa and rested his arms on the ridge.

His gaze darted to the staircase, and immediately, a faint smile tugged on the corner of his lips.

The smile on Philip's face grew wider upon hearing his words. When he was about to say something, Zachary suddenly spoke.

"Who is this?" He stared at Leila and scanned her entire face. The faint smile on his lips vanished when he saw her red and swollen cheek. A cold glint flashed past his eyes.

On the other hand, Leila took a deep breath. She knew she couldn't escape since he had already seen her. Thus, she simply walked over.

Following Zachary's gaze, Philip caught sight of Leila's figure traipsing toward them. The broad grin on his face instantly faded. He let out a long sigh and fixed his expression.

"This is my youngest daughter, Leila Wright. Lei, come over and say hello to Mr. Leighton," Philip said with little difficulty.

"Miss Wright, nice to meet you." Zachary smiled and stood up. Then he gently extended his hand to her.

Leila didn't move an inch and simply stared at Zachary's outstretched hand.

Philip, who was watching her, was already in a bad mood because of her presence. Now that she had done that, he felt he had lost a great deal of face. He looked at her sharply, and only then did Leila accept Zachary's hand.

"Mr. Leighton, it's a pleasure to meet you," Leila said softly.

Zachary's palm was big and warm, fully enveloping Leila's. The latter grew conscious when Zachary slightly squeezed her palm, which made her hurriedly withdraw her hand.

As if he didn't notice it, Zachary sat down again.

"I'll ask someone to call Talia," Philip quickly interjected.

"No need," Zachary said firmly.

Philip was embarrassed by his remark and could only smile awkwardly. He couldn't say anything else and just sat there.

Leila wasn't any better. She just stood there, neither sitting nor leaving, because no one asked her to.

"Sir, Young Lady, Mr. Leighton, breakfast is ready."

Leila whipped around and looked at Uncle Morris in relief. She headed to the dining hall but still heard her father inviting Zachary to have breakfast together.

When they reached the dining hall, the food was already served. Leila sat at the end of the long table. Her eyes scanned the entire table, but there wasn't any black coffee.

Leila's solid breakfast menu was a cup of unsweetened black coffee and a slice of bread.

Of course, she knew they wouldn't care even if she told them. She lowered her head and kept silent.

Obliquely ahead, Zachary swiftly glanced at her and caught sight of her expression. He turned to look at Philip and asked, "Why is there no black coffee?"

Philip's expression stiffened, and he hurriedly responded, "Talia said Mr. Leighton doesn't seem to have a good stomach, so I purposely didn't tell the maid to prepare it."

"It doesn't matter. I want black coffee," Zachary said indifferently.

For a moment, Philip studied Zachary's expression. The latter's eyes were colder than usual. He must have lived in vain if he couldn't see that Zachary was dissatisfied with his arrangements. Philip could discern what he wanted. With this in mind, he hurriedly ordered a maid to grind the coffee.

Shortly after, the maid brought the black coffee and poured a cup for Zachary.

Zachary beckoned the maid to pour a cup of coffee for Leila as well.

The maid nodded and poured a cup for Leila, then retreated afterward.

Seeing this, he was satisfied. He picked up the cup and gracefully took a sip.

Meanwhile, two pairs of eyes were watching his every move with puzzlement.

Philip was confused when he noticed Zachary didn't touch the cup of black coffee a second time. Nevertheless, he said nothing and continued to eat.

On the other hand, Leila downed the cup of coffee swiftly and ate a slice of bread before standing up. "I'm done."

After she said that, she went to the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face.

She stared at her reflection in the mirror and suddenly turned her head when she heard footsteps behind her.

Leila thought it was Talia. She didn't want to see the latter, so she walked toward the door and was about to leave. However, she had just taken a few steps when her head bumped into something hard.

And by seeing the leather shoes, she knew it was Zachary. Leila raised her head and looked at him. But in doing so, she closely met Zachary's gaze.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and asked her in a deep voice, "What's wrong with your face?"

"Let go," she said coldly but felt inexplicably guilty inwardly.

'What if someone came inside and saw us? How could I explain why we were together? After all, they didn't know that Zachary and I knew each other.'

As if he didn't hear her, Zachary cupped her face and brushed away the stray locks on her face. His face was then shrouded with gloom as he saw the bright palm print on her cheek.

He caressed her cheek tenderly but asked sharply, "Who slapped you?"