Chapter 305
“Mr. Lopez? Who?” Calliope asked, a bit puzzled.
Monty kept going on about Mr. Lopez, but she had no clue who this Mr. Lopez was. What was his deal, and why was he insistent on meeting her?
She instinctively glanced at Silas, hoping he might know something about this mysterious Mr. Lopez.
Silas shook his head. “Never heard of any Mr. Lopez.”
“Dante Lopez. His company is overseas. He doesn’t come around here much, but they’ve been working with us, the Jewell Group, for a while.” Monty shot Calliope a look, unsure if she was pretending.
Mr. Lopez mentioned the previous dealings were because of Calliope, suggesting they should at least be acquaintances.
But Monty had never heard of this before. He thought Calliope was good at keeping secrets.
“Dante Lopez?” Calliope shook her head again. “I don’t know him.”
“How could you not? Mr. Lopez said he only works with us because of you. If we want to keep him on, he has to meet you.”
Monty looked at Calliope, baffled. He was beginning to think she was just making excuses not to help.
“If you don’t want to help, say so. There’s no need to pretend,” Valerian sneered.
“Yeah. It’s fine if you don’t want to help. But don’t act like you don’t know Mr. Lopez. Even if you do, what can we do about it?” Ulysses scoffed at Calliope, finding her incredibly insincere.
But with Silas present, they didn’t dare push it too far.
“Callie, it’s all my fault. I know you don’t like me. Please help the Jewell family. I’ll leave if my presence bothers you so much! The Jewell Group deserves your protection. It’s the company Dad worked so hard to build!”
Lisette’s voice, tinged with a bit of melodrama, came from the doorway.
She looked at Calliope, claiming she’d leave the Jewell family, yet she looked like Calliope was forcing her out. Calliope hadn’t even said anything, but Lisette’s comments had pissed Valerian and the others.
“Calliope, do you have to drive Lisette away?” Valerian snapped.
“Do you have to be so harsh? Lisette’s never intentionally bothered you, has she?”
“We like Lisette. Even if she leaves, we’ll still care about her!”
“On the other hand, we don’t care for you even if you’re family. If you keep this up, we won’t treat you any
better!”
Ulysses gave Calliope a once–over.
“Driving Lisette away won’t help you. We’d rather you not help.”
Calliope stood there, speechless. She hadn’t even gotten a word in edgewise, but they’d said it all. It left her a bit exasperated.
Silas frowned at the group, bewildered by their behavior. He had no idea they treated her like this all along. “Callie, Lisette’s been with us for many years. We all care about her. Don’t you care for her?” Monty tried to reason. “We need Lisette for the company. It’s not about not wanting her gone; we genuinely need her.” Calliope looked up, her face earnest. “I haven’t said a thing. You’ve already spoken for me.”
She turned to Lisette, giving her a thumbs–up. “Bravo, no one can spin a tale like you
