CHAPTER 1
Abigail
"Abigail!"
My dad's voice echoed from the sitting room. "You're going to be late for lectures. Hurry up so I can drop you at school! "
"I know, Dad," I grumbled as I dragged myself out of bed.
My dad is my best friend. My favorite person in the whole world. It has always been just the two of us.
I lost my mom when I was only six.
I still remember that day like it happened yesterday.
FLASHBACK—
Dad and I took her to the airport. She was traveling to see her family.
She hugged me so tight and kept waving at me as she walked away.
I didn't know it was the last time I would ever see her.
Her plane crashed.
No survivors.
That day was the first and only time I ever saw my dad cry. He broke down completely.
Since then, life hasn't been easy. Dad runs a small mechanic garage. Money has always been tight. Debts here and there. The house mortgage is almost due.
I'm in my final year studying medicine and surgery at one of the best universities on a full scholarship. I also work at a small café downtown to help Dad. And whenever I'm free, I stay with him at the garage, helping where I can.
I pushed open my window and let the morning sunlight touch my face.
"Today will be a beautiful day," I whispered to myself.
I rushed to the bathroom and got ready. When I stepped into the dining room, the warm smell of pancakes and coffee greeted me.
"Good morning, Dad," I said, blowing him a kiss.
"Morning, my angel," he smiled. "We have ten minutes before we leave. I have a meeting with a big client today."
"Okay, Dad."
I gulped down my coffee and ate the pancakes quickly.
"My little angel is almost twenty," he said, patting my head.
Birthdays with Dad are always special. He doesn't have much, but somehow, he always finds a way to spoil me. He reminds me every day that I'm all he has… that I make him proud.
"What's your plan for your birthday?" he asked.
I smiled. "I know you already have something planned, Dad."
"What about today?"
"I have classes, then a study session with Dennis and Daniella," I replied. "After that, I'll stop by the workshop."
We left the house together.
Abigail– Later That Day
Classes went well. I hung out with my friends, helped junior students with tutorials, and didn't finish until around 3 p.m. I was tired and starving.
When I reached Dad's workshop, he had already ordered food for me.
Best father ever.
He was busy attending to a client when I walked in.
ASHER OLIVER
Being born into one of the richest families in the country sounds glamorous, but growing up, it was lonely.
My father, chairman of Oliver Oil, one of the biggest oil empires in the world, was a strict disciplinarian. Wealth never changed him, and he made sure it didn't change me either.
I have managed to build my own empire too One of the top finance companies in the country
I am good at what I do. Ruthless when necessary.
Today, I had a big business meeting that I was heading to
I was working on my laptop in my 2025 Maybach when suddenly… the car jerked.
Then everything went black.
No warning.
No smoke.
Just silence.
"What the hell is going on?" I snapped at my driver.
"S–sir, I'll check it now."
He stepped out, shaking.
I was already furious. I value time. My entire life is scheduled down to the minute.
"Sir… the car isn't starting. But there's a mechanic workshop down the road. I can try to get it there."
"If this car doesn't work," I growled, "consider yourself fired."
Abigail's Dad
I was fixing a client's car when a luxurious Maybach rolled into my workshop. The driver rushed to me, panicking.
"Please, sir, the car stopped suddenly. My boss… please, I can't lose my job!"
In thirty years of experience, I've never turned down a car.
I opened the Maybach's hood, checked the system… Then I found it:
A tiny wire.
Deliberately cut.
Taped back to hide the damage.
That wire controlled the fuel pump.
No wonder the car died.
I was still underneath the car when a tall man in a suit marched toward me, shouting.
"What is taking so long? Are you even competent enough to fix this car?"
I ignored his attitude and continued my work.
Abigail
I was in Dad's small office when I heard someone shouting. I rushed out and saw a young man in a suit yelling at my father.
My blood boiled instantly.
"Hey! " I shouted. "Watch your tongue. Don't talk to my dad like that. Have some respect! "
He froze, shocked.
No one ever speaks to him like that.
Dad came out from underneath the car just then.
"I found the problem," he said calmly.
He replaced the damaged wire with a reinforced harness, ran diagnostics, reset the fuel system, and restarted the engine.
The Maybach came back to life.
Dad wiped his hands on a rag.
"It's fixed," he said quietly. "But someone meant for you not to reach your destination."
The man's eyes widened slightly more shocked by that than anything else.
He paid Dad generously and left.
But as he walked to his car, his eyes kept drifting back to me…
ASHER
I couldn't stop thinking about her—the girl who spoke to me like I was a regular person.
No fear.
No admiration.
Just fire.
I told my CSO to investigate who tampered with my car, then I fired my driver on the spot and drove away myself.
But even after cancelling my meeting…
My mind kept going back to her. She didn't know who I was.
She didn't care.
For the first time in a long time, someone looked at me with annoyance… not admiration.
ABIGAIL
"Dad, that man was rude," I said as we headed home. "I didn't like the way he spoke to you."
Dad chuckled. "Customers are different, my dear. What matters is that we did our job well. And he paid well too. Now I can plan your birthday the way I wanted… and even pay part of the house mortgage."
I smiled. "You're right, Dad."
But deep down…
I felt something.
Like today was the beginning of something big.
Something unexpected.
Something that would change my life forever.