CHAPTER 333: MEET THE SISTER: LEVEL HARD MODE (PART 2)

In front of the campus gate, Micah stood between Darcy and Willow, feeling mortified.

His older sister, Willow, was watching Darcy with a look Micah knew all too well, scrutinising. The sharp, measuring stare she reserved for people she didn’t trust. He had no idea what he should do.

An awkward silence fell over the three of them.

Darcy caught it immediately. The shift in Willow’s gaze, the sudden tension Micah was radiating. His lips parted slightly, then pressed together in thought. He had already guessed who she must be. Micah never called anyone "older sister". This girl was family. And from her appearance, she looked stern. The kind who would give you an earful for any small mistakes you make. And Micah...well, he was a troublemaker through and through.

"I’ll head back, Micah," Darcy said calmly. His tone was light, but his eyes were filled with pity.

Micah nodded absentmindedly. His mind was torn with conflicting thoughts. A part of him wanted to reach out, to grab Darcy’s hand and tell him to stay. To let him spend time with Willow, his biological sister. But another, sharper, and twisted part of him screamed in fear. What if Willow noticed? What if she sensed the connection, guessed Darcy’s ties to the Ramsys, or worse... Uncovered the truth Micah had wished so hard to delay?

Darcy dropped his head slightly, offering Willow a polite acknowledgment before turning and striding off, leaving Micah alone to get scolded.

Willow tracked him with her gaze until he disappeared around the corner, then exhaled softly and shifted her eyes back to her brother. "Let’s have coffee," she said simply, not waiting for his agreement as she began walking toward a small cafe just off campus.

Micah glanced between Willow and Darcy’s retreating backs, baffled. He was in the middle of a crisis, but all of a sudden, it seemed all of those were just in his head.

He sighed and trailed after her. "Older sister," he called gently, his voice carrying a trace of worry. "What’s wrong?? Did something happen?"

"Nothing serious," Willow replied, though her tone was clipped. She pulled open the cafe door and gestured for him to enter. "I wanted to ask you something before I decide whether to agree with them."

Micah slid into a chair across from her, confused. "Them?"

Willow sat upright, her posture calm but unwavering. She picked up the menu, flipping through it without really reading. "The La Riviere company."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Micah asked. His confusion was more evident.

"They had extended a deal to us," Willow said evenly, her eyes scanning the menu though her attention was clearly elsewhere. "One that seems too good to be true, like there is a catch I am not aware of."

Micah paused. His mind darted back to the condo, to Clyde’s apologetic gaze and the words he had spoken with regret. Right, Clyde had told him. He had offered the partnership in the form of an apology for his mistake, because of the misunderstanding he had that Ramsy’s family had treated him badly.

"So?" Micah tried to appear calm. He lifted the glass of water on the table and took a sip to hide his nervousness. "What’s wrong with that?"

Willow finally set the menu down, her eyes sharp as they lifted to meet his. "Mum and Dad said you are close to one of the Du Ponts."

The words hit like a punch to his gut. Micah choked, water splashing clumsily onto the table and spotting his sleeve. His eyes widened, throat burning as he coughed violently, trying to clear the sudden obstruction. His mind went immediately to Clyde. How... how did they know?

Willow’s expression didn’t change. She reached across the table and slid a napkin toward him.

Micah grabbed it quickly, pressing it to his mouth as his face flushed with both embarrassment and panic. "I...I don’t understand what you are saying," he managed to speak, his voice hoarse.

"At the banquet, the Du Ponts told our parents that you are the roommate of their cousin," Willow explained, finding Micah’s reaction suspicious.

"Ah!" Micah forced a laugh. "You mean Emile."

Her brow arched. "Why? Is there someone else?"

"No. No." Micah said too quickly, shaking his head frantically. "I mean, his surname is not Du Pont. I was confused," he laughed nervously, his eyes darting anywhere but her face, toward the menu, the passing waiter, even the empty chair beside them.

Willow narrowed her eyes faintly, watching every twitch and shift in him. There was something fishy about it.

"Anyway," she said, her voice calm but probing. "I wanted to ask how close you are with him. Why would their company offer us such a favourable deal?"

Micah cursed Clyde in his head. That jerk had made Willow suspicious. Couldn’t he have handled things with a little more subtlety? Did he shove a golden goose straight at his family? Anyone would find it questionable.

"Not bad. I even went to their mansion this weekend. But I never asked them for anything like that. Maybe their patriarch was just... grateful I was such a good friend to Emile. You know he lived overseas for a long time. And he didn’t know anyone here." Micah spat nonsense, trying to make the golden goose sound like a common sparrow.

Willow was stunned; her breath caught in her chest. "You actually...went to the Du Pont mansion?"

Micah winced. He had said too much.

"Have you seen their patriarch?" she pressed, her tone sharper.

Micah bit his lips, kicking himself for his loose mouth. He laughed awkwardly. "Yeah." He clicked his tongue in disdain. "Tsk. Just an old geezer."

Far from the cafe, in a polished office where sunlight spilled across a long mahogany table, Clyde had no idea that he had just been demoted in Micah’s frantic cover story to an old geezer. One Micah claimed to dislike.

At the very moment, he was seated across from the chancellor of QC University, his sharp eyes focused, his voice low and steady as he pressed for a change in policy. Dorm rules were too strict. He couldn’t stand being kept away from Micah for five days at a time.