Chapter 562: Standard Interest

Mina answered her phone and quickly apologized to her parents for not immediately responding to their calls. Her mother was eerily calm in her responses, but her father was irate. He had heard Zane's voice clearly, and he was questioning her about things Mina did not even know her parents were worried about.

"Let me speak to them," Ian said, as he gently took the phone away from a wide eyed and frozen Mina.

"Mr. Harlow?" Mina's father shouted into the phone, speaking at a volume Mina had only heard him use once. "Sir, please calm down. The man you heard is my best friend and colleague. Mina is one of our top employees and he just wanted to wish her a happy birthday." Mina hated that President Lee had taken the phone off speaker, and she could not listen in on the conversation. She was a nervous wreck, and Zane was staring at her with an expression that told her he loved every minute of her anxiety. "Of course," President Lee said before walking away.

Mina tried to follow the man, but he was moving too quickly. President Lee galloped down the stairs and disappeared before she could see which direction he went, and pure panic threatened to overtake her. Zane was chuckling like a scoundrel, because apparently, her worried face was funny to him.

"There is nothing funny about this situation."

"No, but this reminds me of the first time my mother caught me trying to sneak a girl into my room." Mina blanched.

"Wh-what? I am not sneaking President Lee anywhere."

"Then why do you look so guilty?"

"President Lee is a man."

"And so is Dom, but I have a feeling that you would not have the same reaction if he was the one on the phone with your parents."

"You know, President Lee has threatened to kill my parents, Dom has not." The smile on Zane's face fell and he realized that he had allowed Mina's relaxed nature to influence his ideas. He had seen how she and Ian had fallen into a silent routine that neither of them spoke about or addressed, and he had assumed it meant that they had gotten over the mountain of misunderstandings between them.

"Sorry, I kind of forgot that my friend has been an ass to you for longer than he has been kind." Mina accepted the apology and was relieved when she heard President Lee bringing back her device.

"I will put your daughter back on the line now, have a great night." Mina took the phone from President Lee and apprehensively placed it toward her ear.

"Mina, you should have told us that you were working with the Lee group. We understand that your work is classified, but next time, don't tell us you are home when you are at work." Mina looked up at President Lee who winked at her. She did not know what was more off putting, the statement her mother made or the man's actions. "He explained to us that his CEO has a crush on you. I hope you are being careful around him."

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When Ian took the phone from Mina, he had no idea what he was going to say, but he knew that he needed to get away from her to regain his confidence. He walked quickly, hopping down the stairs at a speed he knew Mina would not be able to keep up with, then toward the laundry room at the back of his mansion.

He spoke to Mina's parents at length about her 'employment' within his company. He told them that she was not able to reveal her position within the Lee group, and he made sure to throw a few jabs in at Zane for good measure.

When Mina's father asked him what they were doing at his daughter's apartment after business hours, Ian lied without really lying.

"Miss Mina is actually at one of my properties now, she may have said she was at home to stop you from worrying about her. She is a hard worker, which is why CEO Zane and I decided to surprise her with cake.

"Does your CEO address all women as beautiful?" Anne Harlow asked, and Ian chuckled.

"Unfortunately, my friend is a man whose eyes cannot ignore the truth. I will speak to him about it, but I think Mina has grown numb to it. He has told me himself that she is not interested in him." Ian was not beyond a bit of flattery, so he went for the kill. "Mrs. Harlow, you have raised a wonderful young woman, she is too responsible to do something foolish," 'and tell you about it,' Ian thought.

"I think I remember when my daughter applied for your company, but she never told us she got the job." Mrs. Harlow seemed to be speaking casually, but Ian knew the woman was probing him.

"Yes mam, she did apply, but her resume was lost. Mina and I ran into each other by chance months later, and she has been with me since." There was silence on the line before Mr. Harlow spoke.

"When you say that she has been with you since…?" The man let his question hang, and Ian was happy that his bait had been taken.

"Sir, as much as I would like to say that I meant it in a romantic way, I cannot. Mina is also uninterested in me. She is very professional, and as far as I know, there is no man in her life."

"Do you like my daughter?"

"Very much, but I respect her. I would also ask that you not mention this to her, lest our working relationship become awkward."

"President Lee, Mina is… Well, she can be… She is a very different girl."

"That I know." Ian laughed into the phone, prompting the couple to laugh with him. He started walking back toward Mina, who looked at him with an odd expression on her face. She looked shocked to see him chuckling on the phone, and even Zane looked confused.

"I will put your daughter back on the line now, have a great night." Ian handed Mina the phone with a smile and watched her apprehensively place it toward her ear. She looked like she was waiting for it to explode, and the more time that went by, the more tense she became.

"Mina, I know it is your birthday, but we have to get back to work before it gets too late." Mina's head jerked back in bewilderment, but the way her parents rushed her off the phone, told her that President Lee had somehow convinced them she was still working.

"What did you say to my parents?" Mina's tone was not soft. She was demanding to know what was discussed.

"I told them that you and I met by chance months after you applied to work for my company and that you have been with me ever since." Mina clutched at her chest.

"What did they say?"

"Relax, they think you are an employee on a confidential project." Mina was able to steady her breathing, and she followed President Lee back up the stairs. She had so many questions, but none of them would come out of her mouth. "I have a gift for you," the man said, and Mina noticed that Zane had disappeared. When he came back, he was holding a metal briefcase that he opened with a silly smile.

"Ian told me he owed you money, so I told him to give it to you on your birthday and add standard interest." Mina could not speak as she scanned her eyes over the cash in front of her.

"That isn't $553,234.72." Her eyes shot up to Zane, whose smile faltered.

"Did you just calculate the exact amount of interest that should have been earned on 500k?" Mina nodded as if it were the most normal thing in the world, but never took her eyes off the money that was going to buy her a new life.