Mommy, Where Is Daddy? The Forsaken Daughter's Return novel Chapter 55

Hearing the name of Clayton Brown and Annie, her stepsister, Samantha contemplated going to the two-carat conference room.

She instantly paled at the idea of seeing her stepmother and stepsister. All the more, seeing her father. However, what pushed her to present herself was the convincing of the F&B Manager. She was told, "This would be very good publicity for the hotel, Chef Sam, and I'm sure the boss would love it!"

"You seem like you are hesitating, Chef Sam." From one corner of the kitchen, Chef Matteo remained to study Samantha's movements. He could not help but probe, seeing the reluctance in Samantha's expression.

Samantha cleared her throat and replied, "It's just that... I am not used to speaking in front of a crowd, but I suppose... it's also part of my job."

She forced a smile and added, "Let me just give additional instructions to the chefs and I'll be right behind you."

"I'll see you at the two-carat conference room, Chef Sam," the F&B Manager eagerly responded, walking away from the kitchen.

Samantha did not require that much time. She just needed to get freshened up before seeing her father. She at least desired to look presentable.

She proceeded to her locker and sent a quick message to Ethan, telling him how she was about to meet her father. She did not wait for any reply and took out her make-up kit.

After putting on some lipstick and powdering her face, she went straight to the two-carat conference room, feeling her heart racing.

As she made that walk into the hallway, she told herself, "You can do this, Sam. Make Ethan proud... Make your children proud." She took a deep breath and reminded herself, "Be proud of what you have become."

When she entered the venue, she instantly saw familiar faces gawking at her. Some of them were her relatives from the Davis' side, and some were her classmates in the military academy.

She raised her chin and imposed a smile. She silently told herself that she was no longer that same Samantha who felt ashamed of her previous mistake. Besides, her supposed misreading lead her into Ethan's arms.

As she made her way to the VIP table where the F&B manager stood, she took a deep breath and searched for Matilda first.

It calmed her heart to find her grandmother. She smiled, knowing everything will be fine.

Still, she evaded her father's gaze.

Standing exactly in front of Clayton Brown, the F&B Manager introduced her as the executive chef. She also repeated her introduction and only then did she look straight into Clayton's eyes and congratulated him and Annie.

In secret, she thought, 'You deserve each other.'

"Beautiful! Beautiful!" Samantha heard a lady, wearing glasses, gave compliments of her charms. "The food is not only delicious, but the person who made the dishes is just so beautiful! What a beautiful Chef you are, Chef Sam!"

Having heard this many times from Ethan's side of the family, Samantha took pride in the comments and said, "Thank you. I was told... I look exactly like my mother."

That was the only time she finally glanced at her father, the General. She clearly saw how he fluttered his eyes by the mention of her mother.

Next to the General was Catherine, her stepmother. Samantha saw how Catherine clasped her hand against her dessert spoon, angry at hearing about her mother. She supposed it would not be the first that her stepmother disliked the mention of Sarah Turner Davis, but it felt great to bring it up again.

"Chef Sam, my name is Belinda Lopez. I am a columnist at the Braeton Daily. I am also a food critic and may I just say, your food is delicious!" Belinda turned around at the table and revealed, "All of us had great words to say about your food!"

Samantha smiled at the tale of Belinda. She reacted, "Really?" Turning to her father, she probed, "Does the General also appreciate the dishes we served?"

There was an awkward silence coming from Winfield, and it puzzled the columnist. It was Belinda who answered on behalf of the General, "Yes! Everyone did!"

"Yes, he did child. Everyone in this room liked the dishes, right everybody?" It was Matilda who stood up, encouraging everyone to speak up.

Samantha clearly saw how her father's hands hid beneath the table. She also saw how her stepmother's jaws clenched.

Transferring her gaze to Annie, Samantha noticed how her stepsister's eyes narrowed at her.

She also received the awkward silence coming from the Browns, especially Ingrid Brown.

Samantha used to get along with Ingrid, but now, she knew not where Clayton's mother stood.

While other guests in the conference room were giving Samantha praises, most individuals in the VIP table were in shock and unable to speak.

Belinda, on the other hand, continued with her comments, "I will definitely write a column about my dining experiences tonight and it's a good thing that I took pictures of my plate! Eventually, I'd want to conduct an interview with you, Chef Sam."