Aria Rhodes stood watching for a long time until the office door opened. With a click, someone entered from outside. "The loss on the New Delhi project was substantial, over there..." Hayden Rhodes came in, followed by his most capable assistant, who was currently reporting the latest work updates. But soon, his voice was halted by Hayden raising his hand. The assistant paused, looking up ahead. Aria Rhodes was standing in front of the desk, holding a document while looking at it. Upon hearing the sound of the door opening, she turned around, saw Hayden, and immediately flashed him a sweet smile: "Dad." She put the document down and walked over to hug Hayden. A smile instantly appeared on Hayden’s face, a warm and approachable expression not seen in the company, especially the fondness and indulgence in his eyes, which he reserved for no one else. At this moment, with Aria’s presence, Hayden transformed from the usual meticulous company leader to just a father, delighted to see his daughter return. To Aria, he showed the affection one would for a biological daughter, with no difference at all. "You’re back?" He hugged Aria, gently patting her back, his voice filled with laughter, much warmer than when he spoke to ordinary people, completely different. Aria nodded in his embrace, then moved away, looking up at him with a sweet smile: "Yes, I’m back." "I’ve been back for a few hours." The two of them sat on the sofa, and the assistant left with the documents. Soon, the secretary brought in coffee. When it was placed in front of Aria, Hayden remembered that he didn’t know what Aria liked to drink after spending so much time abroad, so he hurriedly asked, "What would you like to drink? I’ll have someone get it for you." To Aria, Hayden was very kind, even more so than to Julian Rhodes. Aria shook her head: "No need, Dad, coffee is fine." She said this, took a sip of coffee, and then smiled at the secretary: "Sister, you make great coffee." The secretary was an old-timer and belonged to Ronia Ackerly. She had seen Aria before and now smiled respectfully upon hearing Aria’s praise: "Miss, you flatter me." After speaking, the secretary bowed and left. Soon, the office door closed. Hayden looked at Aria. He wasn’t someone who talked much, and seeing his long-absent daughter, despite having a lot to say in his heart, he remained silent, just watching Aria closely, checking if she had been sleeping and eating well outside, and if her health was good. His eyes were full of a father’s concern and contentment for his daughter, very kind and gentle. Aria put down the coffee cup, noticing that Hayden was just looking at her with a gentle smile, her heart ached, she leaned over, hugged Hayden’s arm, resting her head on his shoulder, she spoke softly: "Dad, I feel like you’ve lost weight." Hayden paused, the smile slightly faded on his face, and a hint of fatigue and powerlessness showed in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared as he lightly patted Aria, saying: "I haven’t lost weight, it’s just how it is when you get older, looks thinner, but it’s the same as before." In front of Hayden and Ronia Ackerly, and indeed in front of everyone, Aria was seen as an obedient and sensible presence, and everyone liked her and doted on her. Even more so for Hayden. He knew Aria was considerate and cared for the family, and also cared for him, and he didn’t want Aria to worry. Upon hearing these words from Hayden, Aria immediately sat up, pursing her lips and looking at him with distress. Seeing Aria , Hayden’s heart tensed up, and he promptly said: "What’s wrong? Not happy?" "If there’s something that makes you unhappy, tell Dad, and I’ll stand up for you." Saying this, Hayden’s face turned serious, fearing that someone had bullied Aria, making her feel wronged. Upon hearing these words, Aria felt even worse, her eyes reddening, glistening with tears. "What’s wrong? Why are you about to cry?" Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on novel⦿fire.net "Don’t cry, tell Dad, who bullied our Aria? Is it someone outside?" As he spoke, Hayden’s face darkened, placing his hand on Aria’s shoulder, and said sternly: "Tell Dad who it is, I’ll go settle the score with them right now!" By the time he finished, Hayden was already filled with anger, unable to allow anyone to hurt his daughter. But it was exactly this that made Aria feel even worse, and tears instantly fell down as she cried: "I don’t want Dad to grow old, I want him to always be young, always standing in front of me, shielding me from wind and rain. I don’t want Dad to grow old." She cried, tears continuously falling, feeling utterly heartbroken. Hayden thought someone had harmed her, making her bullied and aggrieved, and he was about to make calls to investigate. Aria wouldn’t say, but he could find out through an investigation. However, it turned out not to be the case. Aria hadn’t been bullied, she was afraid of him aging. Hayden was stunned, then looking at Aria’s tears, a smile grew on his face, and he took a tissue to wipe her tears gently, speaking softly: "Our Aria has grown up, it’s normal for Dad to grow old." Aria shook her head, suddenly hugging him, burying herself in his arms like she did when she was a child. "No, I don’t want Dad to grow old!" "Dad must always be young!" Aria hugged Hayden tightly, continuously shaking her head in his arms, insisting he wasn’t old, he would always be their young dad. Hearing Aria’s child-like words, Hayden let out a helpless laugh: "Alright, alright, Dad isn’t old." "Dad will always be young, and our Aria will always be Dad’s princess, never growing up." "Aria won’t grow up, she’ll always be Dad and Mom’s little angel!" "Haha, yes, our little angel." The father and daughter talked a lot, but mostly Aria spoke, and Hayden listened, as he was indeed not a man of many words. But he didn’t mind his daughter’s chatter, listening to her talk about fun things abroad, hearing her laugh, his expression was especially gentle and patient. At this moment, Hayden was truly just a father, a typical father. After talking for a while, Aria brought up Julian Rhodes: "Dad, I heard from Mom that Julian hasn’t been back for a long time." As Aria spoke, she watched Hayden’s expression. And Hayden’s expression changed instantly. It could be described as a momentary change. From the kind and amiable old father to a cold and authoritative company leader. He said: "Your brother is becoming more and more unruly." Recently, because of the matter of sending Julian to the military, he had disputes with Ronia Ackerly, and he hadn’t been home for many days. Once home, Ronia would bring up Julian, asking him not to send Julian to the military, which annoyed him. He didn’t want to listen. He also didn’t want to argue with Ronia, so he had been staying at the company. Coincidentally, there were many issues at the company recently, and considering his age, he felt inevitably fatigued and powerless both at home and outside. Hearing Aria say this now, he immediately knew it was Ronia who told their daughter, otherwise, Aria wouldn’t have brought it up. But certain decisions wouldn’t change regardless of who brought them up. He wouldn’t change his mind, Julian must go to the military. No one could stop it. Aria, being very perceptive of people’s expressions, noticed Hayden’s face darkened instantly, and she quickly said: "I agree with you, Dad!"