Chapter 38: How?

Minho raised his eyebrows. The detective was addressing him informally. Gayoon was mortified at this revelation. Hwang Minho was Jina's father?

She tried to picture the cheerful and lively girl with this cold man. How did they even remotely resemble each other? It was the biggest mystery she had even encountered. The mental image of a hyperactive Jina driving Minho crazy popped up into her mind, making her inadvertently chuckle.

"Why are you laughing?" he frowned.

"Nothing!" she said at once. "So you are...Jina's father."

"Yes," he replied. "And I want to talk to you about her. Shall we head to the bar and discuss?"

"Uhh...sure," she said. He led the way towards the sangrila station where the bartender attended to them, handing them a menu.

"What would you like to order sir and madam?" he asked politely.

"A vodka on the rocks for me," Minho ordered. "What about you?"

He shot the question at Gayoon, who was gaping at the drinks' menu. The drinks were expensive! A simple vodka shot was nearly as much as half of her monthly salary!

Are they selling gold bars in the glasses? She wondered.

"Uhh…" she quickly scanned the drinks and randomly picked one. She was not much of a drinker anyway so she had no idea about them. Most of the time, she avoided drinking since she turned into a complete drunkard with even the slightest taste of alcohol but she was not going to admit that to Hwang Minho! What if he made fun of her?

"A Long Island?" she requested. This seems like a safe drink, she thought. Minho frowned a little but did not comment. The bartender bowed and went on to prepare the drinks.

"Why is my daughter visiting you?" he demanded.

"She…"

Gayoon bit her lip. Should she tell him the truth? After all, he was Jina's father and had every right to know about his daughter's whereabouts and activities.

She took a deep breath and said, "She came to the police station to look for her mother."

There was a stretch of silence as Minho tried to process the information. Jina was looking for her mother? But why did she not mention it to him?

"Why would she look for her mother?" he questioned. "She lives with me and is the heiress to my business. She goes to the best school and gets proper care from everyone. I spend every minute of my free time with her, making sure she doesn't lack any care. Why will a happy girl like her search for a mother she never even met?"

Gayoon was taken aback by his reasoning. He spoke in a matter of fact way, holding no grudges against the woman who had left him. In fact, it was as if he was talking about the weather.

"Jina is young and impressionable," she said. "The little girl is yearning for something more than money or material goods! She wants the warmth and love from a motherly figure!"

Minho maintained a poker face but was a little surprised by the bizarre coincidence. Jina inadvertently found the mother she was looking for. When he had discovered that night that Jina was meeting Gayoon, he immediately thought that the latter may have broken her contract. But after confronting her, he realized that Gayoon had no idea that Jina was her daughter as well.

The bartender came with their drinks. He placed their drinks in front of them.

"Please enjoy sir and madam," he said with a bow. Gayoon took a sip of her drink and almost spluttered. It was bitter as hell!

But she somehow managed to hide her disdain. She did not want to be embarrassed in front of Hwang Minho.

"Are you sure you want to drink that?" he frowned. "You can order something else, you know."

"I'm fine," she lied. "As I was saying, Jina is still young. She simply needs a mother figure. Now, I know it's none of my business but you should talk to her mother and tell her to return. If not for you then for her daughter! I'm sure she misses her child too…"

Minho noted a hint of sadness in her tone as if she was also pining for her child. He did not say anything but drank from his glass.

"Besides, if she could meet Jina just once, I'm sure they'll bond beautifully," Gayoon went on. "I don't know what your issues with her were or why you guys broke up but at least for the sake of Jina, you guys can set aside your differences and-"

"What are you talking about?" he asked casually, sipping his vodka.

"I'm saying that you two should put aside your differences and-"

"How?" he asked.

"What do you mean 'how'?" she scoffed. "Just call her and talk to her. Tell her to at least meet her daughter! You guys don't have to get together. Or if you want help in finding her, then I can try looking for her if I get the details."

She took another long sip from her glass. Ugh this thing is bitter! She complained in her head and cursed herself for drinking this so impulsively. Whoever made this drink deserved a special spot in hell.

"I meant, how am I going to set aside my differences with Jina's mother when I was never in a relationship with her," Minho mused. He calmly sipped his drink while Gayoon looked as if she was trying to process the information.

"You mean to say that...Jina is the product of a one night stand?" she guessed, feeling mortified. That made sense! No wonder the money lover was single! The mother bailed on him after giving him an heir!

Minho shook his head in dismay. Jeon Gayoon may have become an ace detective but she was still dumb when it came to certain things. He decided not to tell her but go with the flow.

This is getting interesting, he thought inwardly with a slight smirk.