章 163: Chapter 163 - Seal the Deal

"This is Deans father. I asked my son for your contact information. I would like to set up a meeting to discuss the situation with you. Let me know when you are free."

The text itself was surprising as I thought he would be more formal and go with a phone call but looking at the time, it seemed he probably thought I might be asleep.

I figured they would contact me sooner or later but I hoped it was with my parents involved. Considering his dad wanted to meet me alone, this put more pressure on me. I got a scrap paper and began planning out what I wanted to say as well as any other information he could throw at me.

I peeked out at the window in my room which had a decent view of the front of the house, and there was still lingering press hanging around. Getting outside would not be easy especially considering the hassle to leave from the back way.

Initially my gut reaction was to try and handle this myself but if push came to shove and I had to meet him in person rather than over a potential video call, I wanted to ensure everything was set up smoothly which meant involving my parents.

Also considering how much I have hidden from them, I could not push my luck considering that they have not given me a formal punishment.

As I was going through the timeline to cover my bases on my relationship with Dean I recalled the small gift his father had given me back when I assisted in his moms gift. I had forgotten about it as I thought I used it when the issue with my manufacturer for my jewelry business came up.

I rummaged around and in an old wallet I found the card. The card as much as it was a powerful tool that I could force his fathers hand, I also knew doing so could sour any semblance of a relationship we had. The few times I have interacted with his father, I have seen how traditional he is by nature.

If he was like any other business man I have interacted with, then having a woman throw their weight would not make him a happy camper.

He has his moments of kindness and softness but when it comes to his family, he will throw any pretenses away. My father anticipates a pushback from the older generation which is what he and my mom are currently preparing for. Deans father is just a more strict version of my own. He too can probably see the pushback we will get and unlike my Dad who has ties to me, Deans father does not.

He has no reason to want to protect me if he could easily protect his son by throwing me under the bus.

So the card will serve me in the moment but in the long run I was not sure. It was a risky benefit as well as a waste if I do not use it. "Lets see how the conversation will flow. Who knows maybe he will surprise me like my family did."

I contacted him back to enquire about a video call as well as settle on a date. He thankfully agreed which made me assume he too was facing similar issues in his home. As for the date, we settled on the end of the week.

"Dad what do you think will be my conversation with Deans dad? I want to prepare but I don't really have much information on him to guess his style." I had informed my parents of what was going on and considering their history I figured they may have some insider scoop.

"So León asked to meet you huh. Well for starters he is not a scary guy, he may seem like it because of his build and deposition but he not that intimidating in my opinion." My dad did not stop from eating his sandwich and chips as he watched a sports reel from his favorite baseball team.

He spoke of him as though he were a breeze, one which is very easy to handle when I knew that appearance had nothing to do with the intimidating aura his dad gave off. After all my dad was like a goofy happy go lucky guy but when it comes down to business his aura is next level.

"He is probably going to scope you out. He has more personal interest in you not dating his son but you do have an Ace on your side which is that he loves his wife. His wife loves you so by default he really will not want to deny her happiness."

That was true. I did have at least one ally.

"The thing with him is do not try to read him. I used to joke and call him fools gold in school because he had a knack for misleading people. He will give clues and drop hints to spoon feed people what he wants them to think. Because of his stony face and personality any clues or hints he drops feel like a win over him. In reality he feeds that to misdirect you and suddenly its all about what he wants."

It was an interesting technique. If what my dad says is true then even the validity of the gift he gave me made me question its intention. "I know you like to prepare and get things ready prior but with him, I don't think it will be as useful as you think. My advice is to go with the flow, just take what he says lightly and stick to the facts you know."

"Want to know why despite how much Dean may get on his fathers nerves with his behavior his dad still respects him a lot. It is because he is the only one who can get the best of him. León thinks he can make his son move in a different direction but Dean takes going with the flow to a new level. He somehow manages to get his father to do what he wants. So while I know it might be nerve wracking, if Dean was serious about you, I bet he can convince him. You just need to seal the deal."