flower. h.s ✔️

forty eight.

Annabel is 21, she's literally s i x months older than me.

H :~) 11:49am: Who's Annabel?

I stared at my phone incredulously, did he really not pay attention to anything happening around him?

"You better not sit on your phone the entirely of lunch Poppy. I raised you better than that." My Father snapped just as the car came to a stop out and I hauled myself out under the tall building holding Maison Kayser and presumably Max and the Rossi family.

"You didn't raise me." I muttered, hoping to get away with it only to have my Father glare at me.

"Annabel go on in and find Max." My Father instructed and I saw her glance back at me. "Now."

Annabel did as she told and I attempted to follow only to be jerked backwards as my Father grabbed my arm and hauled me back so I was level with him.

"Don't you dare to ever take that tone with me again Poppy. You are my daughter and you will treat me with respect." My Father hissed and I swallowed.

"Don't think I don't know what you've been saying to Giovanni."

I frowned as confusion grew inside of me, what was he talking about?

"You need to step up and start acting like a fucking adult Poppy, you can't hide behind your dead mother as an excuse anymore. You're a Carmichael and you need to fucking act like one, and that means doing what you can for this company. Be an adult."

My heart stung at the mention of Mum and my face twisted up, I wasn't stupid enough to not understand what he was implying with Giovanni but I felt like he was sorely overestimating my abilities.

And to act like an adult, when I was clearly the only one in this family that ever did was laughable.

"Act like an adult, huh. Like your twenty one year old girlfriend?" I snapped, my temper getting the best of me.

My face stung almost more than my heart as my head snapped to the side and I realised he had hit me, again. But this time we were in public and his eyes were darting about the street behind me as I swallowed and tears grew in my eyes.

"You cry one single tear and I swear to god you'll lose everything I have ever given you."

My Father hissed as he gripped my bicep and hauled me inside behind him, his snap of our last name at the waitress made me cringe as we followed her upstairs to a more private area, and once everyone came into view he let go of me.

Everyone stood as we entered and I bit my tongue to hold back my scoff. My facial expression barely changed as Max glanced at me before he looked away and I knew immediately he knew.

The only empty seat that hadn't been filled by my Father was alongside Giovanni and I forced a polite smile at him as he pulled my chair back for me and I sat in silence.

"Poppy, this is my Mother Valentina." Giovanni introduced us and I smiled at her. The dark hair styled perfectly into curls sitting elegantly on her shoulders and her heart shaped face held a warm smile and large kind eyes.

She was absolutely fucking stunning.

"Lovely to meet you Poppy, you have such a beautiful name." Valentina smiled and I flushed.

"It's nice to meet you too. Thank you, I'm quite fond of it." I attempted a joke, regretting it immediately as my Father glared but Valentina, Annabel and Giovanni laughed.

"Well let's eat, I'm starving." Marco announced and I glanced down at the menu in front of me, we were at an Italian and I was pretty sure my Father picked the place...what if the Rossi's didn't even like pasta?