Agreement Behind Her Marriage

After the visit to the Walton Mansion, Lily stayed at home. While resting, she caught up on her schoolwork and the project she collaborated on with Danica.

“Are you okay?” Danica inquired over the phone. She lay on the reclining chair beside the pool, watching the orange sky with a hint of blue turning nighttime.

“I got sick, but I think I’ll be better by tomorrow. We will discuss the project once I return. In the meantime, I’ll find a client, so don’t worry.”

Her friend on the other line sighed. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand why Brian doesn’t want me to be friends with you. He stated he would only agree to let me refurbish his new apartment if you weren’t my partner.”

Because your boyfriend is a scumbag, Lily wanted to say.

“Just let him be.”

“Are you sure you weren’t Brian’s ex-girlfriend?”

“Of course not!” Where did Danica get this idea? The thought cringed her.

“Whew! Thank goodness! He doesn’t want us to become friends, and that’s the only explanation I can come up with.”

For Danica, she felt sorrow. What would she do once she learned the truth?

When the doorbell rang, she glanced via the surveillance camera to see Lauren’s figure standing outside their house. For several weeks, she hadn’t seen the woman. “I have to cut this call! I have a visitor.”

“Okay! Take care, Lily! Love you. Bye!”

After speaking to Danica, she smiled. Lily felt bad that her friend ended up dating Brian because the woman was so kind and sweet. If only Danica was aware of her boyfriend’s cheap character.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“Hi!” she greeted Lauren.

The woman drew forward and gave her a warm hug while kissing her cheek. “I brought food because I had heard you needed to stay at home because you were ill. Where is Drew? Why did he leave you alone?”

“He said he had to take care of something at the office, and Orion, unfortunately, abroad,” Lily reasoned.

“I’ve heard that you’ve begun seeking clients. That will cause a conflict in your class, don’t you think?”

“Yeah! Because I have this friend at school; she’s energetic and ambitious. She’s the one who encouraged me to start the business. For the time being, we are only accepting clients, but if our idea is a success, we’ll keep trying to make this a reality. I see nothing wrong with it. At least I can help Drew. Regarding the class, I don’t have a hard time combining it with this project. I’m enjoying both of them.

“That’s good! Looks like your relationship with Drew is better now.” Lauren smiled with a tease.

“Yeah…” she replied with a heated face.

“Don’t worry; I will recommend you to my brother. He’s an engineer and is seeking an interior designer for his new client, as far as I know. This client is a VIP, so he is quite cautious and particular about several details. Maybe you could help him.”

“Wow! You have a brother? But isn’t asking your brother for help going overboard?” She didn’t want to appear like she was taking advantage of her husband’s friend.

“Obviously not! Avoid thinking in that way! Lily, you’re doing great! I was incredibly impressed by what you did to this home. The painted walls are gorgeous. I also appreciate the colorful abstract couch, which changes into a different painting style each time I visit.”

She assumed Lauren was unaware of Drew’s habit of using the couch as his preferred canvas. It was a secret between them. When she thought of the messy things that occurred on that couch, her cheeks became even hotter. It turns out that they haven’t finished painting it yet, since they frequently exhaust their strength during sex.

“Thank you for the compliment,” she said. “I also want to thank you because I loved the clothes, we purchased the previous time.”

“You can go to Kori’s shop sometime if you need help to choose your new set of clothes. We have the best personal shoppers.”

“Thank you! Do you want a snack?”

Her cell phone beeped and glanced at Drew’s message.

‘I’ll be coming home late; I have to take care of something.’

“Isn’t it Drew?” Lauren asked.

“Yeah. He said he had to attend to something, so I suppose we won’t be eating together this time.”

“Then come with me! This would be a great opportunity to introduce you to my brother.”

Lily accepted the woman’s offer because she felt too embarrassed to decline. Consequently, she had grown accustomed to having dinner with Drew. Eating alone must be a lonely experience.

***

“Nice meeting you!” Lily greeted Lauren’s brother.

Lily thought they were roughly the same age, if not a year or two apart in age. He is a tall, tanned, and lean man-a perfect specimen of a man. They met him after he finished his business meeting at a hotel.

“He’s Kael,” said Lauren, before turning to her brother. “She is Drew Walton’s wife, Lily. She is seeking a client, and I thought I’d introduce her to you because you are also looking for an interior designer.”

His eyebrows puckered and raised. “Drew’s wife? Interesting.”

“What do you mean by that?” Lauren asked in annoyance.

The man gave her another stare. “I didn’t know Drew Walton got married, and the reason I said it was interesting is that she’s not the kind of woman I could see marrying that person.”

‘Arrogance!’

Why does everyone she meets who is related to Drew initially doubt that he would wed her or think that she is too unattractive to be his wife?

“Kael, your words!”

“He wasn’t the first to tell me that. Would you believe that even before we got married, my husband nearly puked on me? The only thing I’m unsure of is whether I actually appear to be worthless even at first glance. Do you truly think I look that bad?” she sadly asked. “That’s right, even in my family…”

She took a deep breath, holding back the words.

Perhaps Lily was hurt because of what she had experienced in their household. The idea that she wasn’t Drew’s first choice stung. However, her husband did things to alleviate her anxiety. He respected and appreciated her.

Only the people had the courage to speak out against her. Why did people behave that way? Why did they criticize things that she could not do or have?

“I’m sorry, Lily.” Lauren shot her brother a threatening look.

“I don’t think I will be happy working with your brother, I’m sorry.” She got up from her seat and looked at Kael, saying, “I come from a toxic family. So, I hope you understand.”

She sauntered her way out, leaving the brother and sister behind.

“Lily!” She heard Lauren yell before scolding her brother. “You stupid brat! Follow her and then apologize!”

She left the restaurant, but she hadn’t anticipated seeing her husband come out of the elevator with a woman. She couldn’t identify the woman because she was wearing sunglasses. Drew informed her of his schedule for the evening and mentioned that he was busy. Why is he in this place?

She gulped.

Kael, who followed her, muttered, “I dislike your husband because of that. Fake women appeal to him! You detest toxic people, but you share a home with the most toxic person I know!”