Since She Met Lucian

Chapter 24 Fight Back

Normally, no matter how harsh her words were, Amelia wouldn't fight back but this time...

Briefly astonished, Yolanda snorted, "Amelia, I know what you cherish the most. It's the photo of your mother, right? I put it in the storage room so you won't have to worry about losing it anymore."

"Did you put my mother's portrait in the storage room?" Amelia was seething by now, eyes widened in anger.

"Yeah, it's the perfect place to store it in because no one ever goes there and it's quiet there. That's what dead people like, right? They like places that are quiet," Yolanda continued indifferently, failing to notice the anger rising in Amelia.

"Clap!" The sound echoed throughout the building.

"How dare you slap me, Amelia?" Yolanda was still in a daze as she covered her face with her hand.

"Did you really think I wouldn't fight back? That's my mother you're talking about! You're getting on my nerves and I won't tolerate that," Amelia said calmly as she made her way to the storage room.

It didn't matter to Amelia how badly she got treated or how other people often wronged her but when it came to her mother, she had very little tolerance.

Iris committed suicide because she couldn't handle all the problems she was carrying on her back. She deserved to be respected in her death. Only horrible people spoke ill of the dead and only Yolanda and Sophia were capable of doing such a despicable thing.

The storage room was dark and it was filled with a lot of junk that the Mo family had accumulated throughout the years. When Amelia opened the lights, she sighed as the amount of boxes that had been stuffed in this room was unbelievable. It would take her forever to get through all of these. Holding back her tears, she tried her best to look through the boxes to find her mother's portrait.

"Let me help you," Lucian suddenly spoke. His gentle voice made her feel a little bit better.

"Thank you." Amelia didn't refuse and she continued to look through the boxes.

About half an hour had passed yet they still couldn't find Iris's portrait. By this time, she was already sweating buckets. There was no air circulating in their basement so she was having difficulty breathing. Putting a hand on one of the boxes for some support, she started to do deep breathes.

"Why don't you go out for some fresh air? I'll stay here and continue looking," Lucian said gently to Amelia when he realized she was having difficulty breathing.

Lucian insisted since he knew she was never going to admit that she was tired.

She wiped the sweat off her forehead. Her eyes were swollen and red despite not crying.

Every time she thought of her mother, she had to control herself and stop herself from crying even though she could feel the sadness filling her heart. Some people say that when it comes to the dead, it's better to smile at them and relieve them of whatever worries they might have about you.

'Mom, don't worry. I won't put up with anything like that anymore. I don't want you to worry about the future,' Amelia thought inwardly.

"Yes, found it!" Finally, Amelia found Iris's portrait in a box. Clutching it close to her chest, tears finally streamed down her face, letting go of all the emotions she'd been repressing.

"There, there. It's okay." Lucian walked over and touched Amelia's head as a way to comfort her.

When Amelia walked out of the storage room, she didn't see Yolanda. Instead, she saw Jasper who was standing in the living room, looking guilty. The minute he saw her, he walked towards her and said in an apologetic tone, "Amelia, Yolanda went way too far. I'd like to apologize to you on her behalf."

Amelia wasn't even mad anymore until he mentioned this. Now she was triggered.

She sneered in disdain, "Jasper, you have no right to apologize to me!"

Jasper was visibly embarrassed. After a while, he said, "To be honest, I didn't mean to take over your room like that but... I mean, you know how Yolanda loves to compete with you so no matter what I say is useless because she doesn't ever listen to me..."

'What? Is he really going to play the aggrieved husband act to me?' Amelia thought to herself.

"Yes, she took away my stuff. The only thing I'm thankful for is that she took this jerk away from me and saved me from future suffering." For the first time in a long time, Amelia was finally able to speak her mind. It seemed as if having Iris's portrait with her gave her the courage.

Jasper froze. 'Wow, she's changed. I don't even know her anymore,' he thought to himself.

"Amelia, why don't you take mom's portrait back to our place? That way she can be in a quiet and peaceful environment," Lucian said gently, pulling Amelia into his arms.

The SJ Garden was situated at the foot of a mountain, beside a river. It was definitely way quieter than the Mo mansion where chaos always seemed to be present.

The problem was that her marriage with Lucian wasn't real. It was fake. Would it even be appropriate for her to bring Iris's portrait there?

"I only want you to be with your mom. It's fine," Lucian added upon noticing her hesitation.

Amelia raised her head a little. She couldn't help but notice the stubble on Lucian's wheat-colored skin. While he seemed careless on the surface, he always made her feel secure whenever she needed it.

Her frown was replaced with a bright smile.

This made Jasper's heart twist in pain.

Amelia used to look at him this way before—eyes full of gratitude and love. Now, she was looking at another man in the same way.

When Amelia and Lucian returned to the SJ Garden, Amelia intended to head to her bedroom where she could put Iris's portrait. However, Lucian suddenly said, "Come with me."

Despite her confusion, she still followed him.

"What is this empty room for?" The room was beautifully decorated and it was almost bare save for a few pieces of furniture that were strategically placed around the room. It seemed that the room was designed to be classic in style based on the ink paintings on the wall.

"You can put your mom's portrait here. I can get you an altar where you can put it," Lucian suggested thoughtfully as he pointed at the center of the wall.

Amelia thought this was unnecessary as she really didn't mind keeping Iris's portrait by her bed stand.

"Thank you but you don't really need to do this. I can put it in my room. It's big enough anyway." Tightening the portrait in her hands, she suddenly grew bashful.

"Look outside the window. It has an excellent view with bamboos and grass just right outside. It's beautiful here all year round. You'll thank me when winter and summer comes. Just put the picture here and I'll get you an altar," Lucian insisted, his tone determined.

Rendered speechless, she couldn't help but notice how much quieter it was here than it was in the Mo mansion.

'I'm so grateful for him. He's been nothing but supportive. It's so generous of him to offer this room,' she thought to herself. While she knew that rich people were particular about a lot of things, she was

thankful that Lucian wasn't like that.

After placing Iris's photo on the table, Lucian bowed to the picture sincerely. After walking out of the room, he said, "Iris seemed like a beautiful lady."

Amelia smiled and said proudly, "My father told me that my mother used to be the campus crush and so many people tried to pursue her."

Looking at the happiness on Amelia's face, a slight smile crept over the corners of his mouth. "Well, looks like you made your mother proud."

Amelia had a delicate face. Her bright smile made people feel warm. Her innocence and purity made Lucian feel tingly on the inside. She gave him a sense of comfort too.

As much as he wanted to treat her the way he did to other women, he found that she wasn't like that at all. She was very comfortable with herself and had no problems expressing her emotions—a quality he found to be refreshing.

Did he just compliment her? Amelia looked at him in surprise. She blushed and touched her face unconsciously.

Luckily, her face wasn't swollen anymore. Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.

"Lily, would you please cook some green bean soup for Mrs. Amelia's dinner?" Lucian told Lily after making a call. He added, "I have a dinner party tonight so I won't be home until late. Please make sure Mrs. Amelia goes to bed early."

"Okay." Lily nodded. Then she asked cautiously, "Mr. Lucian, is Mrs. Amelia pregnant?"

Pregnant! With a frown on his face, Lucian asked in confusion, "Why do you think so?"

How could she get pregnant when they slept in separate rooms?

"Then why would you sleep in separate rooms? You should be watching over Mrs. Amelia if she's pregnant so she should be sleeping in the master bedroom!" Confusion was written all over Lily's face.

All of a sudden, Lucian's face darkened and said solemnly, "Just focus on doing your job. Don't ask questions when it's none of your business."

If Lily hadn't mentioned this, he wouldn't have realized that their setup would be a problem. It was completely acceptable for Lily to be curious. They were supposed to be a newlywed couple after all.

When Amelia went downstairs, she couldn't find Lucian. At that time, Lily came out of the kitchen and said with embarrassment, "Mrs. Lucian, Mr. Lucian asked me to cook green bean soup for you. He also told me that he has a dinner with a client tonight and you don't have to wait for him. He asked you to go to bed early."

Hearing Lily's words, Lucian seemed like the perfect husband.

Amelia nodded with a smile and then sat at the table, inviting Lily to have dinner with her. Lily waved her hand bashfully and said, "Mrs. Amelia, please enjoy your meal. I can eat later."

Seeing the panic on Lily's face, Amelia stood up and walked up to her. She asked in a soft voice, "Would you please join me? It's so boring to eat alone."

Living alone in such a big house made her feel lonely and sad.

"Okay," Lily agreed seeing as she couldn't refuse after her master had asked so nicely. She added happily, "Mrs. Amelia, I'm so lucky to have you as my master. You're so nice and patient."

For some reason, this made Amelia sad.

"Lily, from now on, I don't want you to see me as your master and I won't treat you like my servant. If you're scared of Lucian scolding you, you can just call me by my name when it's just the two of us. We can have dinner together whenever he's not around. What do you think about that?" Amelia knew what it was like to be treated like a servant and she didn't want to do that to Lily. To her, Lily was like a little sister. She couldn't find it in herself to treat Lily any other way.

"Mrs. Amelia, you... You're too kind. I just graduated from high school. This isn't my first job. I've already served other rich people but they were all crazy. They would get mad at me over the littlest things. You're the only one who's ever been this nice to me." Gratitude was written all over Lily's face— her eyes were gleaming and tears seemed to be welling up under them.

After dinner, Amelia walked around the villa. Then she went back to the living room and watched some TV with Lily. When the clock struck ten, Lily said, "Mrs. Amelia, you can go to bed now if you're feeling sleepy already."

Amelia went back to the bedroom when she remembered that she didn't need to wait up for Lucian anymore. It's not like she was planning to stay up late either. She took a quick shower and went to bed. However, she had trouble sleeping as she couldn't stop thinking about Lucian.