Chapter 31: A Secret

Chapter 31: A Secret Orabela curled her fingers up. She had been careful, then how come Lucius found out about it. "Lucius, it’s your wedding reception. Talk about it later," Alekis suggested. "I’m leaving later with my wife for the honeymoon. So, I need to settle the score before that. If only Orabela’s parents had taught her not to lie every time, and not to be jealous of Layla, she would not have asked the waiter to spike Layla’s drink," Lucius announced, not fearing how many people would hear him. Layla understood why Lucius suddenly took that champagne glass from her. But how did he find out? Darius and Miriam gazed at Orabela in shock. They weren’t less humiliated in the past, and now again they had to keep their eyes low because of what Orabela did. Alekis could sense the curious eyes falling upon them. "Mr. and Mrs. Rosenzweig should leave with their daughter," he intervened. "Lucius, my boy, calm down and enjoy the night with your wife. Listen to your father," Alekis expected understanding from his son. "Father is right. Just calm down," Layla said, holding his hand, caressing it with her fingers gently. "Fine. If Orabela apologizes for what she did, I’ll let the matter slide," Lucius said. "Else, I’ll not hesitate to involve the police," he threatened openly. Orabela was scared to heard the name of the police. She didn’t know Lucius would catch her so easily. Darius stepped up and apologized on Orabela’s behalf. "Please forgive my daughter. We will make sure to discipline her," he assuringly said. Miriam was embarassed and lowered her eyes in shame. Layla was hurt for some reason to see how her father apologized and shielded Orabela again. If she would be at Orabela’s place, her father would have ignored her presence. He would have blamed her for tarnishing their family reputation. "You all should leave. Thank you for attending this reception," Alekis intervened again as he wished to end it on a positive note. He gestured to his personal secretary to led their way out. About the gifts he had instructed him before the reception started. As Layla’s family decided to leave, Miriam came forward and hugged Layla, thus flustering her because this was the first time she was ever being hugged by Miriam. "I apologise on Orabela’s behalf and also the others. You’ve a big heart and I hope things turn better like before," Miriam pulled away and patted Layla’s cheek before leaving behind her husband, followed by Orabela. Layla felt strange not happy but not sad either. It was a different kind of feeling, which she couldn’t name. "Lucius, you are 35. How can you still whine like a young boy? At least check the occasion before acting like that," Alekis said. "Dad, I can’t stand wrong happening with Layla," Lucius said. "I would have handled it," Alekis told him. He glanced at Layla and said, "Let’s talk about this later when you both return from your honeymoon," he suggested. "I understand," Layla replied. "Where’s Roderick, Fiona?" Alekis inquired. "Uh... He was here only," Fiona wandered her eyes around, but couldn’t find Roderick. "Find him and bring him here. He needs to properly apologize to his aunt," Alekis stated. Fiona nodded and excused herself. "Why don’t you both take a seat?" Alekis finally told them. Lucius pulled out a chair for Layla and made her sit on it. He even took off his own blazer and draped it around Layla, who was touched by his gentlemanly behavior. Evelina watched everything and what made her satisfied that Layla was indeed Lucius’s comfort zone. He was madly in love with her. But she couldn’t sense the same feelings coming from Layla. As Lucius sat beside Layla, the waiter came to serve the drinks to them. "Your mother has come after a long time. Won’t you like to say some good words to her?" Alekis asked. "I have nothing to say," Lucius replied while swirling the wine glass in his hand. He brought it close to his mouth and took a sip of it. "Why are you even here? You knew well I wouldn’t like your presence," he coldly said, finally meeting his gaze with Evelina. "You got married unexpectedly. I wanted to know who the woman was," Evelina said, her gaze shifting to Layla, who remained silent, caught in the tension. "As if your opinion would have mattered to me," Lucius muttered, his irritation bubbling to the surface. He chugged down the wine in one go, the glass clinking sharply against the table as he set it down. "Where’s Rick? He is never on time," he added, his expression darkening further. "Layla, do you have my number?" Evelina suddenly inquired, breaking through the thick air of frustration. "Uh—no..." Layla replied, glancing at Lucius for reassurance. "Give me your phone. I’ll save my number," Evelina said, her tone insistent. Layla hesitated, her eyes flickering back to Lucius, gauging his reaction. "I-I will ask Lucius if I find the need for your number," she finally replied, trying to deflect the request. "But I don’t have her number," Lucius interjected smoothly. "You can decide if you want to have her number or not," he added, leaning forward with an air of authority. Resting his elbow on the table, he cradled his temple in his calloused palm, fixating his gaze on Layla. Those eyes held a deep admiration that made her heart flutter. Feeling a twinge of guilt at refusing Lucius’s mother, Layla finally relented. She opened her phone and handed it to Evelina. Evelina quickly typed in her number and returned the phone to Layla. "Call me whenever you need me," she said, her tone softening slightly. "So, where are you two going for the honeymoon?" "That’s a secret. We don’t want anyone to know about the location for privacy reasons," Lucius replied, his eyes never leaving Layla. He spotted a long hair strand blocking his view to her face and he brushed it away. Layla also tucked it behind her ear, feeling tense just by the touch of his fingers. "How did you two fall in love?" Evelina finally asked. Layla didn’t anticipate that question and wondered what she could possibly answer. "She scolded me," Lucius replied. Layla gazed at him in bewilderment. When did she scold him? "Rick is here, Father!" Fiona intervened, thus breaking an intense movement between them.