Molly was carrying the dishes into the kitchen when Oscar wiped his mouth with a clean handkerchief and said, “Eat faster. I’ll send you to work.”
Amelia looked at him, half-smiling. “You’ve finally realized your responsibilities as a husband?”
“Hurry up and eat!”
Amelia picked up a piece of toast. Oscar then pointed to the milk next to her and commented, “You’re pregnant. Drink more milk. It’ll be beneficial for the child.”
The hand that was holding the toast froze before she stole a glance at him. She nodded.
In the ambiguous atmosphere, all Amelia could think of was that the breakfast was exceptionally delicious. Everything she ate had been especially sweet.
After breakfast, Amelia changed into her work clothes and grabbed her handbag. “Can we go now, Mr. Clinton?”
He nodded.
She walked toward him and wrapped her arm around his, giggling. “Let’s go.”
As the two of them went out the door, his phone rang. Oscar subconsciously looked at Amelia before he whipped out his phone, seeing the name Cassie Yard flashing on display.
He frowned slightly. Amelia, who had been next to him, naturally saw it too. Her smile faltered as she said snarkily, “Mr. Clinton, your beloved’s calling. Aren’t you gonna pick up? Otherwise, if something happened, you’re gonna blame me for it again.”
Oscar glanced at her displeasedly before he softened his tone and picked up the call. “Cassie, what’s the matter?”
“Oz, are you at work yet?”
“I’m on the way.”
“Oz, are you free to pick me up? My car broke down yesterday. I don’t really want to hail a cab. Will you send me to the team? The baby and I miss you,” Cassie said coquettishly.
Oscar knitted his brows.
“Are you not willing to, Oz? You’re being so cold to me even though I’m carrying your child. Do you not love me anymore?”
Oscar coaxed patiently, “Be good, Cassie. I’ll go visit you in the afternoon. All right?”
Unexpectedly, Cassie threw a little tantrum. “Oz, the baby and I miss you. If you don’t come right now, I’ll return to Erihal right away. As for the baby, I don’t want it anymore either!”
Oscar’s eyebrows were so furrowed they could trap a housefly. “Cassie, don’t be upset. I’ll go right now.” Even if he was slightly annoyed, he still acceded in the end.
“Then come quick, Oz. We miss you so much.” Cassie hung up immediately afterward.
Keeping his phone back into his pocket, Oscar said, “Amelia, go to work on your own. Cassie needs me.”
Amelia wore a smile on her face as she replied, “Mr. Clinton, hurry away. I can go to work alone just fine.”
“Be careful on the road. Call me if you need me.” Oscar leaned closer to give her a peck on her cheek.
She chuckled nonchalantly. “You never used to be so overly careful. It’s just going to work. It’s not a big deal.”
Unsatisfied, Oscar added a couple more instructions before he quickly drove off. As soon as he was gone, the smile on Amelia’s face vanished, a lingering gloom appeared between her eyebrows.
She sat in the car and inhaled a sharp breath before driving out of the neighborhood.
While on the road, she received Tiffany’s call and picked it up without much thought. “Tiff, why are you awake this early?”
“I wrote for the entire night. I’m calling to ask if you’re free tonight? Let’s have dinner together. I’m missing the sweetheart in your tummy,” Tiffany answered.
Amelia chuckled. “Since you’ve asked, how could I say no? It’s been days since we’ve had a meal together anyway. Let’s get together tonight then.”
“Alright. Then I’ll go to bed first. See you tonight.”
“Rest well. I’ll call you in the afternoon to wake you up.”
“Babe, don’t. My editor has been rushing me for my manuscript so much that all that’s in my brain are never-ending plotlines. I haven’t slept well in days, so you better not call me. I’ll call you when I wake up on my own in the evening.”
“Alright, go to sleep then. I’ll call you at six o’clock.”
After hanging up, Amelia drove to her company. Perhaps it was due to a stroke of luck, the traffic had been smooth on the way.
Having parked the car, she took her bag and headed into the building. There at the entrance was Carter, who seemed like he had been waiting there for a while. Noticing him, her steps halted. She momentarily recalled that when he’d called last night, she and Oscar had been in the middle of heated sex, and Carter had heard them.
With her cheeks flushing, she was caught between moving forward or retreating until Carter made the first move to approach her. Seeing that, she couldn’t ignore him and tried to greet him as per normal. To her surprise, Carter grabbed her without warning, causing her to let out a yelp as he dragged her out of the building.
She wanted to shake him off, but his grip was rather strong, and the employees, who were entering the building, were watching them as well. She lowered her voice and said, “Mr. Scott, let go. Everyone’s looking.”
Carter ignored her, determinedly dragging her elsewhere.
Infuriated, Amelia said, “What are you doing, Mr. Scott? There’re plenty of people around.”
Finally, Carter stopped and turned to look at her. “Come with me. I need to speak with you.”
“What’s the matter, Mr. Scott? It’s so early in the morning. Who made you mad?”
“Come with me and you’ll find out.”
With no choice, Amelia followed behind him. Although the atmosphere was pretty harmonious, what they didn’t know was that the sight of them being hand-in-hand had been photographed by a car hidden outside the building.
Carter took her to the parking lot and shoved her against a pillar in one swift move. His eyes were dejected and awkward at the same time. “Amelia, did you do that on purpose last night? My feelings for you haven’t changed over the last few years. You were well aware of how I felt for you, yet you still did something like that. Is it because Oscar Clinton can satisfy you better in bed?”
Amelia’s wrist was hurting from Carter’s grip. Seeing the pain and fury in his eyes, she was mildly alarmed as well. She tried shrugging his hand off but to no avail. “What’s the matter with you, Mr. Scott?”
“Amelia, do you have a heart? I heard you and Oscar last night. Do you really hate me that much?” He stared at her.
Amelia felt slightly apologetic. Even though she regarded Carter as a platonic friend, having her sexual activity brought up made her really uncomfortable.
“Mr. Scott, what happened yesterday was an accident. I didn’t expect you would call me at that hour. As you know, certain things are hard to stop once they’ve started. Hence…” She glanced at him. “I apologize if what you heard made you uncomfortable.”
“Amelia, do you really not know, or are you trying to use such a cruel method to make me give up on you?”
She glanced at him weirdly. “We’ve known each other for years. Don’t you know clearly what sort of person I am?”
With her hands restrained, Carter was almost pressing against her as their bodies fitted tightly against each other. “You were so passionate under Oscar Clinton. Do you love him that much?”
Her brows bunched up tightly. “What are you trying to say exactly, Mr. Scott?”
His eyes instantly turned as red as burning flames, and his bloodthirsty gaze seemed like it wanted to rip her apart then devour her.
Amelia was startled by his gaze and subconsciously pushed against Carter. But to her dismay, the action caused his eyes to turn even more aghast instead.
He restrained her hands harder, pressing her higher against the wall but was rational enough to not put pressure on her belly.
“Amelia, I thought I would be contented staying by your side silently. But last night while you were with him, I realized I couldn’t do it.” He leaned against her shoulder, his voice revealing traces of vulnerability.
Guilt flashed in her eyes. She wanted to push him off but ended up patting him on the back instead.
Still in the same position, Carter said weakly, “Amelia, I’ve been in love with you since the day I first met you. Years ago, when you were framed, I was more anxious than anyone else. I escaped to help you. Who knew you were gone by then. I’ve spent a lot of money looking for you, but it was like you vanished without a trace. Now that I finally found you, you’re married to someone else instead. Don’t I have a chance at all?”
Amelia responded calmly, “Calm down, Mr. Scott. It’s working hours. Let’s talk after work, shall we?”
Carter lifted his head, staring deeply into her eyes. Clenching his hand into a fist, he threw a brutal punch against the pillar behind her, causing bright red blood to stain his knuckles immediately.
Amelia flinched, hurriedly grasping his fist to take a look. Every knuckle of his was bleeding. If he wasn’t careful, he could’ve easily fractured his hand.
“Mr. Scott, what on Earth are you doing? Let’s go. We need to get it checked in the hospital. If the bones are fractured, you could really become handicapped.”
Carter’s eyes shone with a sliver of hope and intertwined his fingers with hers. “Amelia, you still care about me, don’t you?”
As much as Amelia wanted to shrug him off, she couldn’t.
While the two of them were caught in entanglement, the camera hidden in the car nearby captured one photograph after another. The person in the vehicle studied the photos with a smirk and remarked, “What excellent pictures. They should sell for a large sum.”
The person in the dark didn’t linger. Once they’d gotten what they came for, they drove off, leaving only a trail of smoke and the couple behind.
