The day after Milan Fashion Week ended, Lilia just woke up at half past eleven in the afternoon. She woke up to a rumbling stomach.
Lilia sat on the bed and began to stretch her stiff body. Then she checked her cell phone. She sighed as she looked back at the SMS from a number she didn't know.
Lately, William had been texting her using different numbers, so Lilia couldn't block him. She had considered telling Jean, but most of William's messages only contained requests for Lilia to contact him. The woman had no intention of forgiving William, so she only skimmed through the message before deleting it.
This time too, Lilia opened the SMS and read it briefly. However, the content was different from usual.
"You think there will be another man who can love you like me? You are beautiful, popular, and from a wealthy family but that's precisely why other men will never love you for who you are. Only I love you sincerely regardless of your appearance or background. Lili, give me a chance to prove my love for you."
After reading that, Lilia's thoughts were on Jean. Doubts slowly grew inside her mind. Why did Jean agree to marry her? He could've chosen whoever he wanted, but that man chose Lilia instead. Was it because Jean needed something from Lilia? For that matter, Jean deliberately acted as if he really loved her? If that was true, Lilia should praise Jean's acting skills.
'Jean isn't that kind of guy!' There was a part of Lilia's mind that rejected that idea, 'He loved me sincerely!'
"Then why me?" The question came out of Lilia's mouth.
But before she could think of it any further, her empty stomach gave a loud sound. Lilia hurriedly deleted the message before getting out of bed and heading into the sitting room. She intended to order lunch through room service.
When Lilia opened the door to her room, she automatically squinted to adjust to the brightly lit living room. Sunlight entered the room through the open blinds of the window. Lilia frowned. It was strange, she didn't remember opening the curtains of this room's window.
Lilia's eyes finally got used to the bright light, but she stood still on the spot.
"Good morning." Jean looked up from his iPed. The man sat back on the sofa with both feet on the table, as if he was the owner of this room, "Are you hungry? I've ordered food for you."
Instead of answering, Lilia darted into the bathroom and slammed the door shut, "W-Why are you here?! How did you get in?!" Lilia demanded frantically from behind the door.
The woman stared at his reflection in the mirror. Her current appearance was completely chaotic. Her long hair was messy, plus there was still some makeup on her face that she hadn't removed from last night. Lilia didn't want to show Jean this terrible appearance!
She heard Jean laughing from the living room, "I borrowed your backup card. Speaking of food, I told them to bring it after you finished tidying up your appearance, so you take it easy."
Lilia covered her face with her hands, 'He already saw me...'
*****
When Lilia came out of the bathroom looking fresh and tidy as if nothing had happened, her lunch was already on the table. She sat beside Jean and immediately started eating. She'd completely forgotten William's message.
"You don't need to rush. Nobody's going to eat your food." Jean reminded while stifling laughter.
Lilia slowed down her eating with an embarrassed expression. She was too hungry to eat with her usual elegance.
"Oh yeah. The perpetrator of your kidnapping case has been arrested." Jean said lightly, as if he was just telling her about tomorrow's weather.
Lilia immediately turned to Jean, "Is it true? The culprit has been caught by the police?"
Jean looked surprised because Lilia already knew who did it, "Right. Since you already know that, I guess you can guess the motive as well. She hired the mafia group to kidnap you so she could replace you as the opening model."
"I knew it." Lilia muttered. She heard the news that the model's performance at the opening show drew a lot of criticism from the audience so that her contracts with other brands were canceled. Coupled with this criminal record, Lilia was sure that the model would never return to the entertainment world.
"That model admits that she also wants to destroy your career as a model by spreading the word that you were kidnapped. If all of this goes according to the original plan, the mobsters will let you go after the show ends 'so you know what it feels like to be humiliated'." Jean quoted the model's words, "But I've asked the police to keep the case secret, so her plan wouldn't work."
"Hmm?" Lilia tilted her head, "Wait a minute, if the police kept my kidnapping a secret, then what's that model arrested for?"
Jean smiled coldly, "You really want to know?" His tone indicated that Lilia was better off not hearing the answer.
Lilia shook her head vigorously and returned to concentrating on her food, as if she didn't hear anything.
"Oh, there is one more thing that caught my attention from the results of the police interrogation. The model is good friends with Sara Hartanto." Said Jean.
Lilia stopped spooning the soup, "You mean Sara was also involved in this incident?"
"Unfortunately, there is no evidence to get the woman arrested." Jean sounded irritated, "However, we can be sure that Sara also had a hand in this case. They communicated by phone the day before the opening of Milan Fashion Week. Looks like the model told Sara about you and she suggested this kidnapping."
Lilia put down the spoon and smiled coldly, "So she wants to play that way." Lilia muttered, "It turns out that the car accident wasn't enough to make her give up."
Suddenly she felt Jean's big hand stroking her head, "Do not worry. I will not let this incident happen again."
Lilia could only nod when she felt some murderous aura escaped from the man's gaze.
*****
That night, Jean took Lilia to a restaurant by the canal. The restaurant was known for its delicious food and views of the historic canal.
"Do you still have other business in Milan?" Jean asked as he cut the ham on his plate.
Lilia thought for a moment before shaking her head, "No, my work here is finished."
"Then we will return to Indonesia tomorrow." Jean said while putting the ham on Lilia's plate.
Jean's words told Lilia that the man was deliberately matching her schedule. She smiled and tried the ham Jean gave her. Lilia could feel that the meat was cooked perfectly.
"How about your job, Jean? You have always accompanied me while here, don't you have a lot of work to do?" Asked Lilia.
"No problem." Jean replied calmly, "Kenny will take care of it for me."
Hearing that, Lilia imagined Kenny drowning in a pile of documents that needed to be worked on. She secretly prayed that Kenny would survive until they returned to Indonesia.
On the other hand, she also felt touched by Jean's words. As the head of the Widjaya Family real estate company, that man must have been very busy. Even so, Jean still made his time to accompany her in Milan.
After the two of them finished dinner, Jean and Lilia left the restaurant hand in hand. They happened to run into a young couple who were arguing. However, neither Jean nor Lilia paid attention to the couple.
"Antonio, you are a jerk! I was really stupid for trusting you all this time!" The woman screamed angrily.
Lilia suddenly stopped walking. She felt that the voice sounded familiar to her ears.
When Lilia suddenly stopped walking, Jean turned his head towards her with a frown, "What is wrong?" Asked the man.
"No… just…" Lilia muttered as she turned around to observe the bickering. She did not finish her sentence because she was too focused on listening to the couple's conversation.
The man, Antonio, put on a disgusted expression as he said curtly, "Rachel, you should try looking in the mirror every now and then! You are so rude and unreasonable! How could you possibly compare yourself to the kind and understanding Anna?!"
Lilia secretly sighed. The fight was starting to sound like the bickering in many drama series. The woman loved her partner, but the man loved another woman. When the man was caught cheating with another woman, he blamed her for the cause of the affair.
A hurt expression crossed Rachel's face. But she immediately covered it with a sneer. The woman in plain white raised her hand and slapped Antonio, "Then, I hope you regret choosing her!" She said coldly before storming away.
As Rachel ran past Lilia, her teary face reminded Lilia of a young girl she knew. But the young girl in her memory always looked tough and never cried. Lilia was sure that Rachel and the girl were the same person, but this was the first time she had seen her shed tears.
Suddenly Jean squeezed Lilia's hand gently, pulling her back from her thoughts, "Do you know her?" He asked.
Lilia turned to her fiance, "Yes. She's my best friend in high school. But she and her family suddenly moved abroad. Since then, I never saw her again." Lilia answered softly.
Lilia never thought she would find her long-lost best friend in Milan. Lilia, Vivi, and Rachel were an inseparable trio during high school.
The woman stared at Rachel's back and automatically stepped forward to catch up with her. But Lilia thought of Jean beside her. She stopped her steps and turned towards the man.
"Go." Before Lilia could ask, Jean was already gently pushing her back.
"She's your best friend, right?" Jean smiled faintly.
Lilia stared at the man for a moment, feeling touched by his concern. She stood on tiptoe and kissed Jean on the cheek, "I will be right back." She said before running away
Jean chuckled as he watched his fiancée chase after Rachel. Then the man turned to Antonio. His facial expression turned icy cold again, making him look like a completely different man.
The man whom Rachel left behind had pulled out his cellphone and secretly snapped a photo of Lilia's figure running away. His eyes were fixed on the beautiful woman, as if he was obsessed with her.
"She is so beautiful, like a model. I feel like I've seen her somewhere… "Antonio muttered to himself.
Suddenly Antonio shuddered as he felt a strong killing force. The man slowly looked around and met Jean's sharp eyes. That icy gaze caught Antonio's breath stuck in his throat.
At that moment, several bodyguards appeared from inside the restaurant. They were all wearing sunglasses and black suits that were identical to each other. A small communication device was attached to their ears.
The head of the personal bodyguard team approached Jean and spoke respectfully, "Young master, what are your orders?"
"Send two people to escort Lilia." Said Jean.
"As you wish." The head of the team immediately carried out his order.
"Then make sure the man deletes all the photos he takes." Jean added before stepping into the car waiting nearby.
"Ready."
Antonio became even more panicked when the head of the bodyguard approached him. He turned to run away, but instead he was faced with two other bodyguards. Antonio could only surrender and hand over the phone. He didn't know who the man was, but he knew that he shouldn't be challenged.
*****
Lilia managed to catch up with Rachel, who had slowed her pace. She could hear the woman's sobbing voice.
Lilia sighed. Her chest felt tight to hear her friend cry, "I never expected to see Rachel Gunawan cry because of a broken heart!" She said aloud.
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