Chapter 55: A Godchild
Luellen’s eyes flickered. The man she thought knew nothing but work... actually had a fiancée before. However, she seemed to have fled from him and married someone else. It was even while he was hoping to build a future for the two of them.
Luellen then realized. Perhaps Houston stuck to his work to avoid a kind of relationship that had once scarred him.
The girl even lied about her circumstances. The more Madam Henny gossiped, the more they realized the girl had found her high-school sweetheart. She eloped with that guy even though she was about to get married.
Summer and Luellen remained mum. They exchanged soulful looks before the former sniffed and patted her eyes with a tissue. Summer said, "That was so sad. How was Mr Houston? Has he moved on?"
"That’s what he tells us." Madam Henny hummed. "But I catch him spacing out on their important dates. He asked for a day off on their supposed anniversary this year... "
"I can only imagine how devastated Mr Houston was..." Summer sighed in deflation. She embraced Luellen, who sat beside her. "So you...! You! Be more careful and mindful of yourself. I’m not jinxing you and Mr Wentworth, but... a lot of people simply want your position."
"Don’t say scary things like that..." Luellen tried to smile Summer’s worry off. It was just that... even her family didn’t want her to marry Leander.
That morning, she received calls from her other aunties. It seemed that Reginald was quick to broadcast matters to their family. That was how he made them believe that Weyland was a bad brother, that his wife had become a witch, and that Luellen had freely given away her inheritance.
No detail was spared; no truths left untwisted.
In their eyes, Leander seduced the young lady. No matter how much Luellen tried to defend her choices, they kept fighting it. They even said things about fetching her from the city.
"I have to find a house quickly..." Luellen looked down at the pamphlets and chose one. It was the same big house in Aspen Hill. She stared at the walls and felt like she had touched them before. The smooth finish, the shallow indentations of the engravings, the stability each of them gave her... It was as if she could remember all of them.
"I want this house." Luellen looked up at Summer and Madam Henny. "My relatives are all coming after me for marrying an older man. I just want to have a safe space for myself."
"Okay, I’ll make inquiries." Summer smiled as if giving Luellen strength.
...
The afternoon wasn’t as eventful as the morning. Luellen swapped workload with Summer, leaving the former Sales rep to handle Gala’s office work. As for coming with Leander, Houston had to do for now. Luellen had to stay in the office as a safety precaution. The last time was a bad start for her, said Leander.
Keyboards sang to the tune of fast typing. Luellen flawlessly attended to her duties, but she often overlooked guests. It was Summer’s cue to greet them instead. After all, Summer was still the more junior between the two of them.
The door opened, and Summer smiled from her glassed cubicle. However, she didn’t say anything as she was on a call. She could only tap Luellen’s desk, serving as a signal for help.
Luellen looked up and found familiar faces walking in. She stood up and smiled, discreetly making her table less cluttered. "Director Lawford, Mr Kenwood, welcome. Are you here for Leander? I’ll let him know you came."
"I came to see you instead. Can you spare me some minutes?" Sean Lawford chuckled, looking at the inner office door. He caught the moment Houston checked.
"To see me?" Luellen flinched and glanced at Summer. She then smiled at them again. "Would you like to use the conference room?"
Houston glanced at Luellen and turned to Leander. The CEO had closed his laptop and pulled on his suit jacket. He walked out, leaving Houston to deal with whatever was left inside. After all, he just left a meeting without a lot of words. A lot of files were still on his desk.
Leander greeted the two quietly before fetching his fiancée from her table. He said, "I hope you don’t mind me joining you."
A small smile curled Sean’s lips. "I’d rather not have you around, but wouldn’t it be too suspicious? After all, Ms Piper had been attacked before."
"Then I won’t participate in your conversation. Regard me as absent."
Luellen didn’t know why the two bigwigs were engaging in a small fight. She just took the key from Madam Henny and walked out of their office. She led the three men to a conference room just across the hallway. It looked so immaculate, but the stiff chairs made Luellen feel as if she were attending a severance meeting.
Like her, Mr Kenwood seemed uneasy. His hands trembled for no apparent reason, but he still pulled the curtains to a close. The light was enough to brighten the suffocating room.
"Shouldn’t you be in a meeting with the Director of Finance, Leander?" Sean sat down with Mr Kenwood’s help. He kept the small smile on his lips.
"The merger is a waste of my time and resources. They have no security against external threats, which could compromise the conglomerate. It’s good to deal with them swiftly." Leander hummed and watched Luellen stay by the door. He soon spotted her letting a trolley for coffee and snacks inside the room.
"Perhaps the wrong people want to play with you."
Leander pulled a corner of his lips. "He’s quite capable for someone else. He just kept on trying to take what’s mine."
Sean nodded lightly. "I heard. You sent him home last night. I’ve never seen him so angry. Still, that brat learns his father’s trades. I’d rather not have him do something irrevocable and hard to ignore. The same goes for you."
The conversation’s topic sounded so subtle to Luellen. She worked on serving the coffee and snacks to the two top executives. She glanced at Mr Kenwood, who seemed to be anxious instead. It was as if he knew the exact man they were talking about. Nonetheless, Sean came to find Luellen. She should have the right to ask.
"Director, didn’t you say you came to see me?" Luellen sat down after serving them. She kept herself close to Leander, albeit not leaning against him. "Is it related to your conversation just now?"
"Would you like to guess, Ms Piper?" Sean smiled kindly, but Luellen didn’t feel warm this time.
"...I think you’re speaking about Mr Chrome..." Luellen sipped her coffee, both hands on the mug. She even used it to hide from any kind of glare she might receive. "Do you know him, Director?"
Sean nodded, much to Luellen’s hidden horror. He said, "A godchild."
