Since She Met Lucian

As soon as the car arrived at the SJ Garden, Lucian took off his coat and the coat Amelia had put on her own shoulder. He said
possessively, "My woman can only wear my clothes."
Looking at his childish yet serious face, Amelia said nothing but felt happy.
Girls like to be cared and loved by boys. They enjoy a sweet caress and a warm embrace. Being loved and capable of
reciprocating love is, to them, one of the most pleasant things in the world. Amelia was entranced by that very feeling right now.
As though her heart was filled with vast oceans of ecstasy.
But the coat wasn't hers. It was Jonny's and she couldn't lose it, so she took it from Lucian and held it in her arms.
Lucian felt jealous at the sight of Amelia's reaction but he didn't want to show it. He had to bury the impulse to get to the bottom
of the matter.
"I'll go upstairs first." She planned to wash Jonny's coat in the washing machine and return it to him.
Seeing she was holding the well-designed suit made of plain but soft fabric, Lucian couldn't help but ask, "Do you want to take
that upstairs?"
"Oh... Yes." Amelia froze. Every inch of her body quickly stiffened with panic. She looked at him and explained, "It's from a kind
man! I don't think it's appropriate to throw it away."
"So it is." He smiled enough to conceal the jealousy. "I'll wait for you in the bedroom," he reminded her.
"Bedroom?" With widened eyes, Amelia was at a loss for what Lucian meant.
Noticing how confused she looked, Lucian appeased her. "I wanted to ask for your opinion. But since you seem anxious to know
right away, I will tell you directly."
"Lucian, what are you doing? What's going on?" By this time, Lucian was a few meters away from Amelia, and he entered her
room.
"We must sleep in the same room tonight," he spoke in a calm and smooth tone without a hint of embarrassment or hesitation at
all. So much so, he began collecting Amelia's toiletries.
Tonight at Shelly's birthday party, Fannie let the cat out of the bag as evidence of Lucian's discord with Amelia. She said Lucian
just wanted to cheat them with the excuse that he married Amelia.

What Fannie said had hit the nail on the head. Lucian, however, had a crush on Amelia now and didn't want her to think they
were still contractually bound in matrimony.
Amelia was stunned. She couldn't fathom how all these were being unraveled to her.
After a short while, Lucian moved all of Amelia's necessities to the master bedroom.
"You know, we used to be interns. After we finished our internship, we are now a qualified couple," said Lucian. Seeing how his
words left Amelia perplexed and distracted, he gently caressed her head as though comforting a wounded sheep.
Lucian's words made Amelia shocked and incapable of making a response.
When she realized her necessities had been moved by Lucian, she immediately ran to his bedroom, only to find out the room
had already been arranged. Then, Lily said with a smile, "Mrs. Amelia, I have arranged everything according to Mr. Lucian's
orders. Please, have a look around. Should there be anything you aren't satisfied with, please tell me."
The single color quilt was replaced with one in bright red. Even the pillows were embroidered with two mandarin ducks. 'How did
this entire scene morph into a wedding room?!' Amelia thought.
Everything in the room was elegant and luxurious. With a jovial expression, Lucian sent Lily away and walked to Amelia. He
explained in a soft voice, "Amelia, we slept in separate rooms before because our marriage was just a show for others. But now,
I... I'm in love with you. I don't want to be far apart from you."
Amelia noticed the timidity on Lucian's face. She swore she saw him blush a bit. The embarrassment he felt even made him
stutter.
Amelia looked blankly at the handsome man in front of her. Once more, she was at a loss for words. As though her heart was
pulled tighter all of a sudden, she couldn't respond.
Although she had a crush on him, she wasn't prepared to go out with him. Let alone, sleep on the same bed with him. 'What
speed!' Amelia thought.
"Lucian, I'm sorry but I can't do that..." She had already lost her heart in a relationship once. This time, she was eager not to
wear her heart on her sleeve. This time, she proceeded with sound reasoning.
Lucian was a man of excellence. He was the ideal lover in the eyes of a thousand girls. How could a run-of-the-mill girl like her
get along well with such a perfect man?

"Why not?" Lucian's deep eyes locked into Amelia's face. He hadn't the slightest idea why Amelia refused to accept his love.
Amelia couldn't remove her gaze from the man's handsome face. So Amelia explained to Lucian in a low, almost inaudible,
voice, "We haven't known each other for a long time. I mean, have you seen me in my bad days? Because I sure haven't seen
you in yours. Are you even sure it's love you have for me? I'm sorry but I just can't commit. Please forgive me."
Amelia felt as though she had fallen into a pit—uncomfortable and stuck. She's always hated that feeling. She felt a sense of
loss the moment she let those words out. Not enough loss, however, to surpass how Lucian was feeling.
Lucian was almost impeccable, condescending even. The next words he uttered made Amelia feel he was untouchable,
mounted on his high horse.
"Are you rejecting me?" Lucian looked at Amelia with a faint smile and desolation in his eyes. A hint of bitterness flashed in the
corners of his mouth. The expression on his face broke Amelia's heart.
'Rejecting you?' Amelia thought of the gravity of the word. Should she nod or shake her head?
She didn't mean to hurt him at all. But Lucian was such an excellent man that she would never dream of ending up with him. He
lived in an ivory tower standing on the magnificent skies, while she walked barefoot on the cold, hard ground.
In the beginning, before all this hullabaloo, it was all just acting. A shtick for people to witness. She'd play her role squarely,
follow the lines, be wronged, accept his care—typical actions a girlfriend would do for her man. She rode along with whatever
script was given to her because knew everything would be over.
"I'm sorry." She bit her lower lip and looked down, apologetic.
She assured him she felt nothing but happiness from the bottom of her heart. That moment, she felt more satisfied than having
the whole world.
However, she had to face up to this problem. She had always been in panic. She couldn't take it, and she felt depressed to push
it away.
Those words ruined the hope in Lucian's eyes.
He puckered his lips, as if trying to absorb the words that deeply hurt his heart.
"It doesn't matter." His voice was both light and deep, like a bright and positive tone along with the density of the message.

After a moment of deafening silence, Amelia took a glance at Lucian secretly and found that he was calm. It was as if he had
already conditioned his mind to whatever reply she gave him. "Will our relationship continue?"
she asked cautiously and felt inexplicably flustered. She felt what she said was contrary to what she really thought.
However, what she said cannot be undone. There was nothing she could do to make him change his mind, so she had to listen
to his reply.
With his eyes dimmed, Lucian sneered, "Are you that eager to leave me?"
The "sorry" she said to him just now had already hurt him deeply, however apologetic it was. He felt extremely frustrated the
moment she wanted to end this relationship with him.
He was a business tycoon, a force to be reckoned with in his craft. He was even regarded as a god by his rivals. He was
decisive. Since he took over the company, the performance of the Zhan Group had soared to heights beyond what everyone
expected. Everything went smoothly with him at the helm of every transaction. This made him confident and proud. With what
he'd proven in the business industry, never did he think his frustrations would stem from a woman.
"Of course not!" Amelia was quick to deny. Her face blushed, and she shyly said, "I just think you're a dream beyond my reach,
you know, like this is all too good to be true. This is why I try so hard not to get too attached."
When she woke up from the drunkenness, her mind was deeply engraved with his handsome face. Although Lucian never really
made quite an impression on her, she realized he wasn't so difficult to get along with as days passed.
He even helped Amelia in front of Yolanda and Jasper to save her reputation. He cured Vernon's disease and allowed her to
bring Iris's photo to the SJ Garden. Tonight at Shelly's birthday party, he massaged her feet regardless of other people's stares.
The memories brought happiness to her, and she felt a little greedy when she didn't want to give it all up. When Lucian asked her
if she wanted to leave, she was reluctant. Her emotions were going bonkers inside her. One contradictory to the other. She didn't
know what exactly it was she was feeling. This all made her want to slap herself.
He finally understood why she was hesitating.
"I will make that dream of yours come true." With a restrained smile on his lips, Lucian looked firm in his eyes. "It's not that you
dislike me. I know you don't. If there's the tiniest part of you that likes me back, please give yourself a chance, and give me a
chance to love you as well."

Amelia's heart was beating fast and her face blushed a reddish glow at those words from Lucian's lips.
"It's getting late. We have to get to bed early." Amelia changed the topic. She knew the redness of her cheeks was showing. She
was rendered incapable of speaking, yet again. She didn't know how to answer, let alone, what to answer.
With his eyebrows raised, Lucian smiled slightly, nodded and said, "Well, you have to go to work tomorrow. Go to bed early."
"Yes." Amelia nodded her head and turned away.
"You can sleep in the master bedroom tonight," said Lucian. He took Amelia's hand and gave her a hint with his twinkling eyes.
"No way!" Amelia got rid of his hand immediately. She frowned and said unhappily, "It seems that what I said just now has all
become a giant blob of nonsense!"
Lucian realized that she thought too much. He laughed and said, "Don't take me the bad guy here, Amelia. What were you
thinking before I could even finish my words?"
The more he pried, the worse the result would be.
Amelia already had a crush on him. He was not eager to win her affection, but he wanted to get a chance to know more about
her in the days to come. This, to Lucian, was key to having a more solid relationship with her.
"I'll sleep here. Where are you going to sleep?" she asked, her face still red with blush.
"Of course I..." Lucian drew his face closer to her and smelt the scent of her. "...sleep next to you," he teased.
Amelia glared at Lucian, slapped him on the arm and said, "Shame on you to say you're not a lascivious man. I know about your
history so I'd better be on guard around you."
She didn't forget Lucian took photos of her while she was intoxicated. At the thought of this, her affections for him dwindled, and
she felt weak.