When I Was A Wallflower

"Excuse me. I need to use the washroom," Amelie said in a low voice. Although she wasn't fond of Toby, she didn't want to cause
any trouble on this occasion. So, she hurried into the hall and headed toward the washroom.
She spent quite some time in the washroom. Since she was originally brought there to fill the scene, she wasn't willing to be out
there, and now that Leo had arrived, she was even less willing to go out.
After she left the washroom, she didn't enter the hall. Instead, she walked toward a secluded area in the opposite direction of the
hall, as she wanted to find a place to get this night over with quietly.
As she walked, she arrived at the back of a rockery with no one there. With the rockery and trees blocking her, even if someone
passed by, they wouldn't see her.
Then, she noticed a stone bench behind the rockery, so she walked over to sit down. After lowering her head, she sent a
message to Toby to let him know where she was so he wouldn't look for her everywhere.
As soon as she sent the message, she heard a voice say, "Toby really has special taste in women, choosing an influencer with
100 million followers. Doesn't he feel embarrassed?" The tone of the person speaking was sarcastic and harsh, making Amelie
feel uncomfortable just by listening.
"In this day and age, capital is king. Being able to earn money and gather a fan base is a skill. Does the profession still matter?"
Another woman's voice chimed in. "Didn't you see how Dad treated her just now? He ignored all the gifts given by his other
granddaughters and grandsons-in-law but only treated her differently. Not only did he open the gift, but he also wore it on the
spot."
"People are all treated differently, you see. Your Jackson and Harry, and my Kenny and Sage. Aren't they all his grandsons? But
he just treats Toby better than he treats them!"
"I know, right!"
Upon hearing this, Amelie had already guessed who was speaking. These two people should be Toby's eldest aunt, Brenda
Peyton, and second-eldest aunt, Eunice Monroe.
Alfred had three sons and several daughters.
Brenda and Eunice were still kind and considerate to her before this, but now they were criticizing her so harshly. At this thought,
Amelie couldn't help but sigh. People in wealthy families have masks on all day long. It should be exhausting for them.

"Who knows? With this Foxy helping out, the inheritance rights of the Walsh Family might go to Theodore's family." Brenda
sighed sulkily.
Following that was Eunice's sighing. "Your family still has a chance. At least there's still Michelle, who hasn't married yet. You
should try to find a good one tonight, so you can have the chance to turn the tables. As for my family, all my sons and daughters
are already married. There's no way to turn things around no matter what."
"Perhaps other young heirs are useless, but isn't Leo here? Even Dad was amazed by his abilities. You should have Michelle
take this chance to win him over tonight and secure your inheritance!"
As they spoke, Amelie grew increasingly unhappy listening to their idle chatter. In the end, she had to give up her hard-earned
quiet spot and walk out from the other side. She walked along the wall, looking for another place to sit, but suddenly, her
shoulder was grabbed.
This sudden force startled her, and she reflexively swung her hand to hit the person's wrist. However, the person was faster and
swiftly dodged, then grabbed her shoulder again and pushed her hard against the wall.
Feeling the coldness of the wall, she shuddered. Before she could resist, a hard, cold chest pressed against her. Although
people should have a certain body temperature, this chest was colder than the wall behind her.
She hadn't had a chance to see the person's face yet, but an intense breath rushed into her nostrils, bringing a familiar scent.
"Leo..." she blurted out suddenly, and at the same time, she saw the person's face. It was none other than Leo.
At that moment, he was no longer as cold as he had been at the entrance just now. There was an inexplicable aura emanating
from his body that flowed through the already chilly night. It was so intense that it could have frozen the air around them into ice
crystals.
His face was very close, so close that their breaths were entangled. When she looked up, she could see the hostility in his eyes,
as well as the obvious veins on his temples.
Amelie struggled uncomfortably, but he was still squeezing her shoulders tightly. The strength of a man was incredibly strong,
indeed. Her struggle was so insignificant that it had no effect at all.
So, she lifted her leg, but he quickly pressed it down, tightly sandwiching her between his body and the wall.

"What do you want, Leo?" she growled lowly after being angered by his actions. Meanwhile, fire blazed in her eyes as she glared
at him.
Suddenly, his tightly pursed lips approached her face, almost touching her ear. "Why did you suddenly become Toby's girlfriend?"
His words were accompanied by a strong gust of cold wind, which made her earlobes extremely sensitive and her blood vessels
throb.
"It's none of your business." She tried to back away, trying to distance herself from his breath, but she couldn't do that at all.
Just then, the grip of his palms on her shoulder tightened even more. The strength was so great that it seemed like he wanted to
crush her shoulder blades.
He never treated her like this, even during the time he hated her the most. She had only ever felt his indifference, rarely seeing
him lose his cool.
As she bit her lip, she said, "I divorced you a long time ago, Leo. It's my freedom to become anyone's girlfriend. Don't you think
you're making a fuss over nothing, coming here to question me?"
Hearing that, Leo was so angry that his eyebrows twisted into a knot. He retrieved his palms from her shoulders and grabbed her
neck, wanting to strangle her. However, when he saw the painful expression on her face, he loosened his grip, but his body,
which was pressing onto her, didn't move an inch.
"I can promise you anything you want, but not this!"
"Who are you to me? My father?" Amelie retorted in anger. "Even if you were my father, you wouldn't have the right to meddle in
my private life! Please restrain yourself, Mr. Alston!"
It was obvious that Leo had no intention of restraining himself as he remained motionless.
So, she struggled and twisted in his arms, infuriated.
"If you keep moving like this, you will be responsible for whatever happens next." The man's reminder rang in her ears.
When she heard that, she was confused.

Suddenly, she felt a change in his body. It turned hard like iron and was scorching hot. The moment she noticed that, her face
turned red as well.
"You pervert!"
Leo, who was originally full of anger, was made to laugh by her insult. "I'm a typical man. How can I not get aroused when the
woman I like struggles in my arms like this?"
Hearing that, she didn't know what to say. Although she really wanted to mock him, she didn't want to start another fight at this
moment. So, all she could do was breathe. Breathe, Amelie. Take a deep breath.
After taking a dozen deep breaths, she managed to calm herself down and change her tone of voice. "We're both adults, Leo. I
didn't force you to sign the divorce papers back then. You agreed to it. You agreed so readily at the time, but now you're here
pestering me? What is this? What am I to you? It's obvious that in your eyes, I'm just a cheap woman who can be summoned
and dismissed at your whim, with no dignity or self-respect, just like before."
"I didn't mean that!" He denied.
Without saying anything, she just looked at him calmly. Her eyes were like a ruthless judgment sword that had already pinned
him to the shame pole.
Suddenly, the dominance that had been exuding from his body disappeared without a trace, and he silently stepped back.
Meanwhile, she patted her body, trying to shake off any trace of his presence that might have stuck to her.
As he lowered his head to look at her, he asked, "Aren't you afraid that they will find out that you are my ex-wife and humiliate
you? The Walsh Family is more judgmental than my family."
"This is my business. I don't need your concern, Mr. Alston." She didn't even lift her head when she said that. She had no
intention of being a part of the Walsh Family, so she didn't care whether they despised her or were judgmental.
"Do you care that much about Toby?" Leo's eyebrows suddenly furrowed as if he had been stabbed by something.
Amelie looked at him, knowing that he had misunderstood her. After a moment's thought, she made a vague hum of
acknowledgment and took a step to leave the place.
Yet, just as she took the step, her wrist was tightly grabbed again.