“In your dreams,” Leilani replies.
“Two then?” Waylen asks.
“Nonsense.”
“How about a dozen—we can have a football team,” Waylen jokes.
“Not a chance,” Leilani says, fighting the urge to smile at him.
“Do you want boys or girls?”
Leilani considers it for a moment, “Definitely girls.”
“Then eleven girls and one boy,” Waylen says.
“You seem convinced we get to choose the s.e.x,” Leilani says with a laugh.
As soon as the words leave her mouth, she regrets them.
“Why am I talking about children with Waylen, when I don’t want them?” she thinks, “Why am I suddenly using words like we?”
She pushes him away, “I see what you’re doing—but you can’t trick me into this. I’m not having children with you.”
“Sir, dinner is ready,” Robert interrupts, “Shall I ask them to bring it into you?”
Waylen nods but Leilani stops him, “I’ll do it.”
Waylen gives her a questioning look.
“What? You asked me to care for you, and I’m doing it,” Leilani says to Waylen.
She feels overwhelmed in the room with him and desperately wants to escape and get some fresh air. Waylen nods and passes the album to Robert, and Leilani strides out of the room. As soon as she enters the hall she takes a deep breath. Unbidden, the image of a baby appears in her mind. It looks like Waylen’s baby photos, but it has her eyes. She’s not sure if the image makes her want to scream or cry.
There is crashing noise in the kitchen and the chef shouts, “Miss Summers, lookout.”
The warning is followed by the loud banging of a ladle and a knife.
“What’s going on?” Leilani asked, raising her voice to be heard above the noise.
“Miss Summers said she wanted to cook some soup for Mr. Bamford,” a maid explains.
“Really?” Leilani looks at the mess in the kitchen. It looks like a bomb has gone off. As Leilani nears the work station, she sees food and utensils littering the work table and the floor.
Leonie stands poised with a large knife in her hand, roughly hacking at something on the table. In spite of the chaos and the heat, Leonie’s hair and makeup are still perfect. As Leilani gets closer, she sees that the pink ring has disappeared from Leonie’s finger.
“Waylen wants to eat now,” Leilani says, “Is the food ready?”
“Almost. But my soup needs another few minutes,” Leonie says, “Chicken soup is one of the best remedies for the flu, so I decided to make some for Waylen. I’ll bring it to him myself when it’s ready.”
“That is very kind of you,” Leilani says.
She pinches a stray carrot peel between her fingers and flicked it into the bin. Based on what she knows about Leonie, she suspects that the chicken is still alive and bathing in the broth.
“It’s not kindness,” Leonie says, “I love Waylen almost as much as I love my sister. Since she can’t get back, he’s all I have.”
“Can’t get back?” Leilani asks.
Leonie pretends to look surprised as if she’s slipped and said something she didn’t mean to say, but she seems to change her mind and her expression becomes cunning.
“If you don’t have Waylen’s children, Diana will never come back,” she says.
“What do you mean?” Leilani asks.
Leonie pretends to ignore the question and focuses on chopping some herbs. Leilani grabs her wrist, and Leonie freezes with the knife in mid-air.
“What are you doing?” Leonie demands, “Let go of me!”
“I asked you what you meant?” Leilani snarls, imitating Waylen’s threatening demeanor.
Leilani tugs the knife from Leonie’s hand and slams it down on the table.
“What do you mean, what do I mean?” Leonie hisses.
“If I don’t have Waylen’s children, your sister can’t come back. Why?”
“Oh,” Leonie pretends to be surprised, “I guess you don’t know.”
“What should I know?”
“I can’t tell you,” Leonie says with infuriating smugness.
“Whatever,” Leilani says.
“Leonie is probably just trying to lay a trap for me,” she thinks, “I’m not going to give her the satisfaction of falling for it.”
Leilani releases Leonie’s hand and turns to leave the kitchen. Leonie hates Leilani’s don’t-give-a-damn attitude., desperately she shouts after Leilani, “I cooked the soup for Waylen and I want to feed him myself.”
“As you like,” Andrea says airily.
“Compared to a 200 million dollar ring, what’s a little homemade soup?” Leilani thinks bitterly.
“Waylen has been treating me coldly since the disaster with the candle and our relationship isn’t what’s used to be. I want to look after him and show him I have no hard feelings.”
“Whatever,” Leilani says.
“If you want to know what I mean about Diana, you have to help me with Waylen,” Leonie says, “Get me some time with him so I can break the ice and save our relationship.”
“You live in the same house as him,” Leilani says incredulously, “You can find your opportunities with him.”
“It’s not like I haven’t tried,” Leonie complains, “If I’d been able to get time with him, why would I bother with you? I’m not trying to take Waylen form you anymore, I just want us to be what we used to be. I’m not asking for much from you—but if you don’t give it to me I’ll take this secret about Diana to the grave.”
Leonie pauses and studies Leilani’s expression before adding, “This secret concerns you, you know. In the end, it’s me who’s doing you a favor by offering to tell you.”
“What if you change your mind?” Leilani asks, suspiciously, “No—I’ll only agree if you give me your ID card.”
“What?” Leonie asks confusedly “My word is good. And I have to use my card all the time. Why would I give it to you?”
“I don’t want your ID card. I want the photo on it,” Leilani clarifies.
Leonie is terrified of her fans seeing her without makeup. Every photo of her is always heavily photoshopped. On top of that, she never leaves the house without a full face of makeup. In her ID photo, she’s completely barefaced, and she’s terrified of anyone seeing her like that.
Leonie hesitates but she eventually agrees. Reluctantly, she takes her card out of her wallet. She covers her confidential information with her fingers and ensures that Leilani only takes a picture of the picture. Without makeup, Leonie’s face is bland and featureless—no one would recognize her in a crow or even look twice.
“I swear to god Leilani, I’ll make you pay if you release it,” Leonie warns.
“You can trust me,” Leilani replies.
“I’ll take your word this one time,” Leonie says, her expression relaxing.
Leilani looks at the creamy chicken soup, “What’s the plan?”
“Just put in a good word for me.”
“That’s not difficult,” Leilani says with a nod.
Leonie ladles soup into a small china bowl, “Bring this to Waylen for me.”
“Me?” Leilani scoffs, “Shouldn’t you be the one doing this? Don’t you want Waylen to know you made it yourself?”
Leonie has to admit that Leilani makes a good point, and she accepts the tray with the bowl. Leilani walks in front of Leonie like a noble lady, while Leonie follows her like a humble servant. She walks carefully with her head lowered to avoid spilling the soup. Leonie quickly realizes how they look, but before she can object, they arrive at the door of Waylen’s study.
Waylen sits on the sofa with crossed legs and a tablet on his knee. The photo albums have been put away. His look brightens upon seeing Leilani, but then darkens again when he sees Leonie.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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