Estella grabbed her father’s hand tightly as she glanced at him, nonverbally asking him if she really could ignore the woman. He patted her head in consolation and pulled her to his side.
Both of them ignored Aubree. The atmosphere at the dining table was incredibly awkward.
Aubree was enraged when she saw the father-and-daughter duo sit down to eat without paying even a bit of attention to her as though she wasn’t there. However, she couldn’t vent her anger and even had to try and please the little girl.
“You’re still growing, Essie. You need to eat more so you’ll grow taller.” Wearing a fake smile, she put a piece of pork on the girl’s plate.
Estella paused in her tracks as she stared at the pork on her plate. Lucian scrunched his brows as he removed the pork from his daughter’s plate and explained apathetically, “Essie doesn’t like pork.”
Aubree’s expression shifted slightly. This is the Farwell residence. There’s no way the chef would make something Essie doesn’t like to eat! This b*tch just doesn’t like the food I took for her!
Even though she realized that, she couldn’t complain, so she just gritted her teeth and apologized, “Is that so? I had no idea. I’m sorry.”
Lucian nodded expressionlessly. “When I’m not around, Catalina will take care of Essie, so you don’t need to worry about her. If you have time, spend it talking with your family.”
Pinching her palm, Aubree agreed.
After the awkward dinner was over, Lucian brought Estella back upstairs.
Aubree’s scowl intensified as she watched them leave.
As much as she didn’t want to admit it, his actions so far had clearly shown her that he had no feelings for her.
In fact, it was even possible that he saw her as a liability.
That thought filled her heart with despair.
“Do you still want to eat, Ms. Pearson?” Catalina asked in concern when she saw Aubree remain still at the dining table for a long while.
Suppressing the rage in her heart, Aubree smiled at her. “I haven’t been able to sleep well for these two days. Can you bring me a bottle of red wine?”
Catalina didn’t give that request too much thought before grabbing an opened bottle of red wine from a wine cabinet filled with alcohol meant to serve guests.
After thanking Catalina, Aubree returned to her room with a decanter and the bottle of red wine. Right now, only wine can lift my spirits and make me temporarily forget about Lucian…
With that thought in mind, she glugged down the bottle of wine like water. She didn’t care how she was supposed to drink red wine and just gulped it down.
Not long after, the aftereffect of the red wine kicked in.
Aubree’s cheeks turned red, her eyes filled with drunkenness. All she could think of was, ironically, Lucian.
Due to her state of tipsiness, she became even more rash than usual. As she thought about Lucian, she staggered out of the room in a wobbly manner. He should be in the study right now…
With one hand pressing on the wall to support herself, she stumbled toward the study and muttered, “Lucian… Lucian…”
Lucian usually had to work even when he was at home, so the second floor usually didn’t have any housekeepers around. That was why no one noticed Aubree was acting oddly.
She arrived at the door of the study without any trouble and stared at the tightly shut door before knocking on it amidst her inebriation.
Inside the study, Lucian, eyebrows furrowed, was staring at his unfinished work for the day. Suddenly, he heard a set of footsteps approaching the door.
Shortly after, a loud knocking sound was heard. He moved his line of sight away from the computer and frowned at the door.
The housekeepers of the Farwell residence normally would have rested at that time. Even if that weren’t the case, no one would disturb him willy-nilly while he worked in the study.
Not only that, the knocking was really loud, which could only mean Aubree was the one at the door. What is that woman up to now? Lucian thought.
The knocking continued. He had just gone through much trouble to tuck Estella in, so he still stood and opened the door to prevent her from being woken up by the relentless knocks.
When he opened the door, he saw an intoxicated Aubree at the entrance. Lucian had no idea how much she had drunk, but he could tell the smell of wine was creeping into the study.
Upon seeing her, he stared at her with a frown and spoke in a deep voice. “You’re drunk. You should return to your room and rest.” He then prepared to turn around and close the door.
To his surprise, the moment he turned around, Aubree hugged his waist. Lucian stopped in his tracks, stared at Aubree’s arms around his waist, and ordered coldly, “Let go.”
She was still in a daze as she spoke. “I won’t… I love you, Lucian. Don’t cancel the engagement, okay? What’s so good about Roxanne, anyway? She left you back then while I’ve waited for you for six years…”
That was the same thing Sonya said to him.
Even though Aubree meant what she said, Lucian was still unmoved by her words. In fact, a touch of disdain even flashed past his eyes. For six years, this woman put up an act in front of me and bullied Essie behind my back, yet she has the gall to mention it!
“Lucian…” She hugged him from behind, putting all her weight on him. Every single breath of hers sprayed the stench of alcohol on his body.
Sensing her movements, his face fell, and he grabbed her wrists forcefully without hesitation. “Ugh…” She grimaced and let go of him reflexively. Holding her injured wrist, she stumbled backward with a pained expression.
Expressionlessly, Lucian turned around and stared down at her before warning in a cold voice, “The only reason I let you stay is because of my mother. If you behave yourself, I’ll allow you to stay until you can return to your home. If you continue acting as you please, don’t blame me when I ask someone to chase you away!”
Aubree regained some of her senses because of the pain. Fear filled her eyes when she heard what he said, and she apologized instinctively, “I’m sorry, Lucian. It’s my fault. I drank too much earlier. Don’t chase me out…”
Gazing at her coldly, he ordered, “Get back to your room!”
Aubree still didn’t want to give up as she stared at him pitifully. “My legs are so weak right now. Can you send me back to my room?”
When she finished her sentence, the man before her didn’t immediately reply. Instead, he just raised his eyebrow wordlessly.
For a moment, she was delighted because she thought he was going to say yes.
However, to her dismay, Lucian asked a housekeeper to send her back to her room.
She scowled in response because she didn’t want a housekeeper to see her wretched state. Nevertheless, she didn’t dare to say anything after seeing his frosty expression. Thus, she allowed the housekeeper to bring her back to her room.
He promptly returned to the study after that. His eyebrows furrowed when the stench of alcohol rushed into his nose. To get rid of the smell, he opened the windows.
The next morning, Lucian heard a series of careful knocks on his door when he woke up. The only person who would do that was Estella.
As expected, he saw the girl standing in front of his bedroom with puppy dog eyes when he went to open the door. Upon seeing him, she greeted sweetly, “Good morning, Daddy!”
Nodding slightly, he patted her head. “What’s the matter? Why did you wake up so early today?” After glancing at Aubree’s room, she lifted her head and stared at her father. “I want to meet Ms. Jarvis! Take me to see her!”
The last thing she wanted was to spend time with Aubree, and even the mere thought of having breakfast with the woman filled her heart with disgust.
A frown marred Lucian’s face as he knew what the girl was thinking and understood her feelings. However, he needed to attend an important meeting that morning. He would be late if he sent his daughter to Roxanne’s place before going to the company.
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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