Faux Vows, True Desires

Chapter 13

"Lucinda, just order whatever you want," Stefan whispered in her ear, leaning in close. "Don't worry, I can cover the bill." He even gave a playful puff of breath.

Lucinda instinctively edged away, looking at him. He seemed serious, so she didn't realize he was flirting with her.

"Stefan, I can't decide what to eat. You pick," Lucinda handed the menu to Stefan.

Stefan knew she was intimidated by the prices, so he dropped the gentleman act and ordered a few signature dishes from the Anderson Hotel.

Lucinda was the future lady of the Anderson Hotel, so naturally, she should sample their star dishes.

Suddenly, Lucinda's phone rang.

Pulling it out of her pocket, she saw the caller ID and couldn't help but gripe to her husband, "It's my mom again. She's definitely reminding me about the blind date tomorrow. I've been on blind dates every day, I've practically met all the young guys around here! My mom won't give me a break!"

Despite her grumbling, Lucinda picked up the call.

"Mom," Lucinda sweetly said before her mom could even speak, "I'll definitely come home tomorrow, you don't need to remind me."

"Well, at least you know your own situation."

"But mom, could you tell the matchmaker to call off the date tomorrow? I don't want to go on a date with him!"

After hearing her daughter out, Fiona asked directly, "Lucinda, your brother is back. He says you're already married. Is that true? To that young man who's your brother's classmate, Stefan?"

Lucinda was unsurprised by her brother spilling the beans early to their parents.

Earlier today, she was still on a blind date, and now she's suddenly saying she's married. Such shocking news, of course her brother would tell their parents.

"Yeah," Lucinda admitted honestly.

She thought to herself: If it wasn't for my mom setting up dozens of blind dates for me each month, driving me mad, I wouldn't have paid Stefan to pretend to be my husband.

"What are you doing now?"

"About to have dinner."

"In a restaurant or at home?"

"Stefan's treating me to dinner. We're at the hotel."

Fiona went quiet for a moment, then commanded, "Come home as soon as you finish eating!"

"Do I bring Stefan along?"

"Of course!"

With that, Fiona hung up.

Lucinda breathed a sigh of relief and cheekily stuck out her tongue.

Even over the phone, she could feel her mom's suppressed anger.

She was really afraid her mom might explode in anger.

"Stefan, my mom wants us to come home after dinner. My brother is back and told my parents about us getting married. We might be interrogated tonight. You need to stick to the story and not spill the beans, otherwise, my mom will give me hell."

Her family doted on her, but when she did something wrong, her mom would unleash her argumentative side and wouldn’t leave her alone. All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

Stefan smiled slightly and said, "Whether we go home tonight or tomorrow, it's inevitable. Don't worry, I'll keep the secret. Won't spill the beans that I'm a fake husband."

Lucinda reminded him of a few things, and only when he agreed did she feel at ease.

"There's probably no buses now. I'll call a cab in advance."

Stefan said and picked up his phone from the table, sending a message to his chauffeur to bring a cheaper car and wait at the entrance of the Anderson Hotel.

After arranging for the car, Stefan said, "I'm going to meet your parents, and I can't come empty- handed. I'll message my friend now to buy some gifts. Once we finish dinner, we can just grab the stuff and go."

This way, they wouldn't waste more time.

Lucinda quickly said, "Stefan, I'll pay for the gifts."

He was rented by her, and only charged her $500 a month. Given his status, this price was far too low.

Lucinda knew this.

Stefan was willing to be rented by her mainly because her brother and him were college classmates.

With all the help he had given her, she couldn't let him bear the cost of the gifts too.

Stefan looked at her deeply for a moment. When she looked puzzled, he laughed, a comforting laughter. Lucinda thought to herself: A one-year contract might be too long. Perhaps it should be shortened to three months.

Because Stefan was doing too well, she was afraid she might fall in love with him after a year.

"Okay, you can pay me back when you have the money," he messaged Emma.

Instructing Emma to follow his requests and no need to reply.

He was to meet Lucinda's parents in an hour, so he asked Emma to prepare the gifts for the parents as soon as possible. They couldn't be too expensive or too cheap.

If the gifts were too pricey, he worried Lucinda's mother would return them.

If the gifts were too cheap, he feared Lucinda's mother would think him stingy.

Upon receiving Stefan's message, Emma immediately drove to prepare the gifts.

As Stefan's housekeeper, Emma was incredibly efficient.

By the time Stefan and Lucinda finished dinner and exited the hotel, Emma was already waiting at the entrance.

She was laden with various bags, looking eye-catching and drawing a lot of attention.

When Stefan saw Emma carrying a bunch of stuff, he couldn't help but rub his forehead, almost wanting to pretend he didn't recognize her.

"Stefan, I bought all the stuff you asked me to," Emma almost called Stefan 'young master'.

After being glared at by Stefan, she quickly corrected her address.

She thought to herself, “So this lady doesn't know Mr. Coleman's real identity. No wonder this lady dared to rent Mr. Coleman!”

Mr. Coleman was truly cunning, quietly winning over the girl he had been eyeing for so long.

Stefan calmly introduced Emma to Lucinda, "Lucinda, this is my mom's friend. Her house is nearby, so I asked her to buy some gifts for me."

Lucinda flashed a friendly grin at Emma, "Hey there, nice to meet you. Thank you so much."

Stefan claimed he only bought a few little gifts, but does this look like a few?

The lady here has a ton of shopping bags.

Emma responded with a smile, "nice to meet you too, miss."

"Ma'am, my name is Lucinda, you can call me Lucy."

Emma took a quick glance at her boss, seeing no reaction, she mustered the courage to address Mr. Coleman by his name.

She had just called Mr. Coleman by his name, didn't seem to be a problem at all.

She did all this just to play along with Mr. Coleman.

Thinking so, Emma felt the pressure lifted.

Stefan's chauffeur rolled up in a BMW, which was his personal ride, not one from Stefan's garage.

In their boss's garage, even the cheapest car costs a small fortune.

This isn't suitable for the boss to pretend to be poor!