Yours, Until Needed
Chapter 21: Stowaway

Chapter 21: Stowaway

We were right. Snippets of the ball made it out to the public and stayed public for at least a week. The Thornhills tried taking down the posts, but the people were experienced enough to cover sensitive parts.

Some posts were just replaced by blind-item articles that weren’t so blind, for everyone has at least heard of it. When none of that worked, Water Armies tried zeroing in on how I lacked filial piety and gratefulness to the family.

But the people were more sensitive about cheating. They managed to splice Jasper’s interview, where he kept running his mouth about married plans I didn’t even know about. And that left a bad taste on people.

The Chairman’s involvement also struck a chord with the masses, who said that greed had clouded his judgment. People clamored about how Alexa’s behavior was tolerated to support their greed.

But what was more explosive, almost threatening to overtake the proof of cheating, was the confirmation of my marriage to Lucian.

I was told that women from the most random places started experiencing chest pains about finding out about Lucian’s new relationship status.

It sounds hysterically impossible, but Lucian once had to attend a Construction symposium that triggered the formation of an odd fanbase.

Unlike fans of idols or artists, his fans get their news and materials from various finance magazines, construction memos, and corporate photos of the Sinclair Group.

Considering the type of fans these people were, their subsequent actions were also odd.

It was common to judge the suitability of celebrity or high-profile couples. They’ll check their discography, appearance, or popularity.

But one morning, I saw a PowerPoint slide detailing our different achievements—a deep examination of my academic and financial successes. They even managed to find records of spelling bee championships back from elementary school.

"What dedication? Maybe you should farm out the investigation of Lara to these people." I looked at Lucian, actually amazed at how far these people could go.

"And what? Multiply the number of Laras?" He grimaced, then continued tying Chester’s leash.

He’s right, so I didn’t bother to say anything when he opened the door to take Chester for a walk. But then I noticed that he stopped. Frozen by the door.

I called his name, but when I received no response, I decided to see what had stopped him in the middle of an open door.

I snuck my head by Lucian’s shoulder as curiosity got the best of me. Then, Chester started tapping on the floor excitedly, wanting to charge forward but trying to keep it together.

I looked forward but saw nothing, so I noticed where Lucian was looking and followed to look downward.

Outside the door was a little girl, her black hair tied into pigtails. She was wearing a red fluffy dress with a matching bunny bag. Her big hazel eyes looked at us, and her expression gradually turned into a pout. Initially, she had her hands down, but now she’s posturing, her slightly rounded belly protruding. Cute. Very cute.

Looking at the two of them, I actually wanted to say something, but their staring contest just kept on going. If not for Chester, who couldn’t hold in any more of his excitement, they could’ve gone on for far longer.

"Big Brother." said the clearly miffed little girl. This must be Lily, I thought to myself.

"Lily. How did you get here?" Lucian, who finally broke his gaze, asked the little girl. How could you ask her that first? What about asking if she’s hurt anywhere?

I couldn’t take it so I tugged on Lucian, "You should stop blocking the door, let her in first then ask your questions."

Lily didn’t say anything but walked in the moment a small path was created. She only let Chester accompany her.

The little girl clambered onto the sofa, followed by the excited Chester, whose tail had wagged since her arrival.

"Now tell me, how did you get here this early?."

"I snuck into Oliver’s car when he picked up documents from the house. Then, I waited by the maintenance door for anyone who would go in with a cart. Then, I went through the Penthouse elevator with my credentials. Hmph." Her face looked more annoyed as she described her earlier ordeal.

How early did she wake up to accomplish all of that? Realizing that, I started preparing an additional plate of pancakes. Lucian already prepared the batter, so all I needed to do was to cook it, and that much I could easily perform.

In all honesty, I also opted to tinker in the kitchen because these two looked ready to throw daggers. Lucian’s face practically had black lines, and Lily wasn’t having it.

To compensate, I decided to draw her bunny bag into her pancake.

By the time I returned with the food, Lucian had gone all lecturer on Lily.

"Why did you go here without telling anyone? Do you know how dangerous that is?!"

The little girl shook before screaming at her brother, "If you could get married without telling anyone, why can’t I go here without telling them?!"

Yep. They’re siblings, alright.

"I told our parents about it. I asked for permission." Lucian had a slightly triumphant look as if he wasn’t arguing with a child who was barely five.

But his statement just surprised the child. She suddenly looked even more hurt than earlier, "Then why didn’t you tell me?!"

Her eyes started quivering, and it was evident that she was about to cry.

"Lucian, stop it already." I had to intervene. And both of them looked at me with different expressions.

He probably thought I’d spoil his sister, so I had to explain. "Discipline her all you want later, but call home first to tell them about her disappearance. They might call for the police."

Lucian’s face improved with that. He may have forgotten that over the shock of seeing her earlier.

"And you, before anything else, you should eat first. For you to get here this early, that could only mean that you’ve started all of this at the break of dawn or earlier." I said while placing a plate with a stack of small rabbit pancakes with butter on a breakfast table beside her.

Lily glared at me, so it would have been impossible not to have a slight idea of her thoughts.

"If there’s any doubt about the safety of the food, I’ll tell you that it’s been initially prepared by your brother. All I did was to cook it."

She looked down at the plate, pouting a bit after seeing the shape, her eyes shaking slightly. So she likes bunnies.

"Your brother’s lectures take a long time. I suggest you eat now so that you can glare at him for longer. It would be unfortunate to lose to him because of that." I even added a glass of orange juice to complete her breakfast.

She was hesitant at first, but she seemed to hate the idea of losing more, so she started munching on the food.

Lily looked really cute, with her cheeks bulging. It was a struggle not to laugh at her angry face that flashed satisfaction once in a while.

"This doesn’t mean that I like you!" She glowered at me. To which I just answered, "I know."