Chapter 1
1531 Words
Rebecca's POV
The ward had become lively with the bustling of everyone's arrival. As I stood there, my hand tightened into a fist, and sweat formed on my palm.
I didn't particularly want to be here, but circumstances had left me with little choice.
"Are we going in, ma?" my bodyguard, Collins, asked, noticing my hesitation.
"Just a moment," I replied. I took a deep breath and gestured for him to open the door. As he did, all eyes turned towards me. I put on a composed expression and stepped into the room.
The family had gathered around Grandpa. Their presence was expected, but I wasn't eager to witness the ensuing drama. It made me feel queasy.
"Look who decided to show up," my cousin Elisabeth remarked with an irked smile, but I chose to ignore her and draw closer to my grandpa.
"How are you feeling?"
"The doctor mentioned some potential risks, but for now, he is stable," Seth, our eldest member and my half-brother, informed me. I nodded in understanding.
"I'm relieved to see you doing well. I was quite concerned."
"You said you were concerned, yet you arrived two hours after hearing the news. You truly are the model grandchild," Joe, our youngest cousin, quipped. They should be giving Grandpa some breathing room, not that I was particularly affected.
He's not exactly the conventional grandfather, so I feel no obligation towards him.
"It's good to see you all, even if it's for the last time," Grandpa said as I assisted him to sit on his bed. "I'm glad you're here now."
Kelvin Seling is one of the most shrewd and formidable business persons in California, and he is my grandfather. He prioritizes his business over his children's well-being and invests even less in his grandchildren.
His only kin are his grandchildren - Seth Seling, the firstborn out of wedlock; Elizabeth Seling, my elder cousin, who is solely interested in material wealth; and Joe Ethan Seling, the youngest and perhaps the most astute among us.
And then there's me - the odd one out - Rebecca Seling, or rather, Rebecca Belford, my legal name. The third grandchild of Kelvin Seling, the one he chose to disown for his gain.
"I'm glad to see you're doing well. I was concerned," I said, although it was a lie. I don't harbor any particular feelings towards my grandpa or my brother and cousins. I don't dislike them, but I don't particularly like them either.
Grandpa chose to throw me into the wolves, and I couldn't do anything about it because I was weak.
“I am, at least I get to see your face so I'm good” I gave him my best calculated smile while Elizabeth chuckled.
The door opened and my bodyguard entered. “Mrs Belford, we have to go”
“Go? You are already leaving?”
“Yes, we are hosting a party at Oliva mansion tonight and my mother-in-law wants me to be present for the preparation”
“Why will she need you when they have tons of maids?”
I ignored Elizabeth and faced my grandpa. “I will come to see you tomorrow after the party, be well”
“Thank you” Grandpa smiled and I kissed him on the cheeks and left with my bodyguard Collins.
I might not have any negative feelings toward my family, but that doesn't mean I want to be anywhere around them. It is too depressing to pretend like an actual family with them.
Colin opened the car door for me when we got to the car park and I entered, he ran to the driver seat and started the car.
“Should I head to Olivia's mansion as planned or would you like to go anywhere before then?”
Collins has been my bodyguard for the past three years of my marriage and has been nice to me even though it got him in a lot of trouble with his superior.
And I appreciate him even though I don’t show it.
“No, let go to the Olivia mansion”
"Yes, ma’am," he said and started the car. It wasn't long before we arrived at the estate. Collins got out of the car and came to open the door for me.
"Thank you," I said as I made my way inside the mansion while he stayed outside. The guards weren't allowed to enter the mansion.
The maids greeted me as I entered and I was surprised to see the party hall already decorated. "Then what do they need me for?"
"You're here!" Dorothy, my sister-in-law, and her twin sister Dora appeared in front of me.
I rolled my eyes, not ready for the drama ahead. These two can be quite challenging. They are in their early twenties but all they do is waste their life partying and f*****g around, not that I'm judging.
But if they can fix their habit a bit more then I won't have many issues with them.
“Where is Katie? She asked me to be here” Dorothy suddenly took my bag from me and Dora gave me an apron.
“What is this for?” I questioned but they just chuckled and exchanged looks.
I have no idea what is funny but they annoyed me. Every member of the Belfrod family seemed like they were destined to torment me. They looked so angelic with their beautiful features but their personalities were more nasty.
“Mom wants you to do their dishes since you didn't help with the preparations.”
You must be joking?”
“We aren't, you know how important this party is to our father, but you didn't make any contribution. I don't think that is fair.”
I know how important it is, it is one of the reasons my grandpa's condition got worse. “Still I won’t do a chorus that is meant for maids.”
“Then why don't you tell Mom instead?”
“What?” I turned and saw Katie approaching us with a frown on her face.
"Can't you do anything? Why do you always have to be so useless when it comes to simple things?" Katie, my mother-in-law, said. I lowered my head. She is the second wife of my father-in-law, more of his mistress, but she has been in charge since Adam's mother passed away.
She looked so young, in her late 40s, but she was super mean. Her features made her look innocent and soft, but she was a devil in disguise.
"I apologize, but it isn't like I was trying to help. Why do I have to be the one in charge of this? You can get plenty of maids to do this," I said.
"Stupid brat."
"What?"
"This is why nobody likes you, always complaining about every little thing. I'm the lady of the house. If I tell you to do something, do it, or I'll make life harder for you."
I chuckled at her threat. She wasn't bluffing. She has successfully made my life a living hell every time we come to an Oliva mansion or meet on any occasion. She and the others seem to have more wicked plans for me.
"She isn't doing it," a voice said, and we all turned to him. My wife isn't going to be doing a chorus meant for servants."
"Adam, when did you get here?" Katie said in her sweet, tiny voice, while I stared at my husband.
Another devil in disguise, the cold and ruthless heir to the Belford wealth. Adam Belford is everything you want in a man. He has those perfect blue eyes that steal your heart, a face with a strong, angular jawline, a prominent nose, and those lips. The most beautiful thing about him is his body. Those muscles wrapped around his clothes tightly, his strong hands and his height add more to his beauty. But his character is nasty and arrogant.
"If I knew you were going to come early, I'd have the maids prepare your favorite," Katie and her two companions swarmed to my husband's side, but his attention wasn't on them, but on me.
Which was the same for me. After all, I hadn’t seen him for the past eight months. That is how long my husband and I go without seeing each other.
It is a marriage of convenience, with no feelings for each other.
"I’m not interested. I will be upstairs to talk to Father," he rejected Katie's order, while I squealed delightfully.
He moved away from them and headed to the stairs but stopped and looked back. "What are you waiting for? Aren’t you coming with me?"
"Me?" I pointed at myself, shocked, but all he did was nod. Over the years, Adam hardly said nine words to me, and those were, "I don’t want you to be anywhere near me."
But all of a sudden, I dropped the apron given to me and followed Adam. "Thank you for reading earlier."
"I didn’t do it for you, it was embarrassing seeing my wife in that situation. You are mine, so no one should treat you like that."
- Writer
