Chapter 7
1061 Words
Chapter 7 — Unexpected Kindness
The next morning, Amara woke up with one thought.
The letter.
She had barely slept.
Every time she remembered Daniel taking the envelope from her, her curiosity grew stronger.
She walked downstairs expecting to find him at breakfast.
He wasn't there.
Instead, there was a note beside her usual glass of juice.
I left early. I have a meeting. Don't skip breakfast. — Daniel
Amara stared at it.
She couldn't help smiling.
Then she frowned at herself.
“Why am I smiling?”
She folded the note and placed it inside her bag.
It was nothing.
Just a note.
At least, that's what she told herself.
---
At university, Amara had three lectures and a practical.
By lunchtime, she was exhausted.
She sat beside Nia under a tree, eating a meat pie while flipping through her notes.
Nia stared at her.
“What?”
“You're smiling.”
“No, I'm not.”
“You are.”
Amara rolled her eyes.
“Nia.”
“Is it Daniel?”
Amara nearly choked.
“What?!”
“You heard me.”
“He left me a note.”
Nia's eyebrows lifted.
“A note?”
“Yes.”
“What did it say?”
Amara hesitated.
“Basically, that I shouldn't skip breakfast.”
Nia placed a hand dramatically over her chest.
“Romance!”
“It's not romance.”
“Okay, Mrs. Williams.”
“Stop!”
Nia laughed.
Amara tried to ignore her.
But secretly, she kept thinking about the note.
It was such a small thing.
Yet Daniel had remembered that she sometimes skipped breakfast when she was rushing to class.
She wondered how he knew.
---
That evening, Amara returned home later than usual.
The moment she stepped through the door, she noticed something was wrong.
The house was unusually quiet.
“Daniel?”
No answer.
She walked further inside.
Then she heard voices from the study.
Victoria.
And Daniel.
Amara stopped.
“You're making this harder than it needs to be,” Victoria said.
Daniel's voice was low.
“I've already made my decision.”
“Your decision doesn't matter if you lose the company.”
“I won't.”
“You sound very confident.”
“I am.”
Victoria sighed.
“Daniel, your grandfather gave you one chance.”
“And I'm using it.”
“What about the girl?”
Amara froze.
Victoria continued.
“Does she know what she's supposed to do?”
Daniel's voice became colder.
“She doesn't owe this family anything.”
“She is your wife.”
“She is not an asset.”
Silence.
Amara felt something tighten in her chest.
Victoria spoke again.
“You're becoming emotional.”
“No. I'm becoming protective.”
Amara stepped away before they could discover her.
She went upstairs and closed her bedroom door.
For some reason, Daniel's words wouldn't leave her mind.
She is not an asset.
She sat on the edge of the bed.
For the first time since the marriage began, she felt like Daniel wasn't simply tolerating her.
He was actually protecting her.
---
Later that night, someone knocked on her door.
“Come in.”
Daniel entered.
He was holding a small paper bag.
“What happened?” Amara asked.
“Nothing.”
He placed the bag on her desk.
She looked inside.
Food.
“You didn't eat dinner.”
“How do you know?”
“I asked the housekeeper.”
Amara stared at him.
“You keep checking whether I eat.”
“You forget.”
“I don't.”
“You do.”
She smiled slightly.
“Thank you.”
Daniel nodded.
He turned to leave.
“Daniel?”
He stopped.
“Yes?”
“Why are you being nice to me?”
He looked confused.
“I'm always nice.”
Amara gave him a look.
“You barely spoke to me during the first few days.”
“I was trying to give you space.”
“You're still giving me space.”
“Would you prefer I didn't?”
She didn't answer immediately.
“I don't know.”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“Fair enough.”
He started walking away.
“Wait.”
He turned again.
“About the conversation with your mother…”
His expression changed.
“You heard us.”
“Yes.”
Daniel sighed.
“I didn't want you to hear that.”
“But you meant what you said.”
“Yes.”
Amara looked down.
“Thank you.”
Daniel's voice softened.
“You don't have to thank me for treating you like a person.”
Then he left.
Amara remained sitting on the bed.
She looked at the food beside her.
Then at the closed door.
Something was changing.
She wasn't sure what.
But for the first time, she wasn't completely afraid of the man she'd married.
---
The following Saturday, Daniel received an invitation to a family dinner.
He almost declined.
Then he remembered something.
Amara had never met most of his extended family.
And if she was going to remain part of his world, she needed to know what she was walking into.
He found her in the living room.
“We have dinner tomorrow.”
Amara looked up from her book.
“We?”
“Yes.”
“With who?”
“My family.”
She immediately frowned.
“Your entire family?”
“Most of them.”
“That sounds terrifying.”
Daniel laughed.
Actually laughed.
Amara stared at him.
“What?”
“You laugh?”
He shook his head.
“You're impossible.”
She smiled.
“Do I have to go?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you're my wife.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“I thought I wasn't an asset.”
“You're not.”
“Then?”
Daniel paused.
“Because I don't want you walking into that family alone.”
Something about the way he said it made her heart beat faster.
She quickly looked back at her book.
“Fine.”
Daniel nodded.
“Fine.”
He walked away.
Neither of them noticed the person standing at the top of the staircase.
Victoria Williams had heard everything.
And she was not pleased.
Because Daniel was supposed to be protecting the marriage.
Not developing feelings for his wife.
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