Chapter6
1093 Words
Amera
His phone kept vibrating throughout dinner.
“Amera, I hope you’re enjoying yourself living with Adrian?” Marcus asked.
“Of course. I’m enjoying myself.”
“That’s good to hear. And have you seen any girls coming around? Paulinah, perhaps?” He looked at me curiously.
I glanced at Adrian. “No, Grandfather. I haven’t heard of her or seen her yet.”
I lied. Adrian looked at me with something like surprise—maybe he hadn’t expected me to cover for him.
A few minutes later, Luke walked in with Paulinah beside him.
“Good evening, Grandfather,” she greeted.
Marcus just stared at her without responding. Then he turned to Adrian. “Adrian?”
He stood up immediately and led Paulinah out of the room.
“Who is that?” I asked Mr. Marcus, pretending I didn’t know.
“That’s the girl I was asking you about. The one I wanted to know if you’d seen.”
“Oh, I see. No, I haven’t seen her.” I kept my mouth shut after that. I didn’t want any drama.
Adrian came back in. I ignored him and continued eating.
“Adrian, have I not warned you about being seen with that gold digger again?” Marcus’s voice was sharp. “Let me remind you, in case you’ve forgotten—you’re the heir to the Blackwood empire. Your relationship with this girl is causing rumors, and I will not let that spoil the Blackwood reputation.”
“Grandpa, she’s just my friend. Nothing more than that,” Adrian replied.
“I will never let that girl into the Blackwood family. Over my dead body,” Marcus said coldly.
I excused myself. The tension was thick enough to cut. I took a walk around the estate to clear my head. When I returned, I went to the room Grandfather had instructed his staff to prepare for us.
Adrian was already there. As I walked in, he almost brushed past my shoulder.
“Oh my God, are you blind?” I snapped at him.
He looked at me and smirked. “Tell one of the staff to prepare another room for you.”
He was really getting on my nerves.
“That’s impossible. Grandfather had this room prepared for both of us,” I said, walking away.
By the time I came back, Mr. Too Serious had locked the door. I didn’t bother knocking. I just went back downstairs and sat with Marcus.
“I visited the hospital a few days ago,” he said calmly. “Your mother is responding well to treatment. She’ll be fine in no time.”
Relief washed over me. “Thank you so much, sir. I really hope she gets better soon.”
“Don’t worry. She will be fine.” He patted my hand gently.
I hesitated, then asked the question that had been bothering me. “Can I ask you something? Tell me more about Paulinah. Why do you want to separate her from your grandson? I don’t see anything wrong with her. She’s beautiful.”
He sighed deeply. “That’s a good question, my dear. Paulinah Maxwell is the only survivor of her family.”
“What happened?” I asked, leaning forward.
“They were our neighbors. Good friends, too. We loved them dearly. Paulinah and Adrian were close in age—he was fourteen, she was nine. They played together all the time.”
He paused, his expression darkening.
“The Maxwell family business faced serious challenges that put them into enormous debt. They took out loans from different banks, from people. The pressure became unbearable. The harassment, the embarrassment—it was too much for them to handle.”
My chest tightened.
“One day, Paulinah was at our house playing with Adrian when we heard screaming from their home. By the time the fire department arrived, it was too late. They were already dead. Burned to ashes.”
“They committed arson,” I whispered.
“Yes.” His voice was heavy. “It was tragic. Poor Paulinah.”
“So we had no choice but to take her in. We raised her as our own. We made sure she had everything she needed—education, support, everything. But as time went on, she became clingy with Adrian. We could see she was in love with him. But Adrian was too blind to notice.”
He shook his head.
“We tried everything to separate them. We even sent her abroad to study. But when she came back, it only got worse. We knew she had feelings for him—feelings that could never be returned. That’s when you came into the picture.”
I nodded slowly, understanding now. “I see. Don’t worry, Papa. I’ve got you. I’ll do my best to separate them.”
He smiled. “I’m sure he locked you out, didn’t he?”
I nodded.
“Come on. Let’s go.” He took my hand and led me back to the room.
He knocked on the door. Adrian opened it.
“Go in and sleep,” Marcus said, gently pushing me inside.
I walked past Adrian without a word and went straight into the bathroom. I brushed my teeth, did my skincare routine, and changed into the silk nightwear that had been laid out for me.
I climbed into bed and pulled the covers over me. My mind began turning over ways to separate Adrian from Paulinah.
“What were you and my grandpa talking about?” Adrian’s voice cut through the silence.
I didn’t even blink. I pretended I hadn’t heard him.
“Answer my damn question,” he repeated, his tone sharper.
I rolled my eyes. “Nothing, you asshole.”
His phone started vibrating. I didn’t even need to guess. Paulinah. Already missing him.
He picked up his phone to check the message, and his entire mood shifted. He rushed to the door and tried to open it—but it was locked from the outside.
He turned back, stared at me, then dialed a number.
“Luke, Paulinah’s hurt. I need you to go back home and take her to the hospital. Leave now.” He ended the call and started pacing the room.
“So you guys planned on locking me in?” he said, his voice filled with frustration.
“Yes,” I said, smiling. “And I’m really enjoying this whole show you’re putting on right now. Your discomfort makes me very comfortable.” I laughed out
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