The Accidental Husband

Chapter 3

“Julian, welcome back home!” His mother chimed happily, dragging herself in her wheelchair to the room.

Julian glanced at his mother with a questioning look. “What is she doing here, mom?”

“Oh, Emily? Emily is Mrs. Clark’s daughter, you remember Mrs. Clark right?” His mother smiled. “I invited Emily over to have dinner with us.”

“Oh okay,” He said with an awkward smile. What a small world, the woman his friends had set him up with was actually a friend of his mother’s.

“And if you must know, Emily is actually single so I’m sure you two will get along wonderfully.”

Julian could see that Emily rolled her eyes at his mother’s statement.

As they sat down to dinner, Julian’s mother, Nora nudged him secretly; he glanced at her and sighed.

Taking Emily’s plate, he served her first. “Would you like me to add more?” He asked.

Emily stared at him with scorn. “Do you think that with this action of yours, I would fall for you? You are not even in my category of guys that I would have a crush on!”

“What do you mean?” Julian said with a frown.

“You fell for me at first sight, didn't you? That’s why you are trying too hard to please me. And aunty, what makes you think that I and your son can become an item? You both struggle to make ends meet and you didn’t really do a good job in raising your son. Imagine him ending up as a gynaecology nurse! You both are living such pathetic lives!” Emily spat out with disdain. “Do you think I would want to settle myself for the worst, having a disabled mother-in-law? Maybe if your son and I end up together, I would have to bathe you and do your laundry, wouldn't I?”

“Emily, I won’t condone you insulting my mother!” Julian’s face darkened. Nora held his hand in a bid to calm him down.

“Emily, don’t talk like that. I can do all those things on my own, my life has never affected my son’s life,” Nora said calmly.

“Tsk, I really pity you aunty.” Emily said with a pitiful stare, she looked up at Julian. “If you are truly interested in me, for our next dates, I want a luxury car and expensive gifts and if you can’t afford such then you back off!”

“You can only attract someone as beautiful as me, with curves in the right places,” She stood up, showcasing her body in front of him. “By being rich and getting me expensive gifts! I can’t stoop so low to be with a pauper and his mother in a wheelchair.”

“I won’t be buying you any car or gifts and I never said I wanted you to be my girlfriend. This is between you and me, don’t bring my mother into this!” Julian’s tone was harsh.

He could keep quiet to insults about him but to his mother, that he can’t condone. If Emily were a man, he would have received a punch to his nose!

Emily snorted, her face twisted with disdain and scorn. “Of course, it’s between me and you but you are literally a poor nurse, what exactly can you afford? Having someone like me as your girlfriend is too expensive isn’t it?”

“You look so pitiful and pathetic; perhaps I could help you both with a few dollar notes to cook better meals for yourselves! I wonder why my mother would agree to permit me to come over here to get my taste buds ruined by this thing you both call food!” She said, staring at the meal in front of her with disgust. “Julian, as the man of the house, you are not even capable but you wanted to go out on a date with me, ha-ha, joker! You should spend more time taking care of your crippled mother!”

The doorbell rang loudly.

Nora looked up at her son, grateful for the interruption. “Julian.”

Julian touched his mother’s hand and walked towards the door. He was surprised when he opened the door.

“Ms. Everett, what are you doing here?” He asked, eyeing her companion.

“Won’t you let me in first?” Astrid said with a smile.

“Sure, of course. Come in.”

Emily’s eyes widened open on Astrid’s arrival. “Ms. Everett, the CEO of Everett Corporation? What are you doing here?”

“Who are you?” Astrid’s brows shot up. When investigating Julian, he didn’t have a sister or a girlfriend.

“Uhm, I-”

“Ms. Everett, to what do we owe this visit?” Nora said, wheeling her wheelchair forward. She had seen this lady on the television countless times and admired her wits and confidence. Seeing her right now in her house was like a dream.

“Oh, you must be Julian’s mother,” Astrid said with a wide smile. “You don’t have to call me Ms. Everett, you can just call me Astrid and I have brought some gifts for you as well.”

Her assistant walked towards her with two bags in his hands.

“I got you some expensive jewellery and also this house seems too unsuitable for you to stay in so I got you an apartment. Inside one of these bags, the keys to the apartment are inside.”

Nora took the bags to inspect them and her eyes beamed with surprise, her face filled with bewilderment. The bags contained lavish and expensive gifts, some she had never seen in her life.

“Ms. Everett, you really didn’t have to do all these,” Julian said with an awkward smile. “You have already thanked me enough and now, you found my house and bought expensive gifts for me and my mother.”

Astrid glanced at him, with a wide smile on her face. “Julian, you really impressed me today. I really didn’t come here to thank you for what you did. I came here to find you.”

The room instantly fell silent.

Julian’s eyes narrowed with confusion, “What do you mean?”

Astrid stepped forward, her confidence unwavering. “I’ve been searching for you, Julian.”

Emily was confused and blurted out. “Why would you be looking for someone like him? He’s not even in the same class as you!”

Astrid’s gaze never wavered from Julian. “He’s exactly the kind of man I need in my life.”