Owned By The Playboy Billionaire

06: Swayed by Pressure

ELARA'S POV

"Elara, Ryder is here, and you still have some preparations to make for your upcoming engagement party," my mom said as she entered my room.

"I feel so dizzy, Mom; I'm not in the mood to go out right now," I lazily replied while lying on my bed with my back turned to her. I was still lying down because, no matter how much I tried to get up, I felt dizzy. I had stayed up late with Ryder last night, so I was lacking sleep again.

It's been two months since the night I least wanted to revisit. And because of that, I lost my appetite for life because I felt dirty for Ryder. I couldn't even tell him or my parents how I felt, because they would surely curse me for what happened.

"Will you still understand your dizziness when he's already here?" She angrily said this to me, so I just sighed and got up from my bed. I really couldn't insist on what I felt. What my parents and Ryder feel is always more important.

"Okay, Mom, just tell him that I'll dress up quickly," I said emotionlessly to her, even though the truth is, I really wanted to cry in front of her.

"Alright, wear the floral blue dress because I think Ryder's mom is with you today," she instructed, before finally leaving my room.

And I didn't realize my tears were falling. I felt so sorry for myself that I didn't know why. And considering how long my situation had been like that, I couldn't understand why I felt sorry for myself now.

I took a deep breath and calmed myself before getting dressed and fixing myself. When I went down, Ryder greeted me with a smile, so I forced myself to smile even though I really wasn't in the mood.

"Let's go, love; Mommy has been waiting for us since earlier," he said to me before turning to my mom. "Auntie, we'll go ahead; I'll just drop Elara off here," he said to her.

"Sure, son, it's okay with us," she replied, still smiling broadly. "Take care! Okay!"

"Bye, Mom." I bid her goodbye and kissed her cheek.

Ryder held my hand and supported me until we got into the car.

"Why did it take you so long, Ryder?" His mother questioned him angrily as he opened the door for me. He made me sit in the backseat because his mom was in the passenger's seat.

"Good morning, Auntie." I greeted her politely, even though I knew her morning wasn't good.

"We had to fix something, Mom," Ryder said when he got into the driver's seat.

"Oh, Ryder, stop covering up for your girlfriend!" She said angrily to Ryder. "I know you're just covering up for her, huh?" She said it without stopping. I was attempting to maintain composure to avoid crying in her presence.

"Mom, can you please let this one pass? Elara isn't feeling well, so she took a while," Ryder said softly.

"What else can I do? I always let your girlfriend off the hook. Let's go; I have a lot to do!" She said angrily, so Ryder started the car. I didn't know why she still joined us when it was Ryder's and my engagement; we should've been the only ones taking care of it.

We were all silent during the trip. The engagement and the wedding were fast approaching, but I still wasn't at ease with Ryder's mom. She wasn't always like that to me. I didn't even know why she came with us during our engagement, so it should've just been the two of us handling it.

When we arrived at the boutique where I would buy a dress for the engagement party, Ryder was still supporting me. I knew his mom told him that I wasn't feeling well because she wasn't always like that to me.

"Love, choose now, then let's decide once you've chosen," Ryder said sweetly, so I started to browse and look at each dress displayed there. They followed and observed me.

One dress caught my attention, and I immediately approached it. One of the mannequins there was wearing it. It was a long white dress, off-shoulder, but with loose sleeves up to the wrist. When I wore it, I felt like a fairy.

"Ryder, this is what I want," I told him with sparkling eyes. He also approached his mom. The smile slowly disappeared from my lips when I saw that he didn't like the one I chose.

"Can you try to choose another one, love?" He asked me. "I don't like that gown for you, and I think there are many more beautiful ones here," he said while pointing to the gowns behind me.

"I agree with you, Ryder," his mom said. "That dress was too simple, and it looks like it can be bought at a thrift store," she said without stopping, so some of the boutique staff there also exchanged glances.

"Um, okay, you just picked me. I'm having a hard time choosing because I'm still feeling dizzy." I made an excuse, but the truth was, I had lost my enthusiasm. Ryder always says to just go ahead and choose or do whatever I want and what will make me happy, but in the end, it's always his decision, and if he doesn't like it, I can't do it, and I'm already used to that.

He pointed to another dress on a mannequin on the opposite side of the boutique and said, "Okay, I think that one would look good on you."

It was light pink, with a v-neckline and sleeves just up to the elbow. The fabric was lace, and sequins made the gown shimmer.

"Okay, let's go with that." I quickly agreed.

"Miss, can you get that for her to try on?" He asked the sales representative standing beside me. His mom didn't object either, so I tried it on. The sales representative helped me put it on because the zipper was at the back, and Ryder's mom didn't want to help me.

"There!" Ryder smiled when I came out of the fitting room wearing the gown he had chosen for me. "It's prettier and more suitable for you." Then he turned to the sales representative. "Alright, Miss, we'll take that."

"Okay, sir," she replied before assisting me to change back into my clothes.

After they packed up the gown, we left to buy my shoes.

"Let's buy shoes later; let's eat first because I'm already hungry," Ryder's mom said, and before we could respond, she immediately entered the first restaurant we passed by.

As soon as we entered, I didn't like the smell, and it felt like my head was spinning more because of that smell. I tightly held onto Ryder's hand.

The waiter approached us after we had taken our seats. I tried to calm myself so I wouldn't vomit. Ryder and his mom were busy looking at the menu.

"Love, what do you want to order?" he asked me while still looking at the menu.

"Your choice, sweetheart; however, I believe I would prefer something soupy due to the pain in my throat."

"Okay," he said before turning to the waiter. "One order of heat-seeking shrimp and slow-cooked pork with fried rice, then one order of salmon soup and Szechuan ribs for her. And for you, Mom, what's your order?" He turned to his mom.

"One Thai peanut chicken and spicy cucumbers for me. Please serve it quickly because I'm hungry," she said.

"Okay, ma'am, just a moment," the waiter said before leaving.

Because I was feeling really unwell, I couldn't speak. The strange smell inside that restaurant made my condition worse.

After a while, our orders were served. When they placed my food in front of me, I couldn't resist the urge to vomit. Ryder's mom looked at me with raised eyebrows.

"Love, are you okay?" He asked me worriedly, but before I could answer, I vomited again. I quickly stood up to go to the restroom, but I couldn't even say anything because I couldn't stop what I was feeling. It's very uncommon for me, so I also don't know why.

After calming myself down, I just washed my face. Somehow, I felt a little better after vomiting. When I went out, Ryder was waiting for me outside the restroom.

"Are you really okay?" he asked, still worried.

"Yes, I'm okay; maybe I just got dizzy," I said. He continued to support me until we got back to our table. His mom still had her eyebrows raised, and she didn't look pleased.

"Are you pregnant, Elara?" Both Ryder and I were surprised by her question.

"What, Mom? That's impossible because we haven't done what you're thinking yet," Ryder quickly answered.

"Well, I'm just asking because that's how I felt when I was pregnant with you," she said, raising her eyebrows while still examining me. "So I'm telling you, Ryder, find out what's happening to your girlfriend." She said this, shaking her head.

I felt a little nervous about what she said, and I couldn't help but be afraid that they might find out what really happened to me.