CHAPTER SEVEN

“Surprise."

Jeffery blinked, caught mid-step, his gaze locked on the woman in front of him like a deer facing headlights. 

His hands stiffened at his sides, his jaw tightened, but he didn’t say a word, just looking at the woman in front of him.

"Anita?" His voice wasn’t exactly warm, more like stunned..

If there was one thing Jeffery Lu couldn’t do, it was pretend.

The look on his face wasn’t masked at all. It screamed: What are you doing here? Not that I’m happy to see you.

Anita, ever the actress, caught on instantly. She didn’t flinch, nor delete the smile on her face, instead, she threw her shoulders back, smiled that dazzling, calculated smile that once lit up the covers of fashion magazines, and stepped forward confidently.

“Well, Grandpa invited me over. Thought it was about time I came back. Aren’t you happy to see your childhood sweetheart?”

Before Jeffery could move or reply, Anita closed the space between them and wrapped her arms around his neck in a long, too-familiar hug. 

She lingered, her hands brushing the back of his blue blazer, her cheek pressed a second too long against his jaw.

Angelie watched it all from the base of the staircase. Her hands tightened around the envelope in her fingers until the corners crumpled, almost.

It felt like watching a love story play out in front of her, only it wasn’t hers. 

She couldn’t explain this level of anger in her.

Anita, tall, stunning, dripping with generational wealth and effortless confidence, one that always picked on her, was everything she wasn’t, she thought inside her.

A supermodel with perfect skin and perfect timing. Born into the world, Angelie had been dragged into kicking and screaming.

And her arm was now looped through Jeffery’s like she belonged there.

Angelie looked down at herself.  Still clutching a letter that felt more like a farewell than a gift.

She felt small.

For a second, she regretted her decision.

She turned to leave, quietly, head down—

"Angelie."

Her name. Out of Jeffery’s mouth. It stopped her like a rope around her waist.

She turned slowly. Anita was still beside him, still clutching his arm. But Jeffrey’s eyes were only on Angelie.

He didn’t smile.

He just looked at her like he was trying to figure something out.

Before he could say anything else, the air shifted.

The deep click of a cane on marble echoed through the entryway.

“Grandpa.”

Jeffery and Anita both turned toward the sound.

Grandpa Lu walked in like a king returning to court,  slow, firm, eyes sharp as razors under his heavy brows. Dressed in a tailored gray suit, gold cufflinks, and a tie that probably cost more than Angelie’s rent.

His gaze flicked over the scene like a general surveying the battlefield.

“Ah, I see you’ve reunited,” he said with a small smirk, his voice gruff but calculated. “Perfect. Now we can talk.”

“Grandpa,” Jeffery said, loosening Anita’s grip from his arm politely. “I wasn’t aware you invited…”

“I did,” Grandpa Lu interrupted. “And she accepted. You always did say she was family, didn’t you?”

Anita tilted her head, grinning. “I’ve always considered myself a Lu at heart.”

Angelie stayed frozen near the staircase, unsure if she was supposed to stay or disappear into the walls.

But Grandpa Lu’s eyes found her next.

“Ah, Angelie,” he said, not unkindly. “Come join us. We’re all family now, aren’t we?”

She nodded shyly and stepped forward.

“Where’s Lucas?” Grandpa asked.

“Not sure,” Jeffery said, his voice clipped.

“Typical,” Grandpa muttered. “Always absent when it matters.”

He motioned for the housekeeper to bring coffee and serve, then turned back to the group.

“I’m not one to waste time, so I’ll speak plainly. Our family has been through chaos recently. Scandals, secrets, shadows. It’s time we cleaned it up. Solidify the Lu name again, with legacy, with loyalty, and with marriage.”

Angelie’s stomach dropped.

Jeffery narrowed his eyes. “Marriage?”

“Don’t act surprised,” Grandpa said, voice like gravel. “You’re not getting any younger. And the press loves a love story. Especially one that feels… historic.”

He looked at Anita.

Then at Angelie.

And then back to Jeffery.

“I’ve invited Anita to stay with us for the next few weeks,” he said. “To reconnect. To remind you what the right kind of future looks like.”

Jeffery didn’t move. Didn’t breathe.

Angelie felt her pulse in her throat.

“Grandpa,” Jeffery said slowly, “with all due respect, I don’t need a bride picked for me.”

“You had one,” Grandpa said, eyes cutting. “Now you don’t. So I’m fixing that.”

Anita placed a hand over her heart, feigning softness. “It doesn’t have to be forced, Jeff. I’m just here. If things rekindle… well, fate has funny timing.”

Jeffery stepped back, jaw clenched.

Angelie stepped further into the shadows.

It was like being erased while still breathing.

That night, the estate was quieter than usual.

Angelie skipped dinner. She stayed in the guest room, the envelope still untouched on the dresser, her reflection dim in the mirror.

She tried not to think of Jeffery.

But she did.

She thought of the way he looked at her earlier. Not with love, not with hate. Just… confusion. Like he was trying to read a story he couldn’t finish.

Did he ever love her, or was it just pity? 

Her phone vibrated.

A message.

Jeffery: We need to talk.

Her hands trembled.

She typed back: Now?

Jeffery: Ten minutes, Library.

The library was dark except for the warm glow of a lamp near the fireplace.

Jeffery stood with one hand on the mantle, the other buried in his pocket.

He turned when she walked in.

“You came.”

“You asked,” she said quietly.

They stared at each other. The space between them was heavier than ever.

“You got the envelope,” he said finally.

She nodded.

“I didn’t ask for it,” she said.

“I know.”

“Then why?”

He looked away. “Because you deserve it. Do you remember the day I asked you about your long-time dream?

She smiled not because she remembered but because he did.

And he was trying to fulfill her long time wish.

Silence stretched.

“I don’t want Paris,” she said.

He looked back at her, eyes searching.

“What do you want then?”

Angelie stepped closer.

“To tell you something,” she whispered.

Jeffery didn’t move.

Her voice shook, but she forced the words.

“I want to tell you something…