Everlastingly Loving You - Chapter 92

She couldn’t contain her shock.

This couldn’t simply be a coincidence. Was Marcus targeting Louis somehow?

All sorts of thoughts ran through her mind.

There was no way.

She knitted her eyebrows, she wondered to herself, “Does grandmere know about it?”

She had to know.

If she did, why hadn’t she done something about it?

She decided to visit grandmere’s quarters.

A couple minutes later, she knocked on grandmere’s quarters’ doors.

“Grandmere?” Sophia called out.

“You there?” She asked politely, starting to get worried.

Julia opened the door for her granddaughter.

“Darling, what are you doing here?” Julia asked.

“I’m in the midst of planning another luncheon,” she added.

Something clicked in Sophia’s head.

“Everyone’s invited?” She asked.

Julia nodded, “Unfortunately, yes. There are important matters that need discussing and it’s better we do it over lunch instead of in a conference room or that’d end in tragedy.”

She noticed Sophia still standing outside.

“What are you waiting for, dear? Come in!” Julia exclaimed.

“Come,” she shooed Sophia in her quarters.

Sophia entered her quarters.

Julia made Sophia sit down before she started speaking.

“Did you come here just to ask if there were any events planned?” She asked, her eyebrow raised.

Sophia couldn’t fathom how someone could look that regal – even when they were merely raising her eyebrow.

Sophia shook her head, answering, “No, grandmere.”

She could’ve checked her calendar that included all the events she was required to attend.

Julia then broke the silence, asking, “Well then, how’s your royal duties doing, dear?”

“Faced any problems lately?” She asked worriedly.

Sophia knitted her eyebrows. Did grandmere expect her to face problems when started to take on more tasks and started fulfilling more of her royal duties than simply being in attendance at royal events? Did she think her incapable of doing so? Did grandmere think she didn’t have what it takes?

“Don’t take it the wrong way darling, I’m merely checking in and asking how you’re doing,” Julia assured her.

Sophia blinked, answering, “Everything’s fine.”

“And as you’ve probably heard from your ‘sources’, me and Nicholas are courting.”

Julia grinned proudly, “Yes, I’ve heard.”

“Congratulations,” she said.

Sophia smiled gratefully at her grandmother.

“Thank you,” she said wholeheartedly.

The room went silent – again.

“Other than that, how are you doing grandmere?” Sophia asked.

“Little old me? I’m fine, you know that.”

“So why don’t you tell me you’re really here, dear,” Julia offered.

Sophia opened her mouth, tempted to tell grandmere why she was really here.

She would’ve expected her to have found out already, but as it turned out, she hadn’t.

She began by asking, “Have you met Marcus?”

Julia laughed.

“That man Lous brought here? Of course,” she chuckled.

“And you’re fine with him?”

“As in, you’re alright with him?” Sophia asked insistently.

Julia eyed Sophia strangely.

“Should I not be alright with Marcus?” She asked, her eyebrows furrowed.

Sophia shook her head, “Of course not, I was just curious, ‘is all.”

Julia shot Sophia a look of skepticism.

“So, do you happen to be coming to the luncheon?” Julia asked.

Sophia hid a smirk, “Of course I am.”

“How could I possibly miss it?” Sophia asked, hoping Louis would bring Marcus along to the luncheon.

__

“A luncheon,” Sophia spat.

“I’m taking you to the luncheon as my date,” she declared.

Nicholas blinked, “You’ve got something planned,” something told him.

Sophia shot him a confused look, before assuring him, “It has nothing to do with you, calm down.”

“It’s to do with Louis,” she elucidated.

“Something to do with that man he brought here?” Nicholas asked.

“Word spreads fast around here,” he explained.

“What are you planning?” He asked her hesitantly.

“Bold of you to assume I have something in mind,” Sophia said.

“Cut the act, I know you,” Nicholas retorted.

Sophia flashed him a smile.

“I’m not going to do anything but watch the show,” she said nonchalantly.

He stared at her skeptically.

“Are you really not going to tell me anything?” He asked her.

“I’m not,” Sophia admitted.

“Did you come here just to declare I’d be your date?” Nicholas asked her straightforwardly.

Irritatedly, Sophia grumbled, “You sound exactly like grandmere.”

“I what?”

“Nothing,” she grumbled, before she cursed under her breath.

“Crap, I’ve got paperwork to sign,” Sophia muttered.

She glanced at Nicholas.

“Go, I’ll be fine,” Nicholas promised.

Sophia nodded before she left.

Sophia signed a document.

She plopped it on her right side.

“One done,” she mumbled.

She looked to her left.

“And hundreds more to go.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she mumbled.

She took a deep breath.

“You can do this, Windsor,” she told herself.

“You can do this,” she repeated.

She didn’t allow herself to leave her study until she finished signing each and every one of the official documents laid out in front of her.

She thought of the luncheon, and that was enough to keep her going throughout.

She nearly dozed off a couple of times, but she kept reminding herself of her current objective. She had to finish this. She had to.

She finished hours later, proud she managed.

She turned to check the time on the wall clock. Her eyes flashed with immediate panic.

“I’m going to be late!” She exclaimed. She wouldn’t be able to get to the luncheon on time, she had to be late.

She quickly made it to her quarters and got dressed before she rushed out the door.

“I’m late I’m late I’m late I’m late,” she panicked.

She realized Nicholas was already seated at the patio table.

She took a seat at the head of the table.

“Work kept me,” she whispered over to Nicholas.

She scanned the table to see one particular seat empty.

She took initiative, asking, “Emilia running late?”

Louis nodded.

“Ah.”

She lifted her plate cover.

She was starving.

They were waiting for Emilia to arrive.

Knowing Emilia, she was doing all this purposefully, so as to keep everyone waiting for her, only for her to arrive royally late, pretending as though work had kept her.

She kept her gaze on Marcus, who didn’t seem to take notice until a while later.

Louis attempted to start a conversation to ease the tension, “Should we wait for her before we start, or?”

Sophia answered her brother, “We should.”

Julia intervened, “We wouldn’t want to be rude. We’ve got to wait for her.”

She didn’t seem pleased either, but she did a great job at keeping her cool and temper.

At the table, there sat Sophia, Nicholas, Louis, Marcus, Kiara, Sheila and Julia, awaiting Emilia’s arrival.

Sheila and Kiara had to return to the palace, what with being expelled from their respective universities and having no other place to return. Their parents didn’t want them. Not anymore.

Julia tapped her finger on the table, impatiently waiting for Emilia.

“So very sorry, I got completely caught up in work,” Emilia lied as she strided towards the patio table.

“Hope you didn’t have to wait too long,” she said, trying to sound compassionate.

‘Oh cut it why don’t you,’ Sophia wanted to blurt.

Julia made an indistinct noise.

“Have a seat, Emile,” she ordered Emilia.

Emilia hesitated.

She stood still.

She looked both upset, wounded and irritated all at the same time.

“What are you doing here?” She yelled, scowling.

“YOU’RE NOT WELCOME HERE, I DEMAND YOU TO LEAVE!” She cried.

Sheila and Kiara looked worriedly at their aunt.

Everyone else looked around to see who she was glaring at, and eventually, so did Sheila and Kiara.

Sheila gasped.

Kiara’s eyes widened.

“Emilia,” a man greeted calmly.

“It’s been a while,” he said coldly.

“Excuse me, what is going on?” Louis asked.

Marcus shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“Marcus?” Louis asked.

Emilia realized they didn’t know. They didn’t know the truth.

She sat in her seat, staring blankly at him.

Marcus was burning with rage on the inside but he’d kept it to himself.

“Tell them,” she said blankly.

“Go, tell them,” Marcus said coldly.

“You have no right,” Emilia took quick breaths.

“You have absolutely no right to be here, you’ve got to leave,” Emilia insisted.

“What is going on?” Louis intervened.

Marcus shot Louis a guilty look for keeping it from him.

In his defense, he’d only known Louis for two days. And he did plan on telling Louis sometime soon, once he found the perfect moment. He knew things were moving too fast. He knew Louis was Emilia’s stepson, but he hadn’t expected to be running into her – or meeting her rather – this soon.

“Louis–”

“I asked once, I ask again, what is going on between the two of you?” Louis demanded to know, his eyes darting between Marcus and Emilia.

‘Were they somehow related?’ He wondered.

‘Had they met before?’ He thought to himself.

He wondered what was going on.

“Spit it out,” he said to both Emilia and Marcus.

Sophia shrunk back in her seat.

Nicholas watched them closely, before Marcus told everyone the jaw-dropping news.

“We dated.”