From Deadbeat To Doting; Something Is Wrong With My Husband!-Chapter 25: You’re Alive!

Hanging up, Rachel looked at Brianna’s number for a while. Then she tapped on the anonymous person, who had messaged her last night with a strange text. Narrowing her eyes, she hit the block tab.

...

The moment the gull-wing door of Brianna’s red Bugatti hissed open like a warning before drawing the greedy eyes of the onlookers, the harshness of afternoon sun mocked her outfit choice.

She hadn’t even made it to the restaurant when sweat beads began forming on her forehead and rolling down inside to her spine.

Her fingers obsessively traced the line of her throat, digging into the angry red hives hidden beneath the turtleneck top and coat.

Without the coat and turtleneck, when she had taken a look of herself in the mirror, she looked like someone who was either physically abused or had been handled roughly by a lover. And she didn’t need to plant that kind of seed in Rachel’s tender mind.

Itch. Rub. Repeat. The cycle was the only thing keeping her upright.

"Brianna!"

The waving hand belonged to Rachel. Beside her sat two girls who looked like half-finished sketches of the children Brianna remembered. Posie, now fifteen, was leaning over her phone with a dramatic sigh, while twelve-year-old Ruby turned eagerly and joined her mother in waving.

Brianna breathed, sliding into the booth. "Look at you two. How are you guys? Posie, did you finally get those braces off? And Ruby, you’re almost as tall as me!"

"Finally!" Posie laughed, dropping her phone on her thigh while she picked a strange fry. "But Mom wouldn’t let me get the blue bands at the end. She said I had to be ’professional’ for school."

"I am taller than the boys in my class," Ruby added proudly.

Leaning in, "We watched a repeat of your show last night! The one about the abusive husband? Brianna, you were so cool. Mom is literally your biggest fan; she has a whole folder on her laptop just for your clips."

Rachel looked away, a rare flush of pink touching her cheeks. "I just like to keep up with the news, Ruby. Don’t be dramatic."

Rachel’s gaze flickered back to Brianna. When Brianna’s father had cut her off for choosing another degree over his "preferred" path, Rachel had offered to adopt her, to pay for every credit, because it was better than being in debt.

Brianna had said no.

Rachel thought it was independence; she didn’t know that Bobbie had gaslit Brianna into rejecting that "marriage breaker" as she referred to, saying "family comes first.".

Now Rachel sat here wondering why Brianna had refused to follow her dream.

"I still don’t understand," Rachel suddenly said.

"Understand what?"

"Why you’d chose mere fame over your dreams of becoming a~"

Bzzz. Bzzz.

Rachel looked down at her phone. It was Alexander Blythe. He had called saying he’d return from his business trip today, though she hadn’t told her husband she was meeting the "disgraced" daughter of the Blythes’.

Narrowing her eyes, she excused herself to lie to him in private.

Left alone, Posie leaned across the table, blushing. "Brianna... advise me. There’s a boy. He’s perfect, but he’s with someone else. If I tell him the truth, do you think he’ll choose me?"

Brianna looked at the young and naive girl with innocent eyes, thinking; ’So this is how Reynas’ started.’

She was going to do Briannas’ a favour and advise Reyna well.

"Oh, my God! Brianna? Is that really you?"

Genevieve Colburn stood there with her mouth hanging open and her eyes wide as if she were actually staring at the person her mother had declared dead.

"You’re alive!" Genevieve shrieked, her voice drawing looks from the entire restaurant.

"We all thought—I mean, mother said—how are you even standing?"

Brianna stiffened, her hand going to her neck. She caught the confused looks on Posie and Ruby’s faces. She didn’t want them anywhere near the toxic sludge of the Colburn family drama. She stood up, physically stepping between Genevieve and the girls.

"I’m very much alive, Genevieve."

Genevieve’s eyes darted around, her brain working overtime. If the "Widow" Brianna was alive and having lunch, then what about the "Martyr" Lucian? "Wait. Does this mean Lucian isn’t at the villa? Did he... pass away again?"

"He’s home," Brianna said shortly.

Genevieve’s jaw dropped further. "He’s home?!"

The shock turned into immediate indignation. "He’s back and he didn’t tell us? Why wouldn’t he say anything? We could have thrown a welcome banquet in his honor! The whole family should be there!"

A banquet? Brianna felt a scoff rising in her throat. A banquet for the man your mother tried to kill?

It was either Genevieve was oblivious to what her mother and immediate older sister, Victoria, had done or she was really the "party freak" as they had called her. Throwing parties for even her husband’s first clean shave.

But then again, since Lucian had always hated parties, perhaps Genevieve should actually throw a party. He should consider it a little gift from her.

She smiled evily, rubbing her neck. When she looked up, Genevieve’s eyes were on her neck.

"Are you... okay?"

Brianna waved off. "I’m fine. Now about that banquet... I’d suggest you take him by surprise." 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

...

Brianna’s red Bugatti pulled into the villa’s garage as the moon took its place in the sky.

Once she entered the villa, she removed her coat and kicked off her heels, moaning from the coldness of the villa.

She stayed like that until her throat got dry, before heading to the kitchen to get water.

Upon getting there, Brianna almost flinched. The sight of Lucian having dinner on the table. And to his right was Lucifur, being fed by Annie.

"Master said I could eat here. He really knows how to treat me like royalty." Lucifur meowed.

Brianna pretended she hadn’t just walked into madness. Dropping her LV bag on the table with a heavy thud as she reached for a glass of water.

"Dropping your bag on the dining table is a disgraceful act! You should learn some table manners, Lady Brianna. Tell her, master."

"Meow! Meow, Meow, Meow, Mrow," Lucifur chirped, looking up at Lucian.