Chapter 0006

Anthony stared back at Lerisa’s face and said to her, “I have to go home now, Lerisa. I hope you’re truly feeling fine now.”

Anthony drank from the bottled water in his hand again, looking directly at Lerisa’s face. She replied, “Yes, I’m fine. See you later this evening.”

Lerisa’s pretty, fair‑complexioned face turned sad again as she remembered that Anthony would definitely propose to Clara that evening. Anthony and Clara had been dating for three years or more.

Anthony noticed the change in Lerisa’s mood from how her face automatically flushed. He hastily asked her, “What’s wrong with you again?”

Lerisa snapped out of her trance and replied, “Nothing, I’m fine.”

“Hmm, you keep lying to me that you’re fine when you’re not… Tell me the truth, Lerisa. What’s bothering you? You can share whatever the problem is with me. You know I care about you, and I know you don’t have any other friends aside from me,” Anthony said.

“You don’t have a boyfriend—or maybe you do, but I don’t know him yet and haven’t met him. Still, that’s not why you should look so sad,” he continued.

“I don’t have any boyfriend, Anthony,” Lerisa admitted. Anthony looked at her face again and asked, “Why don’t you have one? You’re very beautiful, Lerisa, and I want the best man for you. How about my friend Ben? He’s been bothering me about you. Why not consider dating him?”

“No. I’m not interested in Ben,” Lerisa replied quickly.

Anthony’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, and he grinned as he asked her, “Then who are you interested in? I don’t know of any boyfriend or love interest of yours who could have made you look so sad.”

Lerisa gazed up at Anthony’s face. She met his blue eyes, and her lips parted to speak, but no words came out—she couldn’t tell him the truth that she was in love with him. She gulped and stared downward.

Anthony sighed and advised her, “It’s okay, Lerisa. If you don’t want to tell me about the guy you like… But you should know that I care about you very much and see you as more than a friend.”

“I have to be on my way home now; I promised my mother I’d be home early for breakfast after finishing my exercise. Otherwise, I would have joined you and your mom here. How about your dad?” Anthony inquired.

“He’s gone out for a weekend meeting,” Lerisa said. Anthony sighed and advised her, “Be good, okay? Take care of yourself.”

Lerisa nodded and walked Anthony to the gate. She pulled it open for him and locked it from the inside after he left. Unknown to her, her mother stood by the kitchen window, eavesdropping on their conversation and watching them.

Lerisa wiped away her tears and turned to walk back into the house, not knowing her mother was also secretly hoping she and Anthony would marry.

However, as Lerisa stepped into the living room, her mother quickly came out of the kitchen and asked, “What’s going on between you and Anthony, Lerisa?”

Antonia was carrying a tray of fried eggs as she walked to the dining table and placed it down.

Lerisa walked toward the dining room to join her mother. She replied, “Nothing, Mom.”

Lerisa sat on a chair, her face still flushed, and she continued to remember the diamond engagement ring she had seen with Anthony the previous day.

“You keep saying ‘nothing, Mom’ when you look as red as a tomato. Haven’t you looked at yourself in the mirror, Lerisa?” her mother asked.

Lerisa sighed and replied, “I’m fine, Mom.”

“Okay. If you say so, but I hope you know I like Anthony too, and I don’t want you to chase him away with that red face,” Antonia teased.

Lerisa only shook her head as she picked up a piece of fried egg from her plate and ate it.

“Stop that! Go wash your hands first, and let’s have breakfast together since your dad isn’t home yet. Have you picked out what you’ll wear to Anthony’s birthday party this evening? Your father and I will also be attending—you know I like Anthony very much, and I want him to marry you, once he’s ready to settle down. At least that would seal our family’s bond with his.”

“Mom, Anthony has a girlfriend. You and Dad should stop thinking about me becoming Anthony’s wife. He will only ever be my boss and a family friend,” Lerisa said with a sad face. She stood up from the chair and walked to the kitchen door to wash her hands in the sink.

“Hmm…” Antonia frowned and went into the kitchen to meet her eldest daughter.

She said, “Why would you say that, Lerisa? Anthony can’t just marry whichever girl he’s dating. His parents won’t support him marrying anyone except you. His dad and your father are best friends, and the same goes for his mother and me.”

“Hmm.” Lerisa shook her head, finished washing her hands under the running tap, picked up her teacup, and said, “Mom, I’m hungry, and I still need to go out to shop for a new outfit to wear to Anthony’s birthday party tonight.”

“Okay,” Mrs. Antonia sighed, letting Lerisa pass.

Lerisa walked out of the kitchen with her teacup and went to the dining table to have breakfast.

Antonia stepped out of the kitchen and joined her eldest daughter in the dining room, and they ate breakfast together.

Lerisa didn’t want to tell her mother the truth—that she had seen Anthony with an engagement ring. He would propose to his girlfriend, perhaps in the event hall, as he was preparing to settle down with another woman.

Lerisa knew her parents would be heartbroken when they witnessed Anthony going down on one knee and proposing to Clara Harry right in front of them.

Lerisa exhaled and resumed eating her bread with fried eggs, while her mother watched her in silence and continued eating her own breakfast. They both sipped from their teacups.

After breakfast with her mother, Lerisa cleared the cups in the kitchen, washed them, and went to her bedroom to freshen up. She wanted to go out to shop for a new gown to wear to Anthony’s birthday party.

Her phone rang, startling her, and she wondered who was calling. She didn’t have many friends’ numbers saved.

Lerisa walked to the drawer where she kept her phone, picked it up, and saw it was an unknown caller.

She answered and sat on her bed, then said, “Hello, who is this?”

“Hi, Lerisa. How’re you doing this morning?” a deep, masculine voice asked.

“I’m fine; who is this?” Lerisa questioned, but she quickly recognized the voice as Ben’s.

She frowned, wondering how he had gotten her phone number.

She queried him, “Ben, how did you get my mobile number?”