Gun 17

Elaine

I couldn’t stop smiling when Louis hugged me. “Did you love it, wife?” he asked, and I immediately nodded. Who wouldn’t be happy to be surprised like this?

When Louis broke from the hug, it was Aunt Hacel who wrapped me in her arms. “Congratulations to both of you. I can’t wait to see you wearing your wedding gown,” she said. I smiled at her words, and I, too, was excited to see myself in a gown. I never expected to experience something like this until Louis came into my life and made me feel special—just like other women.

I actually thought that Kaizer would be the one to make me feel this way. I had a crush on him when I entered college. He always made me feel beautiful, but the world was really small because I ended up falling for his cousin, and I was about to marry him.

“Thank you so much, Aunt Hacel. I’m excited, too,” I said. I was surprised when she widened her smile and took my hand to jump with me. I didn’t know what expression to show, but luckily, Uncle Izaak came over to us.

“That’s enough, honey. We should go to the venue now. Looks like all the guests are already there,” Uncle Izaak said, which almost made my jaw drop because I was only wearing a jumper. Louis hadn’t mentioned anything about this happening. If he had, I would have known he was planning something.

“Yeah, I nearly forgot, where’s Blaire? Don’t worry, Elaine. I brought you a dress you can wear,” Aunt Hacel said, which I appreciated.

My father walked over to me and kissed my forehead. “Congratulations, my daughter. I’m sorry if I didn’t tell you about Louis’ plan, okay? I just wanted to see you happy, especially since you love surprises.”

I smiled and hugged him tightly. “Thank you so much, Dad,” I said. He just patted me gently and talked to Uncle Izaak.

“Let’s go, Elaine,” Aunt Hacel said with a smile, and we walked toward a room. I was surprised when I saw Tyron looking at us. He looked sad.

What happened to him?

When I looked ahead, I noticed one of the housemaids from Louis’ mansion also looking in his direction. Hmm, something was going on between them.

“You know, I was talking with Izaak about having another child after Louis so that our future children would have a playmate. Wouldn’t that be great?” Aunt Hacel asked happily, wrapping both of her arms around mine. She didn’t seem to be joking, but just thinking about what happened between Louis and me in the hospital . . . it made me feel like I didn’t want to have a child yet. If intimacy was already painful, how much more would childbirth be?

“Why do you look pale? Did I say something wrong, Elaine?” she asked. I just smiled at her to stop her from worrying.

“No, Aunt Hacel. I just thought of something,” I explained, trying to erase the thoughts of what Louis and I had done from my mind.

Aunt Hacel sighed, as if tired. “How many times do I have to tell you to call me Mommy Hacel? You know you’re already like a daughter to us.”

I was about to speak when we stopped in front of a white door with various designs.

“We’re here already. Come on in, Elaine,” Mommy Hacel said. I still wasn’t used to calling her that, but it seemed like she would be upset if I didn’t follow her request.

The woman who was with us slowly turned the knob, and as the door opened, a violet-colored room appeared before us. The first thing that caught my attention was the lilac flowers in a vase.

“This room is so beautiful,” I said while smelling the lilacs. Mommy Hacel approached me, so I stood up straight.

“It’s okay. We both love flowers, and I’m happy about that.” She tapped my back. “By the way, this room is mine. We bought it so we can go here anytime we want on vacations. And it's not too far from home,” she explained, making me smile. At first, I thought she was strict, but now I could say she was a good mother, and she always treated me well.

I could say I was lucky because Louis’ parents were kind. I always read in romance novels that mothers often disliked their daughters-in-law because they think the sons’ wives take away the attention that should be focused on them—just like our neighbor who we often hear fight because the mother-in-law complained that the wife of her son didn’t get along with her.

“The room’s interior is good, too. Who designed it?” I asked. The arrangement of the furniture and the perfect lines in the room were truly amazing. There wasn’t a single crooked angle. A lot of money and attention must have been put into making it this beautiful.

“Oh, Elaine, we don’t need to look far because Izaak’s nephew is an engineer. He’s really talented. He’s probably at the party. I’ll introduce you to him later,” she answered with a smile. Our conversation was interrupted when someone knocked on the door.

“Are you done changing?” Louis asked.

Mommy Hacel and I exchanged glances because we hadn’t changed yet.

“Just wait, we’re almost done,” Mommy Hacel lied. She immediately signaled to the two women with us who took out two dresses from a paper bag.

When they revealed the dresses, one was a yellow sheath dress with a corset-like design in the middle, and the other was a fitted red mermaid dress with a tulle skirt and bead designs. It was obvious that when worn, the woman’s figure would be accentuated, but I had never worn a dress like this before since I usually buy maxi and pouf dresses.

“Hmm, don’t you like it, Elaine?” Mommy Hacel asked. I looked at her, thinking if a dress like this would suit me.

“I like it. I’m just wondering if I can pull off such a beautiful dress,” I said, slightly scratching my head in embarrassment.

She simply placed her hands on my shoulders and spoke, “You’re beautiful, Elaine. I’m sure this dress will look perfect on you, so don’t worry. Let’s go ahead and try it on.”

I couldn’t hide my smile because Mommy Hacel was so sweet. I missed my mom, but it was a shame I didn’t get to spend much time with her.

I was sure Mom would be happy to see her daughter about to get married.

“Thank you so much, M-Mommy Hacel,” I stuttered, still not used to calling her that.

“Blaire and Rosetta, help us change. I’m sure Izaak is getting impatient waiting for us,” Mommy Hacel ordered, to which the two women nodded.

After a few minutes, we were done. Rosetta styled my hair in a side bun I didn’t realize would actually look good on me. I always used to wear a ponytail since I didn’t go anywhere special except our campus.

“You look great with that hairstyle,” Blaire said. When she realized what she said, she immediately apologized. I just patted her shoulder and agreed with her.

“You did a great job with the makeup,” I complimented her. She smiled at me and thanked me.

“Elaine, are you ready? Let’s go. I think they’re already bored waiting for us,” Mommy Hacel said. The two of us stood up and went outside.

When we arrived where Louis was, everyone’s attention shifted to us. “Well, how do we look?” Mommy Hacel asked while hugging Uncle Izaak who was with my dad.

I stayed where I was standing when Louis approached me and kissed me on the forehead. “You’re freaking gorgeous,” he whispered, making my cheeks blush.

“Okay, but aren’t you going to greet me? You’re making me feel left out,” Mommy Hacel said, placing a hand on her chest as if she were hurt. I couldn’t help but laugh quietly.

“Dad is there to compliment you,” Louis complained. Mommy Hacel roll her eyes. Kaizer walked up to me, and he was about to hug me when Louis stopped him.

“Hands off, dude. Find yourself a woman to hug,” Louis said, making Kaizer frown.

“Who said Elaine is yours? I was the first one she have a crush on before you!”

My eyes widened. How did Kaizer know that?

“I don’t care, so move.”

Kaizer laughed. I furrowed my brow at his behavior. Why did Louis’ mood suddenly change?

“Wait, hold on,” I said, struggling to keep up with his pace. It was hard to run in these heels that Mommy Hacel made me wear.

“Is that true?” Louis stopped and turned to face me. We were now outside, and I could clearly see the beach from here.

“What do you mean?” I asked since he suddenly brought this up.

“Is it true that you have a crush on Kaizer?” he repeated. This time, he faced me and lifted my chin so that we were staring eye to eye.

“Yes, but that was before. It’s you I like now.” It was obvious that he felt a little sad from what I said, and he was about to turn away when I hugged him.

“Don’t you trust what I said?” I asked. I looked up to meet his eyes, but he was avoiding my gaze.

“I trust you. It’s just that I’m—”

I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him. Thankfully, these heels made me a little taller, although they were quite painful to wear.

“What the heck, live p*rn,” Tyron complained. I immediately pulled away from Louis when Tyron pulled me by the waist.

“Don’t mind that idiot,” Louis said and then kissed me again. I heard a camera click from behind, making my eyes widen.

Don’t tell me Tyron took a picture of us?