Chapter Ten — Unexpected

Emerald

There was nothing but a suffocating silence between Brian and I on our way to the Huxley's home. Neither one of us said anything to each other and frankly, I didn't want to talk to him because I was still very much upset at the fact that he didn't inform me beforehand and now I just have no other choice but to appear in front of his mother without getting a chance to prepare myself first.

It wasn't as though I cared very much what she would think of me but since there is an unknown arrangement between both families, I just didn't want to do anything that would end up messing things up.

When I asked Brian earlier about what his mother was like, he had given me a very vague response and I wasn't satisfied with it at all. His comment only made me more anxious and nervous because I had a feeling that my soon-to-be mother-in-law might not be the nicest person and I just wished that Brian was sensible enough to prep me on the things that I should and shouldn't say.

"We're here," Brian's voice announced and I looked out the window to see that we were driving into a house that didn't even look like a house. The entire building was way too luxurious like some five-star hotel and I couldn't bring myself to even consider the place as a house.

The place looked more like a palace and being in a place like this just made me realise just how real the situation was and I couldn't help but feel even more conscious and afraid.

After attempting to calm myself by breathing in and out several times, I finally stepped out of the car. Thankfully, Brian was patient enough not to try to rush me and I was thankful for that because I needed time to gather myself together so that I don't end up passing out and embarrassing myself.

"Are you okay?" he asked and for a second there, it almost sounded like he was worried about me but when I looked at his face and saw no sign of worry, I realised that I was probably being delusional and that Brian was way too selfish and cruel to relate to my dilemma or care about the situation I was in right now.

"Do you want me to be honest or are you expecting me to lie to you?" I replied.

He scoffed. "Whichever response isn't any of my business, Emerald. Just make sure you don't say anything extremely stupid while you're in there cause if you do, you're definitely not going to like the result and I certainly won't make any effort to get you out of whatever mess you get yourself into. Understood?" he mentioned and just like that, he started walking into the house, leaving me behind and I had to quicken my pace to catch up with him.

"Useless bastard!" I cursed under my breath, trying to keep my facial expression as neutral as possible so that it was not too obvious that I'm nervous and upset.

We walked into the place and the first thing that caught my eye was the huge portrait that was hung up high in the hallway. It came to me as a surprise because I wasn't expecting that to be the first thing that I saw and I unconsciously found myself staring at the woman in the portrait only to realise that she looked exactly like Brian and I immediately figured out that she was his mother.

"That's an interesting portrait," I blurted out, pointing at it and Brian scoffed.

"Just in case you end up seeing more of it around, try not to make such a comment again. Just pretend you didn't see it," he instructed and I'm even more confused.

It honestly feel like there was a lot that Brian wasn't telling me about his mother and the subtle comments he kept making, felt like he is indirectly trying to warn me about his mother but instead of being direct about it and just telling me clearly what I needed to avoid, he was choosing to be so vague and unclear, making me realise that I was certainly going to end up messing up one way or another.

I was about to go off on him and demand a proper explanation but I'm unable to say anything when a young-looking lady dressed in a servant uniform showed up in front of us.

"Good afternoon, Mr Huxley," she greeted in such a soft and gentle tone that made me wonder if that was how servants were supposed to speak.

It wasn't as though I was looking down on her or anything like that but it was surprising to hear her speak in a tone that sounded quite similar to how some of those high society women forced their tone to sound like and I couldn't help the slight discomfort I felt cause her voice sounded a bit too seductive for my liking.

"Hello, Mirabel. Where's my mother?" Brian asked in his usual unimpressed and unmoved tone and I'm guessing I'm the only one bothered by how she sounded cause he didn't even seem to notice anything strange like it wasn't anything new to him.

"She has been waiting for you in the dining area, Sir," Mirabel answered and hearing that Brian's mother was already in the dining area made me feel nervous all over again.

"Thank you," he responded, proceeding to where I assumed was the dining area and I was about to quietly follow behind him until he halted suddenly and turned to face the servant again.

"Mirabel, were you not informed that my fiance and I would be coming in here together?" Brian asked suddenly, and both Mirabel and I were surprised by his question. I was particularly confused because I didn't understand why that question was even important but then I decided not to say anything and just kept watching to see where he was headed.

"I was informed, Sir," Mirabel answered and Brian sighed.

"You knew the lady with me was my fiance and instead of showing proper respect to the woman who is soon to be the Lady of the house, you chose to act disrespectfully by not saying a word of greeting to her and you know very well that I do not appreciate such a mannerless attitude. Let this be the first and the last time you would show her such disrespect because the next time it happens and I happen to witness it, you'll be losing your job immediately," he threatened her and my jaw almost dropped.

The last thing I expected from Brian was for him to demand respect for me and call me the lady of the house. I didn't even take notice of the fact that the girl didn't greet me because I was too busy being nervous and thinking about what could go wrong when I finally met his mother.

Such things usually don't bother me especially when I don't feel entitled to any sort of respect from certain people. It's not as if my marriage to Brian was a happy occasion for me so I wasn't necessarily bothered by such things but it felt really good to hear him demand respect on my behalf and I couldn't help the satisfied smile that crept up my lips.

"I apologise, sir. It'll never happen again," Mirabel quickly apologised but the look on Brian's face was still an unsatisfied one.

"I hope it never happens again and now, I want you to do the needful and show proper respect to the new lady of the house. Apologise to her with your head bowed and acknowledge her presence," he demanded in a harsher tone and I'm taken aback once again by how serious he sounded.

I wanted to chime in and explain to him that I wasn't upset with her and that I didn't need her to bow to me but almost as though he knew that I was going to try to say something, he was very quick to stop me with a stern expression on his face and I just knew better than to say anything to upset him even more.

"I sincerely apologise for not paying you the proper respect you deserve, Mrs Huxley. Please forgive me," Mirabel said, suddenly going on her knees and bowing till her head was on the floor.

I didn't like the fact that she was made to do this and I especially did not like that I was the recipient of such an act, but I composed myself and managed to tell that I had accepted her apology before Brian started to walk away and I had to follow behind him.

"What was that all about? You realise that I'm not used to such things and you just made me feel really uncomfortable back there, right?" I asked, wanting an explanation for the stunt that he just pulled back there because I didn't have a clue why it had to go that far.

"Isn't everything about the marriage already uncomfortable for you?" he asked and I frowned.

"So, is that also a part of the package?" I retorted and he chuckled before pausing and turning to look me directly in the eye.

"That attitude she showed before I reprimanded her is very similar to the attitude you're gonna be getting from a lot of people in my world and I intend on putting every one of them in their place just like I did to her. So, the sooner you get used to it, the better it'd be for you," he responded sternly before resuming his steps and something about what he just said and how he had said it made my heart skip a beat.