When I Was a Wallflower (Leo and Amelie)
Chapter 225

"Oh, thanks." Amelie only realized she was supposed to take the ginger from him then. She took it and peeled its skin off with a knife while Leo simply stood around and watched her. She was dumbfounded. Why is he looking at me as if I'm putting on some performance for him? "The kitchen can smell pretty oily and smoky after a while. I think you should wait outside, Mr. Alston. Food will be ready in 20 minutes." She felt too uneasy about having him watching her cook, so she 'kindly' reminded him of the stench in the kitchen.

Leo nodded to show acknowledgment but remained in his spot anyway. Amelie no longer knew what to say. Fine, fine. He can watch me if he wants to. A rich guy like him has probably never seen anyone preparing his food. Perhaps he thinks of me as one of those people on cooking shows. In the end, she simply kept her focus on her food, completely ignoring the man's existence.

"Are you good at cooking?" he questioned Amelie when he saw how smoothly she had chopped the ginger into tiny slices. Amelie laughed to herself under her breath. "I bet rich guys like you don't have enough memory to remember everything about your lives. My main duty was to stay in the kitchen and clean the house, remember?" Before she became a part of the Alston Family, she had never once gotten her hands dirty.

Steven treated her like a princess, and he didn't allow her to do any chores at all. However, after she entered the Alston Family, she was downgraded to becoming a maid. Jodie and Melissa's critical comments would fill the house as Amelie desperately tried to complete all her chores. However, Amelie no longer wanted to think about the past, so she merely poured some ginger and garlic into the oil before frying it. Soon enough, the room was filled with the heavy scent of ginger and garlic. Leo tilted his head a little as he watched how smoothly and skillfully she cooked the food. She's right. I never once paid attention to her back in the Alston Residence. I hated her too much back then, so I didn't show any care for what my family did to her or what she was told to do in the house. Every time I saw her walking here and there with Miss Potts, and every time I saw her cooking or doing chores, I just assumed that she was trying to attract my attention. But it's now evident that she doesn't need my wealth to live a good life on her own, Leo thought.

"Is your father a cobbler as well?" he asked. Amelie was sweating from the heat as she cooked, but she froze and turned to look at the man when she heard his random question. Her brows were pressed into a puzzled frown when she realized the way he worded his sentence. Why did he ask if my father's a cobbler 'as well'? Does he know anyone else who's in the same line of work?

She let out a laugh without questioning Leo. She didn't explain the reason she was laughing, but Leo was quick to understand the reason for her laughter. He had been married to Amelie for four years, yet he didn't even know what her father worked as. A rather bashful look surfaced in his cold expression. He reached out and held onto her arm right before she brought the bowl of soup out to the dining area. "Were you a frequent visitor of the hospital in Quinn Town?" he asked.

Amelie turned around to stare at him. Did he recall something? She was about to make a comment when his phone rang out of nowhere. "You should pick it up," she uttered after some hesitation. She still wasn't too sure about how she was going to talk to him about the past.

While Leo picked up his phone, Amelie took this chance to exit the kitchen. He only joined them a while later, looking somewhat uneasy. He rubbed his long fingers against his brows for a while before glancing at Amelie and Bria. Bria was sitting in Amelie's lap, but she was looking at Leo.

Amelie, on the other hand, didn't bother to meet his gaze. "You should leave if you have something to do, Mr. Alston." Her tone was harsh and cold. When she walked out of the kitchen earlier, she overheard the voice on the other end of the line. She heard Elyse's name coming up in the conversation. If Elyse is still interacting with him at this point, then it's clear that their relationship is something beyond their regular friendship. I guess that's good, Amelie thought. If Leo pays more attention to Elyse, then Carol will stop blaming me for taking up Leo's time.

"It's not urgent," Leo replied before he moved to sit beside Bria. Amelie stared at the man for a brief moment, but the man was already busy picking up Bria's bowl to scoop up some rice for her. He scooped another bowl for himself before he reached for Amelie's bowl in front of her. She was utterly speechless at that point. Doesn't he care about Elyse anymore? In that case, why did he seem so uneasy earlier, then?

She only returned to her senses when she felt the weight of a bowl on her palm. What was I thinking about? It doesn't matter if Leo cares about Elyse. It's none of my business. The person who should be worried about this is Miss Joyner. Moreover, he's probably only staying because he doesn't want to disappoint Bria. At that thought, Amelie looked up and focused on eating her meal.

She was a fast eater. She had been a much slower eater back when she was in Alston Residence. Back then, she would slowly chew on one mouthful of food before swallowing it. She used to seem a lot more cautious and fearful. She was so alert that she used to sit only on the edge of her chair. However, right now, Amelie seemed much calmer and more natural in front of Leo. She didn't even seem to bother with her mannerisms as she casually ate her food.

Leo was stunned to see the way she ate. They had eaten in a restaurant the day before, so Amelie might have been a little more careful with the way she ate then. However, when he saw her true nature, he didn't feel disgusted at all. If anything, he felt comforted by the sight of her. "Hurry up and eat, Daddy," Bria urged him by knocking on his bowl. Then, the younger girl placed some food in it.

"Thank you," he uttered before he started eating his meal. Bria hurried off to play with her toys after they were done with the meal. Leo watched as Amelie cleaned the table up with an apron around her waist. For some reason, she seemed both similar yet completely different from the person she was back when she was in the Alston Family. Leo couldn't tell what the change was about.

When he glanced at his daughter, who was playing on her own in the hall, and the woman who was hard at work before his eyes, he felt a wave of serenity washing over him. It felt as if he had finally got home after walking through a snowstorm. This was something he had never experienced back when he was in the Alston Residence.

Amelie felt somewhat puzzled when she walked out of the kitchen after washing her bowls. Why is Leo still here? He still needs to work even if he doesn't want to meet Elyse, right? Why is he acting as if he has just shut down his business and has nothing better to do?

She was aware of how well Leo's company was doing. They had just revealed their report for the first quarter and saw a 300% increase in their net profit. Leo's business used to be considered a significant organization within the city, but at this point, it was practically recognized across the whole nation. He didn't have many competitors. Amelie heard that he had tons of projects to handle.

She was just thinking about that matter when she heard her doorbell ring. She had no idea who would visit her at that time of the day. She was about to walk over when she saw Bria had already tottered over to the door. "Grandpa must be home!" the little girl cried out excitedly as she pulled the door open.

Amelie didn't hear Steven's voice ring out even after the door was opened for a while. And Bria didn't say anything, either. Amelie turned around to see a wheelchair sitting outside her front door. Dressed in white, a long-haired woman sat in the wheelchair with her face covered in makeup. It was none other than Elyse.

Elyse's leg hadn't fully recovered yet, but she didn't want to seem like a mess when she returned to the company. So, she ordered her doctors to give her some painkillers before she put on her heels and headed to work. However, she was back in a wheelchair right now, her arms resting on either side of her wheelchair. Her legs were covered by long white pants, so one couldn't see the condition of her legs. There were beads of sweat on her forehead, and she seemed rather anxious. When Elyse met gazes with Bria, she reached her hands out and held Bria's shoulders. "Is your father here, Bria?"

"What are you doing here?" Leo walked over with a grim look on his face. He bent down and picked Bria up before giving Elyse an icy, distant glare. Elyse eyed him helplessly. She pouted at the sight of how cold and heartless he seemed toward her. "I have some important matters I need your help with," she said.

"What is it?" he asked in the same icy tone.

Amelie was standing a distance away, quietly observing their interactions with one another. She could hear Elyse's soft reply. "It's about my sister..."