The guest room Allison had grown up in felt… too small. Too dull even with the too much faded pink paint.
Lucian leaned against the doorframe the next morning, arms crossed, eyes sweeping the shelf filled with cheap trinkets and untouched trophies. His expression soured when he caught sight of the floral bedsheets.
"You really slept in this?" His voice was low, almost disgusted.
Allison was half-laughing, half-flustered as she dropped her overnight bag by the foot of the bed. "I didn't exactly have options. My stepmother decorated it."
He said nothing, only walked across the room stopping in front of a framed photo of Allison at thirteen, braces and all, holding a school award. Her smile was bright in the picture. But not quite… free.
The silence between them thickened.
Then Lucian muttered, "Marin's room is twice this size."
Allison looked up sharply. "You saw Marin's room?"
He turned to face her fully now. "Your father made me sit through tea in the gallery hall while Madam Feng flaunted it. Marble floors. Chandelier. Walk-in closet the size of a hotel room."
A bitter edge curled his lip. He moved closer and gently took her hand.
"You didn't deserve this," he said quietly.
Allison exhaled, steadying her heart as she looked around the dainty little room. "It's just a room."
Lucian shook his head. "No. It's a cell with ribbons on it."
She was about to answer when a sudden wave of nausea crept up her throat. She touched her stomach absentmindedly the feeling came and went.
"Allison?" Lucian stepped forward, catching the flicker of her fingers brushing her lower abdomen.
"I'm fine," she lied. "Just allergies."
But his gaze lingered on her a little longer than usual.
LATER – IN THE KITCHEN
Mr. Feng wasn't a particularly expressive man. But when Allison stepped into the kitchen to get tea, he looked up from the soup pot and gave her a small nod of approval.
"Good morning, dad"
"How are you doing, my little reindeer?" He said as he pinched her cheeks and Allison couldn't help but chuckle.
"So it's true," he said gruffly. "The cold tyrant proposed."
She smiled faintly. "You didn't believe me yesterday? You saw the news?"
"Marin showed me. Looked like she wanted to break the phone."
That made Allison laugh under her breath.
Her foster father stirred the broth slowly. "You deserve happiness, Allison. Even if it takes everyone else a while to believe you earned it."
"I'm not sure I've earned it."
He looked at her, eyes sharp now. "You think peace and love are trophies? They're not. They're choices. You keep choosing right. That's enough."
She nodded. But part of her still felt like that girl in the little pink room, decorated by someone else, waiting quietly to be noticed.
Mr. Feng sniffed the soup, then turned off the flame.
"You staying here tonight?"
"Just one more night," she said. "He doesn't like my old room."
"Hmph. He's not wrong."
Then, unexpectedly, he reached out and squeezed her shoulde. "You've come far. Don't forget how far."
THAT NIGHT
Lucian was already sitting by the edge of the bed when she stepped in, his phone in one hand, his tie undone.
"I can't believe they made you sleep in this room," he murmured, glancing at the shelf again.
She smiled tiredly. "Forget about that."
He looked at her then.
"You didn't eat much at dinner," he said gently.
She sat beside him. "I wasn't hungry."
He said nothing, only pulled a small silk pouch from his coat. Inside was a string of milky white beads, soft to the touch.
"Prayer beads?" she asked, confused.
He tied them around her wrist slowly. "From a monk my mother once trusted. For peace. And… for protection."
She looked at him, heart stirring in that soft, quiet way she couldn't put words to.
Lucian hesitated. "Allison."
"Yes?"
"If there's something I should be preparing for… something changing—"
"There's nothing," she whispered quickly, though her fingers curled involuntarily over the beads on her wrist
But that night, when he kissed her shoulder and tucked her close to him, he did so more gently than usual. Like she might break.
---
NEXT MORNING
A knock came softly at the door just after sunrise.
Beatrice voice filtered in. "Allison, we have to go if we want to beat city traffic." She had come to pick them up along with some guards.
Inside, Allison stirred from sleep, groggy but calm.
Lucian had already gotten up. He was standing at the mirror, adjusting his cuffs, frowning at the pastel curtains.
"You alright?" he asked.
She nodded slowly. "Yeah. Just a weird dream."
"What about?"
She paused.
"There was… a heartbeat. But it wasn't mine."
He turned. His brows drew together slightly but he didn't press. Instead, he came over, helped her sit up, and kissed the inside of her wrist, just above the white beads then kissed her forehead.
"Let's go home."
Lucian and Allison were getting ready to go.
"Ally, can't you stay a little longer?" Mr. Feng asked.
" No dad, I'm sorry about that ."
" We'll see later on, Marin would come visit you ." Mrs. Feng said sweetly.
"Hmmm."
With that they drove out as Beatrice dropped the gift Lucian asked her to bring. They were expensive and many, Mr. Feng showed his gratitude and also told him to protect Allison very well.
---
Allison returned to work the next day, walking into the buzzing PR floor like nothing had happened. But whispers trailed her.
"Did you see her?" a female colleague hissed behind her screen.
"She's probably slept with the CEO," another muttered.
"President Lucian would never go for a girl like her. She's just the type he'd throw away when he's bored."
"But they're engaged now."
Allison paused by the coffee station, jaw tight, but said nothing.
Then Aaron Li passed by and nodded politely. "Miss Han."
She smiled, grateful for the decency. But before she could say anything, the elevator pinged and Lucian stepped out.
Sharp suit. Dark tie. Presence like a dark emperor.
His eyes found her instantly.
He didn't say a word, he walked straight to her, took her empty coffee cup from her hand, and replaced it with a warm one he'd brought from the executive floor.
He said, "Try this one." Then walked away.
The entire floor fell silent.
Allison sipped it, heart thudding. It was exactly how she liked it, sweet and mellow, with a cinnamon hint.
---
---
NEXT MORNING
Allison sat beneath the plum tree outside the villa, the ring still foreign on her finger. Beatrice was grinning ear to ear, Tianlei eating sugared buns beside her.
"You're seriously engaged to that man," Beatrice teased, nudging her.
"He proposed in front of the board of directors and everyone" Allison muttered, dazed. "I couldn't exactly say no."
Tianlei beamed. "I'm getting a daddy"
"You already have one" Ren said from behind him.
"No, I mean another one who's cool and not so heartless."
Beatrice rolled her eyes and Ren had a scowl on his face.
Just then, Alexa arrived, long curls and sunglasses, effortlessly dramatic. Yevana trailed beside her in muted blue, her silver earrings catching the sun.
Allison stood to greet them. But Yevana's gaze immediately honed in on her.
"You still look pale," Yevana said calmly.
"I'm fine."
"You didn't eat anything at the party."
"I was… overwhelmed."
Alexa poured herself wine and lounged. "Overwhelmed? You're engaged to a living god. I'd be drunk on champagne by now."
Then Yevana handed a glass of wine to Allison.
She took it but her nose crinkled involuntarily at the scent.
"Mm… maybe later."
Yevana's brows lifted ever so slightly. She said nothing but smiled and sipped her own. While Alexa flopped onto the grass beside Tianlei and whispered, "I'm going to marry someone fast just so I can give Mama a second grandchild before Allison steals all the limelight."
Allison, sipping grape juice she had come to like to the extreme, choked violently this time.
Beatrice laughed so hard she nearly dropped her steamed bun. Yevana's gaze never left Allison's face. She knew Allison was hiding something.
But no one said it out loud.
The garden slowly emptied as the sun slid west, trailing long gold shadows across the stone path.
Tianlei had fallen asleep under the tree, one sugared bun still clenched in his fist. Beatrice had taken a call from a client and wandered off to pace near the koi pond. Alexa was flipping through a luxury magazine, humming under her breath.
Allison sat still in the breeze, her fingers lightly curled over her abdomen. The ring on her left hand shimmered faintly, a thing both foreign and final.
She didn't notice when Yevana sat beside her.
"Is it morning sickness?" Yevana asked quietly.
Allison's head turned, startled. "What?"
"The nausea. The way you flinched when you smelled the wine. Your instinct to hold your stomach when you're thinking."
Allison throat went dry. She managed a weak laugh. "You're imagining things."
Yevana didn't push. She simply reached into her clutch and handed Allison a wrapped herbal candy. "Ginger and dried plum. Good for unsettled nerves. Or… unsettled stomachs."
Before Allison could protest, Yevana stood and brushed off her skirt. "Eat something warm tonight" she said. "Don't go to sleep on fruit juice."
Then she walked away, heels clicking softly on the garden stones.